LeftyBassist.com

Asking: $1600 or best reasonable offer
https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/msg/d/ ... 97351.html

No case.

What do you Ric experts think is a fair price for this?

I think that is a fair price, in short it's a 43 year old Ric, in 75 they were in their prime with Yes, Rush and so many other bands.

I think that if that was at a store it would cost about $3500!

A 4003 in 1975 though?
Description contains "...This item: 1975 Rickenbacker 4003 jetglo left handed bass guitar..."
Probably an unintentional error.

Alright, its gone now..... Did "bbl" get this?

Nope.

Considered it, but... at the risk of getting slammed... a '75 4001 says "high maintenance" to me.

(I read that the 4001 has soft frets that don't handle rounds very well. And a truss rod system that requires you to put pressure on the neck while adjusting it. Then there's that bridge...)

I might always have a love/hate relationship with Rics - when I don't have one, I want one. When I have one, I want to sell it.

Like that hot girlfriend that you never want to marry.

The frets can easily get dings off the string winding...but
Nickel wounds are much kinder to them than stainless steel.
The ridging isn't that deep - it can be dressed out. As time goes by, the fret surface work-hardens and becomes much tougher.
My 1980 4001 still has original frets (I don't think they changed the build over the turn of the decade) , and I know for fact that it's had "standard" stainless rounds on for most of it's life. I'm kinder to it now with medium nickel wounds.

We can can rip Rickenbacker design engineering until the cows come home - but they are still in business and they won't change a bit of it unless absolutely forced to.

Yep.

It's another reason I feel a bit conflicted supporting them.

(to be completely fair, they did address the above-mentioned issues with the 4001 with the 4003, albeit 30 years ago.)