Rickenbacker Bass Pickup

[RedHouse]

I have a rewind to do on bridge p.up from a 70's 4001 Ric..

70's 4001 was anywhere from 6K -to- 7.8K depending on which one you had in your hand at the moment.

You should use #44 (buy some from BaeWire, there is a link on here somewhere) because any other gauge will make the Ric sound different.
(and Ric players don't like that!)

[big_teee]

Hey all, new to the forum here- I've gotten some useful info here in the past, thought maybe I'd start contributing.

I have a rewind to do on bridge p.up from a 70's 4001 Ric.
Its came in open so I have no idea what the resistance is supposed to be. The neck reads 8.2k on this bass, so I'm gonna aim this side of 9 for the bridge, which seems to be in the ballpark from what I've read here.

As for the wire, my mic says it's .003", and I mean exactly .003" or even slightly over, (yes, that includes insulation I know..)which leads me to believe its #42
I'll let you know results when I'm done, as in how many turns it took and how the output balances etc.

Incidentally, I have no idea where to source #44 wire- any tips will be appreciated.
And to pick up an earlier topic from this thread, I charge $40/coil plus my standard install/remove fee which $30/p.up in most cases. It's a little on the low side for where I am (Toronto) but I'm kind of new to winding and it's my "thanks for the vote of confidence" price for the time being until I get some more copper under my belt.

If it really is .003 Inch?
That is large for 42 HFV.
44 should read .0020-.0024" for single Build.
I have been buying My wire lately from Remington.
Tell them Terry sent you.
If you check their shipping is less than BAE.
Magnet Wire
Good Luck,
Terry
**Edit Note
You charge $40 a coil?
So a Humbucker would be $80 + $30 for remove, and Install?
Please clarify!

[6string_rodder]

If it really is .003 Inch?
That is large for 42 HFV.
44 should read .0020-.0024" for single Build.
I have been buying My wire lately from Remington.
Tell them Terry sent you.
If you check their shipping is less than BAE.
Magnet Wire
Good Luck,
Terry
**Edit Note
You charge $40 a coil?
So a Humbucker would be $80 + $30 for remove, and Install?
Please clarify!

Yes, really is .003". it LOOKS huge and FEELS huge (very stiff) which is why I'm doubtful it's 44?.
Well, I have it to 5.8K and out of space. The original wind was definitely not this FAT.... methinks I will have to try again, but I will solder it in for a test run first, see what it sounds like - might as well before I cut it off...

-Yes- a humbucker would be $110 inc. remove and install. high? low?

[David Schwab]

You charge $40 a coil?
So a Humbucker would be $80 + $30 for remove, and Install?
Please clarify!

I charge $50 per coil on humbucker rewinds. I charge $60 for single coils.

[big_teee]

Great price, if you can get it.
T

[6string_rodder]

Fianl results

Yes, really is .003". it LOOKS huge and FEELS huge (very stiff) which is why I'm doubtful it's 44?.
Well, I have it to 5.8K and out of space. The original wind was definitely not this FAT.... methinks I will have to try again, but I will solder it in for a test run first, see what it sounds like - might as well before I cut it off...

OK the final results are in-

Once I got into the inner windings I measured the wire again, it's more like .00275", exactly like my poly #42. (maybe because of the lacquer on the outer winds?) I don't have #44, but the original wire is VISIBLY thicker than the #43 that I have, so I'm very confident it is in fact #42.

I wired the pickup in as I had it yesterday at 5.8k, it was a surprisingly good volume match for the neck, but a little thin sounding in comparison, very weak on the bass response.

So I went at it again- this time taking extra care to wind tightly and neatly, and managed to get 9500 turns on it coming in at 7k. (If you recall the neck pickup is 8.5k on this bass) the coil is still fatter than the original- I can tell because of where the paint, which was applied after winding comes up to on the bobbin. I put it in to test and this time it was actually noticeably louder than the neck with the height set appropriately.... so I took 1,000 winds off, bringing the resistance down to 6.45k- it sounds just right. Balanced output compared to the neck pickup, and the tone is good, punchy and pronounced but still has those typical Ric nasal highs. The sound is kind of rounded off at the edges if you will. Also noticed that the coil comes up to right about where the black paint is on the bobbin.

So I'm calling this one done... I'm taking it home to wax pot (always do unless specifically asked not to) and will give it back to the customer tomorrow- the most important judge of the result.

