R*ckb*ck*er 4003 Walnut...Ooooh Blimey...

[Muzz]

Sooo, I'm casting about all over for a 50th birthday present to myself, lots of options, nothing making me put my hand straight into my pocket...and then I saw a picture of the new 4003W...good grief...

My first decent bass was a Jetglo 4001 (all your fault, Geddy...) back in the Late Jurassic, and since I sold it in the mid-eighties I've never had the slightest GAS for another...until today...

Anyone else seen/like the look of them?

[JapanAxe]

Erm.. wouldn't that weigh about the same as an ocean-going yacht?.

[Musicman20]

I agree, they are beautiful.

I would have preferred the normal rosewood board, and for the wood to have gloss on it (or something) as apparently its very much a dry matt type finish.

Otherwise...love it.

[Dingus]

Walnut [i]can[/i] actually be quite light, depending on how it is selected. Similar to mahogany in that it can be both light or exceptionally heavy. Certain bass builders offer a selected walnut body as a way of lightening their designs, and it helps that lightweight walnut is pretty resonant, apparently. One reason why a lot of Californian guitar builders ( such as Rickenbacker) favour walnut is because it grows everywhere in that part of the world, so there is a big supply of relatively inexpensive walnut to choose from. Typically, I wouldn't think walnut would be any heavier than the maple that Rickenbackers are usually made from, which is not usually a lightweight wood itself.

[Beer of the Bass]

Maple tends to be on the heavy side too. With the slim body depth Ric use, they can get away with it. I'm not sure about the white inlays on maple though, otherwise it looks great.

[Kev]

That looks lovely, however I wish they would have stuck with rosewood/bubinga fretboard, maple doesn't really suit it as well it I don't think!

[Dingus]

Just had a look , I like it!

It reminds me of the kind of colour scheme they used to have on Clarke's Polyveldt shoes in the 1970's:

Edited March 14, 2014 by Dingus

[Muzz]

I'm having one.

[Dingus]

Putting my sensible head on for a minute, it might be that one reason why they have gone with a maple board is that it imparts some of that bright and punchy Rick tone that usually comes from the maple body. Walnut will sound different because it's a much softer wood than maple.

I think this is one of those basses that will look much better in the flesh than it does in photographs, and it looks pretty good in the photographs.

[martthebass]

According to the forum guys (I know, I know), it's about the same weight or a little less than a standard 4003. I don't usually like the look of natural basses but this does look nice.

[bassmachine2112]

OOH vicar !
My mutts droolin like a labrador

[White Cloud]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1394807863' post='2395465']
Just had a look , I like it!

It reminds me of the kind of colour scheme they used to have on Clarke's Polyveldt shoes in the 1970's:



[/quote]
I love the bass but am unsure of the shoes!

[simon1964]

Wow! Always been a fan of Rics and of walnut. Very tempting!

[Black Coffee]

That's gorgeous.....

[Delberthot]

Cor lumme guvnor that is nice and a wee bit like a Lemmy sig Ric and the same price as a standard 4003

Edited March 15, 2014 by Delberthot

[Dingus]

I've just seen one of these for sale in a shop in the U.S.A and it weighs 9 pounds exactly , so typical weight for a Rickenbacker.

[Dingus]

[quote name='White Cloud' timestamp='1394826959' post='2395762']
I love the bass but am unsure of the shoes!
[/quote]

With the right accessories ( like this Rickenbacker bass for example) they could work as part of your outfit.

[thodrik]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1394893579' post='2396390']
With the right accessories ( like this Rickenbacker bass for example) they could work as part of your outfit.
[/quote]

Love the amp and like the shoes.

Starting to think whether it is worth selling a Vigier Arpege and EBS Fafner to obtain the funds...for the shoes obviously.

[Old Horse Murphy]

I'm fortunate enough to own this one.

Weight-wise it's just under 9lbs. They look even better in the flesh

[EMG456]

I see the shoes have the old checkerboard binding...

[namefail]

Oh you mean the Clark's, grrrrr

[jonsmith]

So, has anyone seen these at a particularly competitive price?

[Dingus]

[quote name='EMG456' timestamp='1395012566' post='2397831']
I see the shoes have the old checkerboard binding...
[/quote]

So they do !

[Dingus]

[quote name='Old Horse Murphy' timestamp='1395008311' post='2397777']
I'm fortunate enough to own this one.

Weight-wise it's just under 9lbs. They look even better in the flesh
[/quote]

That is a very lovely bass, Sir!

[gsgbass]

[quote name='Old Horse Murphy' timestamp='1395008311' post='2397777']
I'm fortunate enough to own this one.

Weight-wise it's just under 9lbs. They look even better in the flesh
[/quote]

Very nice! [IMG]http://i.imgur.com/ioKd4hk.gif[/IMG]