Unless Ric brought out a commemorative set of steel stamps for that particular serial number, the font on the jackplate is ALL wrong, let alone the black highlight.

The off-color screws are also a dead giveaway that the jackplate is certainly not stock.

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Finally found a good use for the 30+ years I spent in typography.

I'm not too sure on that jackplate, but the body and finish on that guitar came from RIC.
The model. I'm not too sure of either but it's not a fake.

If it's got 2 truss rods then that would solve the mystery of the body, however the single insert jack plate has me beat.

Another thing that suggests this guitar is not a fake is that there is no way a faker would use that beautiful timber, the guitar in the photo has stunning timber and finish.

Another thing, however it's too hard to tell from just the photo alone, if there was ever a double input jack ie Rick O Sound and Standard, there would be an obvious recess in the wood either side on the guitar. Although the input jack has me baffled at this stage, I'm fairly sure this guitar came from RIC. I don't think it's a Model 360 though, it may even be a C model as it has toasters.

Note that jack plate serial number does check out on the serial decoder, that is something that cannot be easily dismissed.

Fake or not, it's obvious someone replaced the jackplate.

Is it just me or does that look a lot more like ash than maple?

Agnop, Sure that's the way I was thinking as well, but I'm now not so sure.
The serial number comes up all fine on the decoder, and it doesn't look like a Ric replacement either (i've seem them), so although the jackplate looks odd it's an original Rickenbacker jackplate with serial.

We still need someone with more knowledge than I, I'm hoping someone with much more experience may chip in on this one,

How difficult would it be to use the serial number decoder and crunch in some random letters/numbers until something matched.

I guess only RIC knows what model/colour combination that serial number relates to?

Be nice to get an update from siskus (original poster)

Or how hard would it be for an illegal Rickenbacker knock-off business to get ahold of a genuine Rick, or just a picture of one, and then produce a hoard of guitars all with the same serial number imprinted on fraudulent jackplates? Mind you I don't mean to give anyone any bright ideas about copying. If it IS a fake I hope the manufacturer of it gets put out of business.

If you look at the photo that's third to last - the back shot of the guitar - shouldn't the back of the neck remain fireglo all the way until it meets the body, with a dark stripe in the center? In that photo, the stripe bleeds out to an all dark neck before it meets the body. It could just be the lighting but you can see the redness everywhere else..

Ric Resource register lists that serial it as BUTCHERED and sold as parts. Was originally a 610.

http://www.rickresource.com/register/vi ... 6order%3D6

Click on the jackplate photo to see the "original".