Rickenbacker rehab

[dmraco]

I was just given this 20 year old Ric to rehab.  It has 20 years worth of dust and grime in it.  The tuners were corroded and screws stripped.  The pick guard was also cracked totally in half.

I took the whole thing apart and cleaned and polished.  Electronics were in fine shape but needs a new toggle.  I recut a pick guard.  I also polished the entire neck.  It was SO easy since the rosewood is cleared!!  I have some flat wound string ordered, I hear they sound great on these guitars.  The fact alone that I cleaned a ton of rush off the pick-up should help!!

I wish I had some before photos...it was a total barn find.

Enjoy.

 

[mayfly]

OMG that is so cool!  I've owned these for about 15 years.  Some tips from my experience:

1 - use Rickenbacker strings.  Get them here
http://boutique.rickenbacker.com/STRING-SET-GTR-12-STR-10-46_p_680.html

2 - adjust the truss rods so that the neck is perfectly straight under tension.  This will give you the best sound and action.  Of course, make sure the strings are slack before tweaking the rods.  Might need a drop of oil on them, and please use a thin wall nut driver - there is not much room there - it's the most fragile part of the guitar.

Have fun!

 

[dmraco]

Thanks for the tips.  The owner has some strings for me.  I am unsure of the brand.

I checked the neck before tearing it apart. Looked very close to flat.  The twin truss rods is a first for me.  If I need to adjust I would suspect equal turns for each.  Starting out small of course.  No more than 1/4 turn.  Any tips??

 

[mayfly]

I handled the dual truss-rod thing as a 'twist adjustment'.  I'd get the treble side flat, then tweak the bass side so that was flat. then check the treble side again - usually that remained flat.

There is a LOT of tension on the 12 string so be careful.  Once it's set though, it should play with very little effort.  Well, comparatively speaking 

 

[dmraco]

Finished product.  It turned out well.  It took some getting used to the arrangement of the strings with the octave being on the bottom.  Such a unique sound these Rics make

 

[Cagey]

Nice job! That really looks great!

Such a unique sound these Rics make

Yeah, no kidding. You can usually tell one from a mile away. But, in a good way. I especially like their basses.

 

[rgand]

Good job on it. What a fine instrument.  :icon_thumright:

 

[DaveC]

Recommended strings are Pyramid Gold Nickel Flatwounds but think about swapping the octave/3rd from a 10 to a 9 -- it's under disproportionately higher tension.

DaveC

 

[DocNrock]

Very cool project and great outcome.

 

[dmraco]

My buddy just send a vid of him playing it thru a Leslie.  Sounds super cool.  I will work on getting it posted.