I have owned lots of
Fenders, lots of Gretsches,
and a few Gibsons, and
nothing has quite the spirit
of a Rickenbacker guitar.
is unique, except they all carry
the Rickenbacker truss-rod
cover and the Rickenbacker
body design.
to an ideal situation. I have
acoustics that I built three and
four years ago that are holding
up wonderfully because there
is no issue with the wood splitting or shrinking.
Does Rickenbacker supply
you with the hardware and
parts for the acoustics?
I purchase them all at dealer
prices from Rickenbacker.
So you build the acoustics
and sell them?
That is correct—except that I
don’t build them first and then
sell them. People order them
from me. Right now, I am
back-ordered about two years.
I build each one custom for the
individual to his or her style
or size. I’ve done a few narrow
necks. I did one short-scale.
I’ve done some with slanted
frets. Just about every one is a
special color, as well. Each one
Do you source the wood or
get it from Rickenbacker?
Most of the wood came from
Rickenbacker’s shop. When
I acquired the license, I also
acquired a half-container of
wood. It was being stored
at their shop in Southern
California, where it is warm
and the humidity is low. I store
the container at a vineyard in
Sonoma County, where conditions are ideal for storing
wood. It is between 55 and
70 degrees year-round and the
humidity is about 50 percent.
That wood has been acclimated
Even if someone from, say,
New York buys it and puts
it through the extremes of
that climate?
Yes. Most of my sales are to
other areas of the country. I’ve
only sold one or two here [in
California]. Most of them are
going to the East, the South,
or to places like Australia,
Europe, and Japan.
Are there guidelines from
Rickenbacker in terms of
building and restoration?
