RICKENBACKER 75TH ANNIVERSARY PICKGUARD PROJECT

Before RIC purchased their own laser cutting and engraving machines, John Hall and I were discussing the upcoming 75th Anniversary limited series. This was to be 75 units each of a 4003 bass, 360/6, 660/6, and 330/6 guitars, for a total of 300 instruments. RIC had decided to finish these instruments in a color they called “Dark Cherry Metallic” (or, colloquially “DCM”.)

I don’t recall if it was JH or me who suggested that we do a special laser-engraved pickguard and nameplate to provide a commemorative touch, but since I had access to an Illustrator whiz in the guise of consultant Andrew Putman, and Andrew had access to a laser machine, we collaborated on three different pickguard designs and I formulated a rich pearlescent gold as a second-surface paint finish.

We cut, engraved, and painted exactly 300 sets of plastic for these now-rare instruments. The result is seen below. We also did a one-off engraved “75th” pickguard for JH’s personal 700 12 string acoustic, which was played by Paul Kantner and Marty Willson-Piper at the private shows marking the anniversary itself in August, 2006.