Is this Rick really worth that price?

Curt Langston · Post by **Curt Langston** » 9 Sep 2006 6:46 pm

I must be missing something here. Is THIS really worth that kind of money? In this shape?

Man..................

Keith Cordell · Post by **Keith Cordell** » 9 Sep 2006 7:03 pm

Pretty steep but it might get it. The hoarders have made them extremely difficult to get (I know a guy who has 14 of them purely for collecting purposes) and the prices have increased sharply in the last 18 months.

Jon Light · Post by **Jon Light** » 9 Sep 2006 9:51 pm

FWIW the same seller is ebaying a Gibson BR-9 for no reserve--it's at $52 right now. This tells me that they know a little something about what they've got---you sometimes see jokers trying to get premium prices for a steel that is not high regarded or sought after (the BR9). I agree that they might get their price on the fry pan. They're not getting any cheaper and Rick Aiello hasn't yet made a major impact on the supply side of the market.

Dan Sawyer · Post by **Dan Sawyer** » 9 Sep 2006 11:49 pm

FYI, that is actually a dealer with a storefront, not a collector. Dealers usually have higher prices than a private party.

Gary Boyett · Post by **Gary Boyett** » 10 Sep 2006 2:48 am

This is also a second listing. No takers on the first.

Mike Neer · Post by **Mike Neer** » 10 Sep 2006 4:41 am

To those of us who play them, they're worth that and more.

Derrick Mau · Post by **Derrick Mau** » 10 Sep 2006 10:16 am

Is this really worth that kind of money

IMHO, not yet . . . but I've got to admit that's the most gold (original paint) I've ever seen left on a frypan.

Bill Creller · Post by **Bill Creller** » 10 Sep 2006 10:31 am

One of those went for 4600+ a few weeks ago.Maybe this one will get big bucks too.
They definetly have the great tone, but not all of them.

Paul Gibson · Post by **Paul Gibson** » 11 Sep 2006 8:16 am

Gruhn's has an A-25 and an A-22 for sale.

John Drury · Post by **John Drury** » 12 Sep 2006 3:17 am

Curt,

People always want what they can't have. For example, try to buy a Bigsby.

I like the tone that Scotty gets from his Fry Pan but would never want one for myself at any price.

I was once sucked into the Rick thing, I had a mint 1936 Bakelite. Picked it up at the guitar show here in Nashville about 16 years ago for $235-. Played it for a couple years on and off as the tempermental pickup would permit.

I sold it several years ago and at the point of sale is the only time I heard the much talked about "Bakelite Moan", it was uttered from the buyer as he forked over the rediculous sum of $2500- that I was asking, and got for it.

Also had a 1950 DC-16, identical to the one Bobby Black has. I traded it it to Bobbe Seymour a while back for a Dobro he had that I wanted.

Bobby Black makes his sound great! But to me it was an outdated piece of junk that looked really cool!

I will hang on to my SuperSlide and NV 112, thanks!

------------------
John Drury
NTSGA #3

Bill Leff · Post by **Bill Leff** » 12 Sep 2006 10:11 am

Rickenbacker are "outdated pieces of junk"? John, I admire your honesty!

Personally, I love 'em but to each his own...

[This message was edited by Bill Leff on 12 September 2006 at 11:12 AM.]

Mike Neer · Post by **Mike Neer** » 12 Sep 2006 10:18 am

If I had the 4K, I'd buy the A-25 from Gruhn. Of course, I'd offer 3.7K.

My experiences with Rick Aiello's A-25 have proven to me that it is the greatest steel I've ever played.

Bill Creller · Post by **Bill Creller** » 12 Sep 2006 10:25 am

If I had a DC-16, I would trade it off too, for just about anything. As far as old Ricks are concerned, the bakelites are my favorite, even though I like my early frypan.
As far as junk is concerned, I had a D8 stringmaster that wasn't all that great before a lot of work. I have a D8 Excel now , which is the most crude guitar I have worked on, and lousey tone to boot.
If you had a B6 with a bad pickup, you should have had it fixed. Even newer instruments have problems, from what is said on the electronics section of this forum.