[David Schwab]

OK the final results are in-

Once I got into the inner windings I measured the wire again, it's more like .00275", exactly like my poly #42. (maybe because of the lacquer on the outer winds?) I don't have #44, but the original wire is VISIBLY thicker than the #43 that I have, so I'm very confident it is in fact #42.

That must have been rewound then, because they have always used 44AWG.

You said yourself:

Well, I have it to 5.8K and out of space. The original wind was definitely not this FAT....

So it wasn't 42.

[David Schwab]

Great price, if you can get it.

It's the standard going rate. Check around and see.

I get it all the time. I have one in the mail to me right now.

[6string_rodder]

That must have been rewound then, because they have always used 44AWG.

It was 42, I'm sure of it. May have been a previous rewind, although it didn't look like it.

I'm no pickup guru, but I have been doing guitar repair for almost 10 years and in my experience there are always exceptions to the rule...look up the 'official' specs on any manufacturer and sooner or later something will cross your bench that shouldn't exist, like a serial number indicating a certain manufacture year and a piece of obviously original hardware indicating another, a color/ feature mash up that wasn't supposed to exist or some other sort of paradox....
Here's an earlier post from this thread:

... If you ask Rickenbacker they will say they have always used 44 gauge wire on their pickups, most likely Formvar, but some people have the opinion that some vintage RIC pickups were 43 or 42 gauge. I tend to believe that there were some that were other gauges myself, but don't know firsthand. I had Possum rewind for me a toaster pickup with 43 gauge as hot as he could do, and its around 9.5k. We used 44 PE, (because thats what I had) and I have not tried it yet. With 44 gauge PE as hot as you can get it, it is around 12.5k on the same type of bobbin....

You said yourself:

Well, I have it to 5.8K and out of space. The original wind was definitely not this FAT....
So it wasn't 42.

Yes I ran out of space and didn't hit my mark for resistance, but that mark was an estimate based on other pickups -I have no idea what the resistance was originally on this one.

[David Schwab]

Yes I ran out of space and didn't hit my mark for resistance, but that mark was an estimate based on other pickups -I have no idea what the resistance was originally on this one.

Yeah, but no Ric pickup is 5.8K. Even with 44gauge wire. The pickups in my '73 are around 8K and the new ones are about 12k.

All Ric pickups are wound with 44 AWG and have been for the last 50 years.

[6string_rodder]

Yeah, but no Ric pickup is 5.8K. Even with 44gauge wire. The pickups in my '73 are around 8K and the new ones are about 12k.

Fair enough, this is what I found-

...bringing the resistance down to 6.45k- it sounds just right. Balanced output compared to the neck pickup, and the tone is good, punchy and pronounced but still has those typical Ric nasal highs.

That's where I left it at and my ears tell me the results are good.

All Ric pickups are wound with 44 AWG and have been for the last 50 years.

[David Schwab]

6string_rodder, we're trying to teach you something here. If you want to be a smart ass go somewhere else. You came in asking about the pickup, so we are telling you about the pickup.

As I said, that pickup was either wound with 44 and you didn't read it correctly, or someone rewound it at some point. If you look at a stock Ric bridge pickup, the bobbin is nowhere near full.

As a couple of examples, here's a '69 Hi-Gain and my own '73 Hi-Gain bridge pickups. You can see how little wire there are on the bobbins.

[Mike Sulzer]

6string_rodder, we're trying to teach you something here.

By repeating the same thing over and over? I think he got the point. Not sure you got his. So you do not like quotes from old TV shows? I think editing his post was an unnecessary violation of freedom of expression.

[RedHouse]

WTF?

[David Schwab]

By repeating the same thing over and over? I think he got the point. Not sure you got his. So you do not like quotes from old TV shows? I think editing his post was an unnecessary violation of freedom of expression.

Which TV show might that be Mike?

And where is this "freedom of expression" law posted that I violated?

I found it rude and dealt with it. Just like they do at MIMF and other forums. As little as I get involved in this kind of stuff, I was asked to be a moderator. That's what moderators do.

The other unwritten law is don't annoy the moderator.

I seem to remember you asking me to edit someone's post you didn't like about you, right? Where was their freedom of expression?

Sure, we kept telling him the facts, but he kept insisting he was right.