Cool Rics on eBay / Reverb / Craigslist

[leftybass]

Speaking of Rics, my lefty 4001CS is pictured in the new Rickenbacker Bass book.

[ilan]

Blackstar #17... $2,700 Starting bid $3,525 BIN.

[ilan]

An unusual RED '96 4003 in "reverse trim" (chrome/white instead of the standard RED/BT). I love it.

There was another one that sold from Japan in May, it was a '98 and had a similar color bleed into the binding.

[Dave W]

I remember when they couldn't give away red ones in the early to mid 80s. Times change.

[gearHed289]

I remember when they couldn't give away red ones in the early to mid 80s. Times change.

Maybe. No bids yet. 

Good looking bass. Very Christmas-y! That color looks so much better with the white/chrome.

[Dave W]

I agree. The black trim with red wasn't nearly as nice.

[ilan]

I agree. The black trim with red wasn't nearly as nice.

And that is why they couldn't give away red ones in the 80s.

[Paul Boyer]

And that is why they couldn't give away red ones in the 80s.

I don't know. If they couldn't "give them away" in the '80s, then why was the color available from 1985 to 1998, and most of them with black trim?

But I'll agree that colors other than the evergreen trio (Fireglo, Jetglo, and Mapleglo) are comparatively a tough sell. Some of my personal favorite colors were poor sellers: Sea Green, Turquoise, Ruby. The trouble with marketing on nostalgia is that the buyers mostly want the old standby colors and features. Höfner tried red burst and blue burst 500/1 basses around 2000-'01, and apparently had difficulty selling only a hundred or so. The traditional brown burst (or violin finish or whatever they call it) sells like hotcakes.

[Dave W]

Ricks weren't selling well around here for a number of years, and there were some that hung in stores for years. An unusual number of them were red, usually with black trim. A friend of mine bought his red/BT 360 for well below dealer cost about 1994 because it had been there so long.

[ilan]

(or violin finish or whatever they call it)

They call it Brunette.

[FrankieTbird]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RICKENBACKER-4002-BASS-1982-EXCELLENT-Rare-as-hens-t-eeth-according-to-Hall-/141116258039?

[Paul Boyer]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RICKENBACKER-4002-BASS-1982-EXCELLENT-Rare-as-hens-t-eeth-according-to-Hall-/141116258039?

Yeah, that one and an early 4000 have been on eBay for at least a year, both set at unrealistic prices. I suppose some fool with more money than sense will pay that much someday, but more recent 4002 sales have been more like $5G - $8Gs.

[ilan]

For a fraction of that price I'm sure you can have one of the Ric-knowledgeable luthiers convert a 4003 to a 4002.

[Dave W]

For a fraction of that price I'm sure you can have one of the Ric-knowledgeable luthiers convert a 4003 to a 4002.

And it wouldn't sound as good.

[FrankieTbird]

Yeah, that one and an early 4000 have been on eBay for at least a year, both set at unrealistic prices. I suppose some fool with more money than sense will pay that much someday, but more recent 4002 sales have been more like $5G - $8Gs.

It looks like all the instruments from that seller are listed at ridiculous prices.  Not really sure about that strategy...