John Drury · Post by **John Drury** » 12 Sep 2006 11:45 am

Bill Creller,

I did have the pickup rewound by Big Jim Webb, the guy who wound a lot of the Sho~Bud pickups at the factory. #38 wire is like frog hair, the stuff just doesn't hang in there.

I seldom hear about problems with modern pickups.

Mike, I'm sure Rick Aiellos Pan sounds great, but for twelve or thirteen hundred bucks you can buy a Superslide brand new and those babies honk! I know players that can take a .S.S and dial in any sound they want with it.

------------------
John Drury
NTSGA #3

[This message was edited by John Drury on 12 September 2006 at 12:46 PM.]

Gerald Ross · Post by **Gerald Ross** » 12 Sep 2006 11:59 am

John,

Rick Aiello just rewound my 1947 T-Logo Rick with .38 wire and it sounds incredible.

See the thread below.
http://steelguitarforum.com/Forum2/HTML/009743.html

Here are photos of the surgery. http://steelguitarforum.com/Forum19/HTML/002673.html

------------------
Gerald Ross
'Northwest Ann Arbor, Michigan's King Of The Hawaiian Steel Guitar'

CEO, CIO, CFO - UkeTone Records
Gerald's Fingerstyle Guitar Website
Board of Directors Hawaiian Steel Guitar Association

[This message was edited by Gerald Ross on 12 September 2006 at 01:00 PM.]

Rick Aiello · Post by **Rick Aiello** » 12 Sep 2006 12:50 pm

#38 wire is like frog hair, the stuff just doesn't hang in there.

Paul Warnik told me last year at the HSGA convention ... that he used # 38 for his Bigsby re-issue pickups ... just like the originals.

Jason Lollar uses # 38 on his Charlie Christian re-issues ... just like the originals ...

So I guess it boils down to what you enjoy hearing ...

To each his own ...

------------------

Dustpans LTD.
The Casteels
HSGA 

[This message was edited by Rick Aiello on 12 September 2006 at 02:08 PM.]

Bill Creller · Post by **Bill Creller** » 12 Sep 2006 1:42 pm

I would like to hear/play a Superslide. I mentioned that when they first became available, but don't know anyone that has one. Maybe someone will bring one to Joliet.
I thought Jason Lollar was using #42 wire on the modern type pickups and some rewinds.
I also heard that early Ricks had #36 wire.
Is this true?
As far as tone is concerned, everyone has his favorite, and sometimes I like certain Stringmasters as well as bakelites and EARLY frypans.
As Rick Aeillo Knows, some early Rick pickups were grounded to one of the pickup poles, which laid against the magnet for the ground lead...a bad idea I would say, but they worked for a long time that way.

Rick Aiello · Post by **Rick Aiello** » 12 Sep 2006 1:56 pm

I have a CAD drawing Jason made from a Frypan with those big 3/8" thick magnets and that completely different/earliest style bobbin ...

And he has written on there ... "looks like 38 gauge"

He does use a thinner diameter wire for his Ricky rewinds ...

But on his CC's (various incarnations) ... he uses # 38.

Gerald and I discussed all this and he opted to go with the # 38.

Those large diameter wire / low DC Resistance pickups ... certainly have their fans ...

------------------

Dustpans LTD.
The Casteels
HSGA 
[This message was edited by Rick Aiello on 12 September 2006 at 03:51 PM.]

Bill Creller · Post by **Bill Creller** » 12 Sep 2006 2:45 pm

Yes Rick, I remember that Hal's bobbin was different. I like those massive magnets!!

Mike Neer · Post by **Mike Neer** » 12 Sep 2006 4:00 pm

Mine also has that bobbin, where the pickup is grounded internally, so there's only 1 wire coming out of it.

I'll bet the SuperSlide sounds great, but the tone I covet can only be had with an A-25. I don't really need anything more than that. I wouldn't be surprised if our ideas of great tone are vastly different.