Rickenbacker Electro Lap Steel Dating

Enjoy the lowest prices and best selection of rickenbacker lap steels at guitar center.

Rickenbacker electro lap steel dating.

Rickenbacker did not keep serial to date records until after the second world war. 23 frets 22 5 8 scale 2 1 4 nut width. A cool late 30s instrument this rickenbacker electro silver hawaiian lap steel has a chrome plated stamped sheet metal body with an integral 35 fret finger. I will tell you what is generally known and some distinguishing features that should help.

This item needs some work missing one cav. It s equipped with a horseshoe magnet pickup. Please be aware that some instruments manufactured in the late 50s cannot be interpreted by this decoder. Rickenbacker serial numbers have been issued in a number of formats.

To the right and below you will find some images that will hopefully help you to locate the complete serial number on your instrument. In 1931 he founded the company electro patent instruments together with the american inventor george beauchamp. Dating rickenbacker lap steels. Soon the name of the company was changed to rickenbacker manufacturing company.

Also according to the smith book rickenbacker didn t start producing lap steels until mid 1932 and only 13 were sold the first year so it is unlikely that the brochure is from 1931. They specialized in the construction of electric steel guitars until the 1950s. Email from brad bechtel on october 25 1999. The 1932 catalog says electro string instruments corp on it and the 1931 catalog refers to rickenbacker electro.

This rickenbacher electro model b lap steel guitar features a bakelite body with strings through body design. Newer open back tuners have been installed.