Rickenbacker 345 Rose Morris 1998 Fireglo 1966

One of the rare Rickenbacker Rose-Morris export models, which were sold exclusively through Rose, Morris & Co. in the UK from 1964 onwards. These special models included the Rickenbacker 1998, which differed from the regular US Capri models with their “cat’s eye” sound hole in that it had a traditional F-hole and was only produced in very small numbers. The 1998 models were regularly “destroyed” by Pete Townshend of The Who. Exemplars that are still intact today are highly prized icons of the British Invasion era.

This full-scale guitar—related to the 325/1996 short-scale versions played by John Lennon and John Fogerty, for example—has a maple body and a five-piece maple and walnut neck. The three classic toaster pickups provide versatile switching: neck + middle permanently parallel, all three pickups together in the middle position, or just the bridge pickup – supplemented by the typical “blend” control for finer tuning.

This 1966 model is in very good condition, all original except for the tremolo arm, and comes in its original case.