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The Rickenbacker Club Part Twelve

The bridge pickup is in the wrong location. ;)

4004L SPC-1200_0669.jpg
 
Is this one of Sterling’s conversions?
I really like it, although I would’ve kept the Schaller bridge. (Like I did for this one).
Also, Here’s a pic of the JPJ just to jog everyone’s memory.

View attachment 7424636View attachment 7424635

It might be.
IIRC, a guy up in the northwest, OR or WA, was modding 4004s to this configuration.
I had borrowed several images from the web a awhile back, since I love the way these look.
Do we know if that is the actually one JPJ had in the old Led Zeppelin pic?
 
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RIC has never used “pot metal” in their tailpieces. They used a zinc alloy that’s pretty much the same as what most bass bridges are made of that aren’t Fender variants. The design if the V1 was the problem, not the material. BTW, although zinc is the primary metal used in “pot metal”, lead and copper are also present. The current V2 is likely made of the same alloy, although it seems to be a bit harder. It’s the design of the V2 that makes it better, not the material used.
 
I know it's a matter of individual taste and how hot the pickup is but...... is there a good standard "baseline" (no pun intended) for pickup height on a Ric, a three pickup Lemmy 4004LK in particular? When I built this I used (3) "identical" off the shelf Ric Hi-Gains, but I'm definitely getting different volume levels on different settings. It's not a huge difference, but noticeable. I don't know how pickup position affects optimum pickup height either. Just fiddle around until I get more or less even volume? Any genuine Lemmy 4004LK owners out there who have some advice? IIRC these are tighter pickup spacing than genuine 4004LK, the bridge pup matches, but I wanted more meat under the neck pickup, and my fingerboard is slightly longer, and 32" scale with 22 frets, which extends the fingerboard farther onto the body. The middle pickup just splits the difference equally. For controls, it's MV/MT and a 6-position "Freeway" toggle. No other tone cap in the circuit.
1WDiPfk.jpg
 
I've only seen a Ruby once in person, hanging on a wall at a GC in downtown Boston, during the height of Covid. it was pretty Eerie, like some post-apocalyptic scene, nobody around, most of the shops closed, everybody masked up. The GC guys were bored speechless, and let me play it for around half an hour. I went back a month later and it was still there, which is unheard of for a Ric of any type, probably due to lack of foot traffic. Not many people buying $3K basses at the height of covid, with employment hanging by a thread. Gorgeous bass, like a 50's Hot rod.
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f2ZwODU.jpg
 
I know it's a matter of individual taste and how hot the pickup is but...... is there a good standard "baseline" (no pun intended) for pickup height on a Ric, a three pickup Lemmy 4004LK in particular? When I built this I used (3) "identical" off the shelf Ric Hi-Gains, but I'm definitely getting different volume levels on different settings. It's not a huge difference, but noticeable. I don't know how pickup position affects optimum pickup height either. Just fiddle around until I get more or less even volume? Any genuine Lemmy 4004LK owners out there who have some advice? IIRC these are tighter pickup spacing than genuine 4004LK, the bridge pup matches, but I wanted more meat under the neck pickup, and my fingerboard is slightly longer, and 32" scale with 22 frets, which extends the fingerboard farther onto the body. The middle pickup just splits the difference equally. For controls, it's MV/MT and a 6-position "Freeway" toggle. No other tone cap in the circuit.
1WDiPfk.jpg
I'm certainly curious to hear what any 4004LK owners have to say, but I dont know how useful that info will be for your bass because the 4004LK uses HB1 humbuckers. I think your best option is to just adjust them until they sound right for you. I'm not even sure how much Rickenbacker does height adjustment anyway, when I was looking into buying some Ric pickups for my bass last year I was surprised to learn that a lot of their guitar pickups are just bolted to the surface wood with only a small rubber ring that barely provides much range of height. I looked at a lot of pictures of 4004s and it honestly just looks like they make the side flanges flush with the wood.
 
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I'm certainly curious to hear what any 4004LK owners have to say, but I dont know how useful that info will be for your bass because the 4004LK uses HB1 humbuckers. I think your best option is to just adjust them until they sound right for you. I'm not even sure how much Rickenbacker does height adjustment anyway, when I was looking into buying some Ric pickups for my bass last year I was surprised to learn that a lot of their guitar pickups are just bolted to the surface wood with only a small rubber ring that barely provides much range of height. I looked at a lot of pictures of 4004s and it honestly just looks like they make the side flanges flush with the wood.
D'oh! I keep forgetting real 4004LK are Humbuckers! I did recess them down into the body, they are essentially flush at their lowest travel. I guess I'll just tweak them till it sounds right if there is no "recommended" pup height.