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Rickenbacker 4003 Colours?

#21
I have a mapleglow and I still think it looks classy after a lot of years. In my personal opinion, I'd pick any color but black unless you can get one with the checkerboard binding.

Rics are fantastic and you'll truly enjoy playing one.
 
#22
I, too, prefer the original "Sea Green" (not sea foam) which was the 2000 Color of the Year. Coincidentally, there's a Sea Green 4001V63 on eBay right now! (Curses! I'm no longer buying!)

The first time around for Ruby was from 1981 to '89. At first, it was a translucent red over a silver base coat (like a "kandy kolor"), then later, a one-step metallic deep red. This metallic deep red Ruby was brought back in 2012 as a stock color and is still available.

Oh, that story about the "Red Rick" is silly, of course. And there were many Red Ricks made between 1985 and '98. This fire-engine Red, solid and not metallic, came standard with black binding, plastic, and hardware. There were a few made in Red with white binding and plastic, and chrome hardware, but back then it cost extra to get "reverse trim." This and a lot more on all the official RIC colors in the book.
 
#23
PaulBoyer said:
I, too, prefer the original "Sea Green" (not sea foam) which was the 2000 Color of the Year.
Click to expand...

Rickenbacker internally actually sometimes refers to the original 2000 COY "sea green" as "seafoam green"...they apparently changed it to "sea green" to stop comparisons with "seafoam" commonly associated with Fender. What's strange is that this run of green 4001C64 basses in 2011 was originally called "seafoam" but they were quickly changed to "special green" since it was a much duller green than the original "sea green" offered in 2000.

Even on the box they returned the bass to me the last time at the top written in marker is "SFG" for seafoam green...and all correspondence with Rickenbacker regarding refinishing the bass in its current color refered to it as the "Seafoam 2000 color of the year." The original box for the bass (which I still have) has "SG" written on the box for "special green"...

It's actually funny because that's the only documentation that I have the the bass was refinished by Rickenbacker...the serial number with "SFG" written above it on the replacement shipping box! Ha ha...whaddya expect for four thousand dollars?

:)
 
#26
I will second the motion of playing before buying. Unless you have great luck. ive heard too many horror stories about bad ric-experiences to just buy one brand new.

i got really lucky and found a great one locally. its an '09 jetglo. not my first color choice, but the bass played so well, i couldnt pass it up.

not a few days later, a used '78 showed up. i went in and played it. it just didnt have the charm that the '09 did. I was hell bent on buying a vintage one, but that particular ric sounded sub-par.

good luck my fellow ric-enthusiast! if money were no option, id have a hard time deciding between a seafoam green and an all black (did that call that the shadow?).
 
#27
jbd5015 said:
. . . and an all black (did that call that the shadow?).
Click to expand...

There are several "all black" Rick possibilities. The Shadow was specially made for Guitar Center stores in 1986, and 50 or 60 were made. It was a 4003 in Jetglo with a special return of the famous checker binding inside black binding strip. The fingerboard is bubinga with special large black dot position markers. The Shadow is known for its especially thin neck (front to back).

The 200 4003SPC Blackstars made from 1987 to 1990 was a 4003S with a Jetglo finish applied over everything - including the fingerboard (which was non-standard maple). Tiny "pin dot" position markers were applied to the face of the monochrome board. The only things breaking up the "none more black" scheme were the pickup covers, fastening screws, white Rickenbacker letters on the truss-rod cover, and the strings! The Blackstar was made in both four- and five-string versions. Blackstars were sold alongside the all white Tuxedo and all red Redneck.

There are also a few Jetglo Ricks with "reverse trim" option: black binding, black plastic, and black hardware installed.
 
#30
Mine is Fireglo, and I like it, but any color you can get is pretty good. Rickenbacker does strange things as far as deliveries to shops and color runs. It's a different buisiness model from most, but it seems to work for them. If you want one right away, you pretty much have to find on in stock somewhere or buy one used.
 
#31
PaulBoyer said:
There are several "all black" Rick possibilities. The Shadow was specially made for Guitar Center stores in 1986, and 50 or 60 were made. It was a 4003 in Jetglo with a special return of the famous checker binding inside black binding strip. The fingerboard is bubinga with special large black dot position markers. The Shadow is known for its especially thin neck (front to back).

The 200 4003SPC Blackstars made from 1987 to 1990 was a 4003S with a Jetglo finish applied over everything - including the fingerboard (which was non-standard maple). Tiny "pin dot" position markers were applied to the face of the monochrome board. The only things breaking up the "none more black" scheme were the pickup covers, fastening screws, white Rickenbacker letters on the truss-rod cover, and the strings! The Blackstar was made in both four- and five-string versions. Blackstars were sold alongside the all white Tuxedo and all red Redneck.

There are also a few Jetglo Ricks with "reverse trim" option: black binding, black plastic, and black hardware installed.
Click to expand...


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Paul.....Might you (or anyone) have a current "Color List". I'd really like to get/order another White 4003 with Black Pickguard and Black Binding. Are they Available??
 

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#34
Right now, the only stock colors are Mapleglo, Jetglo, Fireglo, Midnight Blue, and Ruby, plus the three special colors for the 4004Cii, Trans Red, Trans Blue, and Trans Green. Every now and then, (more often lately) RIC does a short run of a special color (witness the recent "SnowGlo" white). You really have to catch these as soon as they come out, and there's no predicting when or what we'll see next.

Except for a few one-offs, RIC discontinued the black trim/black hardware option in 2002.
 
#38
PaulBoyer said:
Right now, the only stock colors are Mapleglo, Jetglo, Fireglo, Midnight Blue, and Ruby, plus the three special colors for the 4004Cii, Trans Red, Trans Blue, and Trans Green. Every now and then, (more often lately) RIC does a short run of a special color (witness the recent "SnowGlo" white). You really have to catch these as soon as they come out, and there's no predicting when or what we'll see next.

Except for a few one-offs, RIC discontinued the black trim/black hardware option in 2002.
Click to expand...

I love the trans red ...

red-ric020.jpg


r4004%20028.jpg
 
#39
Bassist4Eris said:
I bought this used many years ago. I have no idea of the "official" color name. But as you can see, Red + Ric = Sexy!
Click to expand...

Nope, that is RED. Just plain old Red. The story I've heard is that the RIC folks were impressed by the looks of some of the color schemes on cars back in the mid-1980s, when "black chrome" trim was all the rage. I think many auto makers had red paint jobs with black trim, and RIC rode that wave for a while. RED came standard with black binding, pickguard, truss-rod cover, and black hardware. A few were done in "reverse trim" with the white binding and plastic and chrome-plated hardware. RUBY was a metallic red and was standard with white/chrome trim, but a few had the black trim.
 

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