Super Rare 'Special Order' Double-Bound Rickenbacker 360/12 "O.S."

1974 Rickenbacker 360/12 "OS"  (two pickups)

This 'special order', full-size, double-bound 360/12 "O.S." features a 15-inch-wide and 1 1/2 inches deep, light 'birds-eye' maple body. Double-bound hollow maple body with a "cat's-eye" or slash soundhole. Three-piece maple/walnut/maple neck with a nut width of 1 5/8 inches, a scale length of 24 3/4 inches and a wonderful medium profile. Rosewood fretboard with 24 medium frets and triangular pearl position markers with small red dot side-markers. Five-piece maple over walnut  headstock with white opaque plastic logo plate with black lettering, secured by three screws. Individual 'double-line' Kluson Deluxe tuners with oval metal buttons (all stamped "D-169400 / Patent No." on the underside). Two Rickenbacker "Hi-Gain" pickups with chrome surrounds and outputs of 11.84k and 10.58k. Two-piece split-level white lucite pickguard with four screws. Five controls (two volume, two tone, and one blend control) plus three-way selector switch, all on lower level of pickguard. Rickenbacker seven-sided black plastic knobs with metal tops and black lettering. The potentiometers are stamped "137 7347" (CTS December 1973). Rickenbacker bridge with six adjustable metal saddles (complete with bridge cover) and Rickenbacker "R" tailpiece. The serial number "NF 3549" (June 1974) is stamped onto the 'Rick-O-Sound' and 'Standard' twin-input jack plate. This exceptionally rare and beautiful, forty-five year old guitar is in near fine (9.25) condition, with just a few (hardly noticeable) small indentations on the body. Complete with the original Rickenbacker polishing cloth and an (incomplete) set of original Rickenbacker "Electro" 'flat-wound' guitar strings in their original box. Housed in its original Rickenbacker rectangular black hardshell case with black leather ends and dark blue plush lining (9.00).

These coveted "Old Style" guitars are rarely seen, this may very well be just one of one or two made in 1974. Rickenbacker were not producing this model at that time and special orders were not encouraged, as they slowed down production. The "Old Style" Ricks were discontinued in 1964 when Rickenbacker went to the rounded front and single binding, however they were available as a special order through the mid-sixties. The last 360/12 was produced in Fireglo and made in December 1968 and had of course the traditional 21 fret neck. After 1969 the 360s had the rounded edges and a 24 fret neck. This special-order 1974 guitar has the very rare combination of the later more-desirable 24-fret neck with the earlier rare OS body style. This one is built just as George Harrison's guitar, save the 24 frets and the "R" tailpiece.

We sent detailed photographs of the guitar to the Rickenbacker Customer Service - their reply is as follows:
"Hi. This appears to be a 1974 360/12 OS Old Style, we weren't producing them at the time but someone may have paid more to have a special order put through, at the time we were more open to doing special orders.
Take care, Rickenbacker Customer Service, 3895 S. Main St. Santa Ana, CA 92707   714-545-5574".

"Models 360-375-- The third division of the 1958 Thin Hollow Body Series consisted of full sized guitars with the same Deluxe features. The body shape was the same as Models 330-345 from 1958 to the summer of 1964; then it changed… The guitars from this group were the finest and most expensive of the Thin Body Capri guitars. They had neck binding, triangle finger board inlays, and body binding. The two tone brown sunburst guitars had white body binding while the natural maple guitars had brown wood binding which was later changed to white. The factory produced the first commercially sold Deluxe Thin Body guitars in May and June of 1958. (They produced the forerunner prototype at least a year earlier according to a dated photo in the Rickenbacker archive.)… Two gold pickguards, four T.V. style knobs, and one switch became standard for the Models 360 and 365 before the end of 1958. The non-vibrato model had the flat tailpiece." (Richard R. Smith. The History of Rickenbacker Guitars, p. 171).