Unusual bakelite Rickenbacher?

[Fred Kinbom]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this seems like an odd bakelite Rickenbacher:

eBay auction

Was this supposed to be a "Spanish" guitar?! Long, round neck.



Fred

[Ron Whitfield]

Yup.

[Jeff Au Hoy]

If I remember non-pedal lore correctly, the idea behind the bolt-on neck was that once the frets wore out (I can't imagine bakelite standing up very well to steel strings), you could just buy a whole new replacement neck.

The scale on the Spanish instruments is the same as on the steels.

I think the Spanish models are indeed odd in that they are seen much less often than the steels.

[Ray Montee]

Hey JEFF AU HOY!
If you don't get out of that Dairy Queen and stop consuming those high caloric cold drinks, you can look forward to one day looking a great deal like this olde man. NOT GOOD!
I favor the real banana shakes, very thick, requiring a long handled red spoon. Now a guy can really get involved with that kind of relaxation.

[Bill Creller]

The person selling the Spanish bakelite doesn't seem to understand that it's not a lap steel. I guess the nut could be built up to make it a lap rig. I wonder how it would sound (?)

[Warren Slavin]

For those of you who have a "Rickenbacher History Book", check on page 47. You will see Hal Aloma holding a Bakelite Spanish Guitar. I think it was just sales promotion as I don't think he played it. I saw him once when in the Navy in New York at the Lexington Hawaiian Room but did not get to talk to him -- he was playing steel, I don't remember what brand -- probably a Rickenbacher Console.

[Cartwright Thompson]

It is set up as a lap steel with a nut extender. I had one of these once, same situation, I bought it from someone who thought it was a lap steel. The necks usually bowed so much that you didn't need to raise the nut. They sound fantastic as spanish guitars, absolutely amazing sustain. Unfortunately the necks just didn't stand the test of time. As a lap steel they sound like a pre war bakelite ric, the only problem is string spacing.

[chris ivey]

gee, i thought those were the first production electric guitars ever made and extremely valuable as a collectable.

[Ron Whitfield]

Mint, with vibrola, and stand, would bring considerably more than this one went for.
Otherwise, it's just too odd a bird to most folks to get the bigger $.

[Alan Brookes]

When bakelite was new no-one knew it would distort and chrystalise in time. They just had no longterm experience with plastics in those days. My grandparents' house was built during the first world war, and all the wiring was rubber-coated. If you went up into the attick all the insulation had years ago crumbled and there were live bare wires everywhere. Who knows what today's plastics will be like in 50 years time.

[George Keoki Lake]

An old friend, Dr. Ed Mayer owned one of these "spanish" guitars made by Rickenbacker. That was the first and only one I had ever seen. BTW...does anyone know where Ed is these days ?