Rickenbacker Maintenance

[mapleglo]

Does anybody else on earth experience the nightmares this guy rants about? He sounds even more bitter than me when I bought my first American Fender in '99. Jeez!

I can't remember ever breaking a string on any of my Ric's, nor do I remember accidentally hitting the pickup selector switch while playing. I can only imagine that the guy in the video plays bass like Pete Townsend plays windmill power chords on the guitar. That's the only way I can think of to break strings and hit the pickup switch.

And low output on the pickups? Maybe he should swap out his First Act 5w amp for something a little better.

On the plus side, perhaps people will start listening to him, and Ric's will experience reduced demand, and then prices will drop, especially in the used market

 

[Wolfenstein666]

I can't remember ever breaking a string on any of my Ric's, nor do I remember accidentally hitting the pickup selector switch while playing. I can only imagine that the guy in the video plays bass like Pete Townsend plays windmill power chords on the guitar. That's the only way I can think of to break strings and hit the pickup switch.

And low output on the pickups? Maybe he should swap out his First Act 5w amp for something a little better.

On the plus side, perhaps people will start listening to him, and Ric's will experience reduced demand, and then prices will drop, especially in the used market

Ah mapleglo, your earthy logical wisdom has me laughing hysterically.

 

[Jeff Scott]

Something that applies to all brands of basses, is to bend down on the neck a bit to relieve tension and stress when tightening a truss rod.

 

[JMacBass65]

That video....

If you don't like something then just walk away from it, don't stick around and try to dissuade others. ANYWAY.

I'm by no means someone who can do a perfect set up on any bass. I know my way around enough to get it close to where I like it but nothing close to a professional set up. Having said that I adjusted the rods on my 2015 4003 with no problem. Got the neck set dead straight, and the bridge string height adjustment really helps to get the action just right. It's all very easy to do save for the intonation (which BTW I have not tried to do, intonation was almost dead on when I got it).

It's a little more involved than say an Ibanez or something like that, just don't let it intimidate you because at the end of the day its not very hard at all. If you decide to purchase one go through Wild Wood Guitars in Colorado. They will examine the bass and make sure it is free of factory defect before it gets shipped to you, eliminating 99% percent of the hassle, and their prices are excellent.

Endrant

edit for potato level grammar

This!

I really don't get why people are so mystified by it all. It's just not that hard.

That said, I do most of my own car repairs, unless they come down to the computer controlled stuff. Home repairs? Yeah, I do those too.

Maybe it's because I have been a tinkering sort of guy since about the age of ten that I don't hesitate to grab a tool and go at something. And with YouTube and other resources at our disposal, you can usually avoid making the uninformed mistakes.

I dunno, for me, this stuff just ain't a big deal. That said, I have encountered many people that have no business using any tool more complicated than a knife and fork. So there is that to consider.

 

[Ric5]

Truss rod wrench is tough to get your hands on.

Any hardware store will have that tool

 

[Wolfenstein666]

Any hardware store will have that tool

True, but I will say in my experience the one that I bought was too big to fit in the Truss Rod Cavity. Look for the absolute smallest one you can find.

 

[Ric5]

No, a Rickenbacker isn't just as easy as a Fender to setup and adjust. However, the small incremental difference shouldn't be sufficient to change anyone's mind about owning a Ric one way or the other.

A 4004 or a 2000 series bass is pretty much the same as a Fender bass.

 

[Ric5]

I can't remember ever breaking a string on any of my Ric's,

The last time I broke a string was 1969.

 

[Mantis Tobaggan]

I have already dissected that video in another thread but in short, it is a pack of lies.

 

[DigitalMan]

A 4004 or a 2000 series bass is pretty much the same as a Fender bass.

The scope of my answer was aimed at the basses the OP is considering.

 

[Charlzm]

So much for Canadians being mellow and polite!

I have had three Rics over the years and have had no issues with them at all.
I have owned and played Rics, Fender, Yamahas, Ibanez, Washburn, Schecter, Warwick, Kiesel, Laravee, Guild, Line 6 and custom basses over the last 35 years and have only ever had one string break. And of course, it was during a gig during the last song about 4 bars before I was supposed to take my turn in an extended jam.

