Up for sale, a 1987 Rickenbacker 325V63 in excellent condition and in perfect working order, complete with the original hardshell case and hangtags. Predating the 325JL model by a number of years, the 325V63 is a faithful reissue of John Lennon's second Rickenbacker, which he received in Feb. 1964 at the Deauville Hotel in Miami Beach, FL (commonly referred to as the “Miami” Ric for this reason).

Forever embedded in the fabric of the 1960s thanks to appearances in the Beatles' A Hard Day's Night and Help films, the 325V63 delivers on the promise of classic Rickenbacker jangle and sparkle, with a notably short scale length of 21”. Handmade from solid Eastern Rock Maple, the 325V63 is loaded with a trio of Rickenbacker's Toaster Top single coils. These alnico magnet pickups have ample clarity and sparkle, with the signature percussive cut of Lennon's tone. The compact size of the 325V63 makes chord extensions a breeze, and the instrument is lightweight at only 6lbs 4oz. Professionally setup here at Mike & Mike's Guitar Bar, this Rickenbacker has been dialed in with low action and accurate intonation, strung with 12-52 roundwound strings.

The maple neck has a medium C-shaped profile carve with round shoulders in every register, measuring .885” deep at the 1st and 12th frets. The thick slab rosewood fretboard features practically perfect slender fretwire, playing cleanly up the 21” scale with a straight neck and a responsive, optimally-adjusted truss rod. The nut measures 1 5/8” in width. On the headstock, the Rickenbacker lucite truss rod cover is present, and the Kluson-style Schaller Deluxe tuners turn smoothly and hold accurate pitch.

All of the electronics work as intended, with a three-way selector switch, two pairs of Volume and Tone knobs, and Rickenbacker's smaller fifth blender knob. The pickup selector operates as follows: Bridge, All, Neck+Middle. The chrome plating on the Accent vibrato and pickup covers is notably clean, and the Mono jack plate is stamped with the F0-prefix serial number. Plastics comprise the dual-tiered pickguard and original quintet of pointer knobs.

Cosmetic wear on the gloss Jetglo finish includes a light spot of isolated finish checking just north of the pickups, a tiny bit of touch-up on the bass-side lower bout on the back and on a couple shallow finish chips on the body perimeter, and very light muting/cloudiness of the gloss, likely from prolonged time in the case. The smooth gloss finish on the neck profile is flawless.

The original black tolex hardshell case is included, along with the original catalog and hangtags.