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Rickenbacker – the sound of the British invasion. The 1960s jangle was typified by these wild instruments. The Beatles used this exciting sound to rocket themselves to stardom, which cleared the path for all those that followed. Rose Morris were an important musical instrument distributor in the 1960s and were responsible for the import of Rickenbacker guitars as of 1964. The instruments distributed through Rose Morris were slightly different to the US models. The predominant identifier being an ‘F’ hole rather than the ‘Cats Eye’ cutaway on the US models. They also used different model numbers. The US variant of this particular guitar being the ‘345’ model. The Rose Morris version is the ‘1998’. This 1965 ‘Rose Morris’ 1998 is the same model that a very young Pete Townshend started playing in ‘The High Numbers’ a band that had the good sense to change their name to ‘The Who’ in 1964.
This guitar has been owned by its current owner for most of its life, being purchased near new in the late 1960s and gigged extensively during the 60s and 70s. There is visible play wear as expected from a well-loved instrument that survived the 1960s. Despite this, the guitar has been lovingly cared for and plays excellently. The neck is straight with a touch of relief. Action is low and fast with a comfortable size. Rickenbackers are known for their thinner necks, which make strumming out big chords an effortless endeavour, and with the jangle these pickups produce, it's hard to temper the urge to bust out some windmill style strumming.
It is very seldom that these Original Rickenbacker 1998s come up for sale and this is a rare opportunity to own an iconic instrument with about as much rock and roll cred as you could ever need.
Specs:
Scale length: 25"
Fretboard Radius: 10"
Action at 1st fret: 0.25mm
Action at 12th fret: 3.5mm
Neck depth at 1st fret: 21.57mm
Neck depth at 12th fret: 23.03mm
Nut Width: 40.78mm
12 fret width: 48.35mm
Neck material: Maple
Fretboard inlays: Dot
Body Material: Maple
Pickup Configuration: SSS (Toaster Style)
Tuners: Kluson Deluxe
Bridge: Tremolo Tailpiece
Case: OHSC
