Rickenbacker 4080 1980 - Doubleneck 4/6. Black on Black. Extremely rare.

LISTING TITLE

1980 Rickenbacker 4080 Bass/Guitar Double-Neck – Black on Black – All Original, OHSC, Gruhn Letter

DESCRIPTION

Offered from the Richard Davis Collection at the International Guitar Museum in Durham, North Carolina: a 1980 Rickenbacker Model 4080 bass/6-string double-neck in the rare "black on black" dress – Jetglo black finish with black pickguards, cream binding and chrome hardware.

The guitar is all original and comes in its original hard shell case with a February 20, 1996 authentication letter from Gruhn Guitars in Nashville. Gruhn inspected it in person and certified it as a Rickenbacker Model 4080 made in 1980, in black lacquer, in its original case.

Rickenbacker built the 4080 in limited numbers from 1975 to about 1985, and most black examples you see wear white pickguards. Black pickguards on a Jetglo body are seldom seen.

The Rickenbacker double-neck is closely tied to Geddy Lee and Rush's late-1970s era, when Geddy used black and white 4080s on stage. Note: this instrument has no artist ownership history.

SPECIFICATIONS

•Model: Rickenbacker 4080 ("MADE IN U.S.A. MODEL 4080" on both truss rod covers)

•Year: 1980 (confirmed by Gruhn Guitars)

•Serial: TJ4160 (October 1980)

•Upper neck: 4-string bass. Lower neck: 6-string guitar

•Maple body and bolt-on maple necks with individual neck plates

•Bound rosewood fingerboards with triangle inlays

•Four Rickenbacker single-coil pickups, two per neck

•Volume and tone controls, blend knob, pickup and neck selector switches

•Dual output jacks: standard mono and Rick-O-Sound stereo

•Grover tuners on both necks

•Rickenbacker "R" tailpiece on the guitar neck

•Finish: Jetglo black with black pickguards

CONDITION

All original. The black finish shows fine checking (crazing) in the clearcoat – a network of fine lines visible at an angle – which is normal aging for a 46-year-old original lacquer finish.  ·  This is cosmetic. The checking is in the clearcoat and does not indicate structural problems with the wood, necks, or hardware.  On a rare 4080 it is generally viewed as age-related character rather than a fatal flaw, especially if the instrument is otherwise original and playable.  If you want more photos of these finish marks, please let me know.

Both fingerboards show the clearcoat cracking common on Rickenbackers of this era. Rickenbacker coated its rosewood boards with a hard, brittle clearcoat that cannot move with the wood as it expands and contracts, so over time it cracks and can flake. On this guitar both boards have been stabilized: loose flakes were removed, thin CA glue was wicked into the cracks to bond the original finish to the wood, and the surface was leveled and polished. The original clearcoat is kept and the crack pattern is still visible (see photos), but the surface is now smooth and stable and very playable. Kept in stable humidity, this stops further flaking; it is not a permanent cure. This is the only work done on the instrument.  Let me know if you need more photos.

INCLUDED

•Original black hard shell case with blue plush lining and RICKENBACKER badge

•Gruhn Guitars authentication letter (1996)

SHIPPING AND QUESTIONS

Flat shipping charge $250.00 Continental USA or buyer can arrange his/her own shipping.

NOTE:  Buyer has 48 hours after receipt to inspect and play this guitar.  If, after 48 hours the buyer decides to return the guitar, there is a 20% restocking fee. No exceptions.

NOTE:  Seller has right to cancel offers and purchases from prospective buyers who have failed to complete purchase transaction obligations on Reverb or Ebay.