Rickenbacker 325 “clone” electric guitar
Rickenbacker 325 “clone” electric guitar
Sunday, September 27, 2015
It will come as no surprise, particularly to my regular readers, that John Lennon was one of my biggest early musical influences. His vocal delivery, his lyrical technique, his chord voicings, and the way he stood and played his guitar have all influenced the way I write and play my own music. And occasionally I’ve chosen my own instruments by their similarity to what John, George, Paul and Ringo played. I’ve not always matched their exact models, but I am attracted to instruments that at least speak to the ones that the Beatles used to record and perform.
After I got my Epiphone Casino a couple years ago, I admit my eyes started wandering to the real prize of John’s collection: his 1958 Rickenbacker 325 “Capri” guitar. This model has been out of production for decades, and vintage 325s are simply out of reach for me. Even the recent 325c64 reissue is a bit pricey, although eventually I hope to acquire one.
So that led me down a path I wouldn’t normally take: I started looking at knockoffs or clones. Usually built in China or Indonesia, clone guitars are made to look very similar to the original models .. so much so that clone manufacturers often wind up getting sued or harassed out of the market. It’s not really something I want to encourage, but with the price less than a third what I’d pay for the genuine article (that I hope to buy someday anyway), I figured I’d give it a shot.
This particular Chinese manufacturer, TheTopGuitars.com, makes clones of Rickenbackers, Fenders, Gibsons and other high-end guitars. They’re made to order, with selectable options such as body and neck woods, scale length, number of pickups, fret markers, headstock text, and of course color. Their 325, with the options I chose, came out to $550 USD, including shipping. It took about 6 weeks from the time I placed the order to its arrival at my door. And the result, although not perfect, is certainly acceptable.
Technically, the body shape of their 325 is not quite right. The original has smaller “fins” at the top and bottom of the guitar body, and the headstock is shaped a bit differently. In reality, this is much closer to a 330, but without the sound hole at the “top” side of the body. The body itself is a bit thicker than a genuine 325, which makes the guitar heavier than John’s would have been.
They got the look and sound of the pickups pretty well right, though. My guitar has three “toaster” style humbucking pickups, controlled by a switch on the main control plate. And the sound is pretty well right on the money for a 50s or 60s era Rickenbacker. The end result: I still want a genuine Rickenbacker 325 or 325c64. There simply isn’t any acceptable substitute. But for the overall look and tone, my clone does the job quite well. It’s not perfect, but it’s a very nice guitar.
John Lennon would have turned 75 on 09 October, 2015. We miss you, John!
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This entry marks the 5th anniversary of my Featured Instruments blog, which began in September 2010 with my Fender Squier Baritone Telecaster. I’d like to thank you all for checking in each month, and I look forward to sharing more instruments with you in the coming months and years. Keep on rockin’ !!
Photo by Donna Jo Wallace