Rickenbacker 4003 "new slim profile neck"

Interested to hear the answer; which bass dealer was it?

 

I hope it's not a misnomer as the "new width" thing is on all the 4003s's...

 

4003, 4003s & 4004 neck profiles are all the same.
The necks are all CNC routed, and have had the same profile for many years now.
Full width inlays (on the 4003) have been standard since 2008.
Resident Ric expert Paul Boyer may have more to say on this if he chimes in.

 

Neck profiles were standardized around 2009.

My old 2008 had one of the slimmest neck profiles I've ever felt, but I've played others from around that time period that felt like baseball bats.

 

Even though they are CNC'd, It's really down to the last person to sand the neck, some thinner, some fatter. Somebody did a comparison of Ric neck thickness a while back and found it's only around 1/16" to 1/8" difference, but that's enough to feel it. If you want a really thin neck you have to look at 70's models, but even then it wasn't consistent year to year. My 79' was scary thin and pretty stable, but some of the really thin ones had neck problems, so it's a crap shoot. The newer profile feels like a P Bass to me, but it's not uncomfortable.

 

On basses, the FWI started with the introduction of the 4001 model in the early 1960s. and were phased out by late Spring of 1973. Those were the "full depth" (pretty deep routes in the fingerboard) version and were made with various materials over the years (poured resin, crushed pearl, etc.), most changes occurring throughout the 1960s. From the transition time up through early 2008 the inlay's routes were made narrower (fingerboard edge to edge) to add strength to the necks. In early 2008 FWI were reintroduced using a plastic kind of material that is much thinner allowing for a shallower route in the fingerboard to maintain even greater strength of the neck.

 

I'm right there with you. I have always though they were a very cool looking / sounding instrument.

 

Rickenbacker necks tend to run in batches from year to year; this year's necks may very well be slimmer (top to bottom) than last year's - or they may be a little thicker... I have a sneaky suspicion that John Hall decides this stuff, by flipping a coin at the factory Christmas party. But, as Gilmourisgod said, there's considerable hand finishing on a Rick, and the neck profile will differ from bass to bass. Quite a bit, sometimes. Someone posted a list of "Thick neck/Thin neck" by year, on the Rickresource forum a few years ago. Personally, I don't know how useful it is; my 2001 COY 4003 is supposed to be from a "thick" year, but it's neck is almost exactly the same profile as the very skinny neck on my '73 4001. Which makes me happy, but so much for lists... Like I've said before; if ever there was a bass that you must have in your hands before you buy, it's a Rick....

 

Plot twist, it's an april fool's joke.

 

Very much so. First time I tried a Rick, I didn't like it. Second time, loved it. It changes a lot.

 

Yeah my '08 4003 has a pretty slim neck compared to the chunkier neck on the new '17 I tried out last week.

 

Agreed, Harry... impresses at the modest dive bar, and is a worthy accessory on a space voyage to the Shazbot system of Antares West...

 

My new 2017 Jetglo is perfect. Definitely not thin.

 

Consistency not the watch-word at Rick...

 

The neck on the one Ric I've tried was incredibly comfortable. I really can't describe it. Fast like a Jazz neck, but girthy like a Precision neck somehow, at the same time.