Uwe, Just have them put one beefy truss rod in it and it should be fine. From what I know of Ric's after owning a few...Some are good...but a lot of them have that crappy folded trussrod system and I have seem many people remove the fretboard, fill it with wood and reroute for a Normal truss rod. In any case..I still love the dot neck Ric's. A sound of their own. But Not even close to a 60's Thunderbird. Tom, one of these days, when I can drive again, I'll have to swing by with my 8 string. I'd even love to swap for a run in the studio. Mercado is going to remaster one of our first songs so we will be definitely recording with him in the future. Would LOVE to try it for a song or 2. I fantasize about what they must sound like!!!!