Can anyone explain the difference between the 4001 and 4003 basses? I got a 4003 and the neck feels like I am holding a baseball bat. I was told that the 4001 models have a thinner neck profile. Is this true? If so how much thinner?

I like the look and sound of my Rick but neck feels terrible because it is so chunky and wide at the nut. Is there a model that offers a more narrow width at the nut and feel?

Thanks

The 4001 was designed for the flatwound strings of the day and therefore is very slim. the 1983/84 4003 bass has a redesigned neck/truss rod which handles heavier strings better.

A 4003 neck in my opinion has the same feel to a Jazz bass neck without the excessive tapering of the neck toward the 20th fret.

I exclusively played a 5 string Musicman Stingray for 10 years before realising that I used the B String twice in one night. When you do that, you realise that the neck of a 4003 is like a pencil compared to a stingray 5. Now I only use my 4003BB and ocassionally my Squier JV Precision.

In fact any 4 string feels like I am playing the thinnest neck in the world. The MM 5 string was like a tree trunk. No offence to Ernie or Sterling but it is a thiiiiccccckkk neck.

Welcome to the Rick Site. There are various shapes, widths and thickness of the Bass necks. Depending on the year and production models. The 60's necks were wide and thin. In the early 70's the neck became more rounded. The necks are profiled/shaped with a spindle shaper and are all very precise. The type of shape on your instrument is standard to that model and year. Perhaps you would like to play some other Rick models and get a better feel for your hands. Or you could take your Bass to a luthier and have the neck hand carved to the shape and feel you want. I charge around $250.00 for this including the refinishing of the back of the neck. Talk to a local luthier in yor area and get some quotes.

As for how much thinner, depends on the year either was made. The 4001 does have a thinner neck, but not by much. Of the basses we have measured, there is a maximum difference of .154 in the necks. Look here if you have Excel:

http://www.geocities.com/johnallg/temp/ ... ements.xls

Hey, John. I just relinked this link to someone else on this same topic, this morning. It was a great help to me.

Greetings ! I have an '82 4001S that I would like to have the neck shaved down on, to be more like a much thinner mapleglo '74 4001 that I once had. I'd probably have the work done locally here in Seattle by someone like Mike Lull, who does great work on Ricks. But can anyone tell me the contour differences between the two, in inches ?

Thanks in advance !

The most important difference is the truss rods. The 4001 neck has the older "hair-pin" truss rods that must be set before tightening or loosening the truss rod nuts for adjustment, where the 4003 neck has newer truss rods that function more conventionally.