What brands made rickenbacker copies?

[Musky]

Are you thinking of the film with the black detective named 'Shaft'?

Shaftesbury is actually a town in Dorset, England and (I presume) is where Shaftesbury Basses were manufactured.

And it's also the name of a road in central London (Shaftesbury Avenue) where Rose Morris, the distributors of the Shaftesbury brand, were situated.

Rose Morris sourced their Shaftesbury brand from all over the place - Japan, Korea, Italy, and yes England (though London rather than Dorset). They were probably sourced from whoever gave them the best deal at the time. Their Rickenfakers were Japanese, but nobody seems to have been able to identify exactly which factory.

 

[Meddle]

I think Rickenbackers are suffering from a case of Tulip Mania:

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I wouldn't pay for the Univox 1970s copies with the asking prices being what they are. Its pure hype.

Even when Sonic Youth were a poor bunch of art students you will find Kim Gordon plunking away on a Rickenbacker. They USED to be cheap (or realistically priced?).

 

[JanglyStrat]

Their Rickenfakers were Japanese, but nobody seems to have been able to identify exactly which factory.

Shaftesbury was an italian factory which was commissioned by Rose Morris to build a serie of copies. Great fakes, though!

 

[Musky]

Shaftesbury was an italian factory which was commissioned by Rose Morris to build a serie of copies. Great fakes, though!

Well some of the copies were made in Italy. The weird 4 string version of the rick 330 they did was sourced from Eko in Italy, but they also sourced the same instrument from Japan.
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'Shaftesbury' never had a factory anywhere though - it was just a brand name used on instruments imported by Rose Morris.

 

[Meddle]

Shaftsbury also made a guitar with an organ built into it, along with several crazy wah/fuzz pedals with built in white noise and siren effects.

 

[Chasarms]

Ibanez had a neck through one. I have seen one before.

lowsound

I played one of those on loan for a while when I was a kid. It was a DEAD RINGER for a Ric. If you would have changed out the labeling, I don't think anyone would have even known it wasn't the real deal.

It was cream and white. Super cool bass.

 

[Baker69]

And it's also the name of a road in central London (Shaftesbury Avenue) where Rose Morris, the distributors of the Shaftesbury brand, were situated.

Rose Morris sourced their Shaftesbury brand from all over the place - Japan, Korea, Italy, and yes England (though London rather than Dorset). They were probably sourced from whoever gave them the best deal at the time. Their Rickenfakers were Japanese, but nobody seems to have been able to identify exactly which factory.

Yes, I had a recollection of there being a Japanese connection.

As I recall Shaftesbury were decent Rik copies but Ibanez were considered to be the best!

Didn't Framus also produce a Rik copy - and Hondo as well?

 

[MaddogMonument]

oh god more info on fake rics im loveing this so im bumping this dead thread

 

[vanscoy]

I bought this Greco from a fellow TB'er a couple of years ago after selling my 4003 and regretting it. I didn't have the money for another Ric so I bought this for $750. I don't have the desire for a real Ric anymore. This bass is as good IMO.

If those CHinese hack basses from the beginning of the thread looked like this one, no one would be laughing. I would buy one in a second! $750 is a steal for this..... how does it play?

 

[Spinal Tapper]

I'll jump in. Here's my early model Ibanez "Rick" copy. I picked it up off craigslist from a guitarist for about $250 (local too!) on MY BIRTHDAY.

Twas a great day. Also, it was covered in reflective vinyl stripes, I had to strip her down with my fingernails. It did reveal a nicely protected coat of glossy black paint underneath! She's now one of my favorite basses.

Before:

During:

After:

 

[kcole4001]

Looks pretty nice once you got those stripes off!

 

[Mofo-Kang]

Well, all the Japanese basses tend to come from a few factories. Companies just ordered them and slapped their brand name on the truss rod cover. Look for the serial on the jack, look for the number of truss rods. Most copies only had 1. Every real Ric has 2. Joey's Bass notes has a detailed checklist. There were neckthrough copies made. I've got one

My Aria Pro clone is neck-thru also.

 

[One_Dude]

I haven't read every entry in this post, but want to ask a simple, or maybe complex, question. I have been playing bass for 40 plus years, and have basses from most of the main stream makers; Fender, Gibson, Peavey, Ibanez, Epiphone, and some from lesser known companies. I think I can get just about any bass sound that I want.

My question is this: What is the appeal of Rickenbacker? I have never played one so I have no first hand knowledge of their sound, feel, versatility, or construction. Their look strikes me as being quirky and instantly recognizable, but beyond that I am puzzled. Please educate me about Rickenbackers.

Thump on,

One_Dude

 

[Bugspray]

I've owned Maya, Ibanez, Univox and Electra models with the neck through.