I'm trying to restore my '68 4001 bass and wanted to know if this model came with the horseshoe magnetic pickup. My repair guy says the split horseshoe was just a show guard cover that guys generally took off so they could play over the pick up, but I've heard otherwise..help anyone?

Your repair guy is talking about the more recent "reissue Horseshoe" pickup that was featured on the "vintage" models 4001V63 and 4001C64. With that pickup, the split horseshoes could be removed with little effect on the pickup's performance. They are not magnetic like the "shoes" on the original. A 1968 bass could have had one of the original magnetic horseshoe pickups, or it could have had the new (at the time) Hi-gain pickup with a plastic cover that looked like the shoes of the Horseshoe. In any case, finding an operable pickup from 1968 would be difficult. Also, removing the shoes from an original Horseshoe pickup will make it inoperable.

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Author: "The Rickenbacker Electric Bass - 50 Years as Rock's Bottom"