Rickenbacker 325 Guitar (1/3) ~ Luthiery Laboratories

Rickenbacker 325 Guitar (1/3)

A faithful reproduction of John Lennon's Rickenbacker, but built as a Danelectro. Masonite over hollow plywood body. Poplar neck. Passive electronics with active distortion on the fifth knob.

The first poplar neck I built for this was weak at the headstock and bent over from the string tension, so I built a second one stronger. Both use fixed steel truss rods. I never built another poplar neck, maple is the best choice. Note the incomplete set of dot markers. This is authentic. I guess Rickenbacker was having a shortage.

The entire guitar was originally finished in black nitro, which got ruined simply by existing. I stripped off all the lacquer and refinished it in black polyurethane, tough as nails.

1 2 3

6-String Guitars, All Built, Body - Built, Body - Hollow, Body - Masonite/Plywood, Body - Tolex Binding, Electronics - Passive, Neck - Built, Projects, Rickenbacker,

Rickenbacker Projects

Rickenbacker 325 Guitar

Rickenbacker 325 Bass 1

Rickenbacker 325 Bass 2

Rickenbacker 325 Bass 3

Rickenbacker 4001 Bass 1

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Masonite

Modern Danelectro construction of a classic design

Masonite is the classic Danelectro body material. Vintage Danelectros are Masonite over a poplar core, modern ones substitute plywood for poplar, which is actually better and cheaper. Masonite is available in 1/8" and 3/16" thicknesses. For luthiery, 1/8" is preferable, but 3/16" can also be used, especially if a slightly thicker and heavier body is desired.

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Danelectro Tolex Body Binding

This is what the binding looks like on a vintage Danelectro. I've never been able to find a 'weave' pattern like this. Reissues use a cowhide texture; I also like pebble-grain.

Tolex side binding is something that is particular to Danelectros. I love it. There are many good points to using Tolex side binding:

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Series Wiring

When two pickups are wired in series, the output of one is connected to the ground of the other. The outputs are directly additive, there is no loading effect as with parallel wiring. You get noticeably more output, and usually a much fuller sound. Two pickups may be wired in series with a standard [ON-OFF-ON] switch, available at any hardware store.

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On-Board Effects

This is a "Black Ice" circuit built onto a rotary switch. What a great idea - onboard distortion with no battery. Too bad though, I spent a while testing and analyzing it, and my conclusion is that it doesn't work. It could possibly work, but in most cases, it will not.

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6-String Guitars

Standard 6-string guitars.

6-String Guitars

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Ridgid Belt/Spindle Sander

The belt attachment is what makes it far superior to an ordinary spindle sander. Belts have a far greater working area than the small cylinders most spindle sanders have. They last longer and are cheaper to replace, and are available in a wider variety of grits. The #36 belt is ideal for removing material to make a rough shape, then clean up with a #80. The big end of the belt drive is a 2-1/2" diameter, which turns out to be by far the most useful part of the machine, and exactly matches many of the curves on a Fender neck. Of course, there are smaller spindles all the way down to 1/2" for tight spots. The flat on the belt will cut reasonably straight for small parts that fit entirely in it, but anything that overhangs the ends is going to be gouged by the rollers unless you are very careful - light touch and always moving the workpiece. It's good exercise.

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