Anyway, my point is that either string technology has come a long way since the 70's (when this guy's Ric was apparently shedding strings left and right) or that his Ric needed some kind of work on the bridge saddles.

 

[Phil508]

I remember when I bought my 4001 new in 75, it needed a little more setup in the beggining, but once it was setup the way I like it, it has not been touched since. Only time I tune it (even if sitting for over a year) is when I change strings. Only other problem was the pickup selector switch would not stay on the Bass pickup only, opened it up bent the spring/contact a bit and its been fine.

 

[kcole4001]

Does anybody else on earth experience the nightmares this guy rants about? He sounds even more bitter than me when I bought my first American Fender in '99. Jeez!

That guy's just a hater.
Maybe a Rick bass bit him when he was young or something, who knows...who cares...

To the issue at hand: I just had my '76 4000 out of the case for a bit of a play Tuesday and it's still my best playing bass.
I last adjusted the neck around 1992 I think, when I changed the string tension slightly.

I do find the newer necks need more frequent adjustment.
I tweak my 4003 a couple of times a year when necessary.

The bridge, while a pain to intonate at first, can stay set unless you make some big changes in strings somewhere along the line.

 

[DigitalMan]

The problem is that the OP question allows for tempered answers. The video is more of a lightning rod and a good excuse to polarize the conversation.

The specific actions involved with setting up and maintaining a Ric (of the 4003 variety) are a little more involved than your typical Jazz bass. However the difference is not monumental. Specifically dual truss rods bring into consideration equal tension and ensuring you aren't twisting the neck inadvertently. Also, setting intonation is a PITA by design compared to any normal bass. There are people who set intonation once, and there are people who set it after every string change. Frequency doesn't change the steps involved in making the adjustments.

These are not huge issues. They are also not non-issues.

 

[JMacBass65]

The problem is that the OP question allows for tempered answers. The video is more of a lightning rod and a good excuse to polarize the conversation.

The specific actions involved with setting up and maintaining a Ric (of the 4003 variety) are a little more involved than your typical Jazz bass. However the difference is not monumental. Specifically dual truss rods bring into consideration equal tension and ensuring you aren't twisting the neck inadvertently. Also, setting intonation is a PITA by design compared to any normal bass. There are people who set intonation once, and there are people who set it after every string change. Frequency doesn't change the steps involved in making the adjustments.

These are not huge issues. They are also not non-issues.

Excellent, well articulated, points.

I would say, that none of these reasons is a reason to avoid a Rick if it's a sound and/or a look you want.

 

[jbd5015]

Having just pulled a '78 4001 completely apart, they are a bit 'quirky' when compared to Fenders, but by no means are they complicated or difficult.

The neck on this '78 is straight as an arrow, with or without strings on it. Excited to see how it sets up with a hipshot bridge and TI rounds, which are much lower tension than most strings out there.

 

[CGremlin]

That said, I do most of my own car repairs, unless they come down to the computer controlled stuff.

Funny that you mention that just as I just now got in from replacing one of the front wheel bearings on my truck. Gotta wait to do the other one since it looks like it's going to rain. Getting the hub assembly off was a PITA, but some PB Blaster, a chisel, and a 3-pound sledge helped.

 

[BigJohnAZ]

I bought my '77 4001 in 1980 and the only thing I ever had to do was adjust intonation on the G string once. Even when I changed brands of strings, it stayed intonated. The neck relief was what it was when I bought it and I have never had to adjust it. One other thing, I moved from Chicago to Phoenix in 2000, I hadn't played the instrument from 1990 to 2010. When I started playing again, it was barely out of tune. I mean no more than when you retune it due to humidity or temperature change. That impressed the hell out of me.

 

[Snowglo]

What's a "set up"? I guess I need to Google it.

 

[newfuture]

I've got a 67 and an 81 (4001s & 4001). Neither have required adjustments to truss rods in the time I've had them (about 18 and 30 years respectively).

Getting the intonation was a PITA (partially because of those silly under-the-strings phillips screws, and also because they were already stripped when I got the 4001), but neither have required substantial further adjustment on either instrument after I got it dialed in (always have used the same gauge strings on these). YMMV; these have never toured and never spent much time greater than 50 miles or so from my home base (which has always been in that radius), so they've not experienced much climate variation.