I have capital-T Thoughts about the 4002 SPC and I’m going to share them with you. But first let’s discuss what it is.
In order to talk about the 4002 SPC, however, we have to first talk about the 4002 (click to learn more). Produced between 1977 and 1984, most modern conversations about the model get it all wrong. Not the “rare as hen’s teeth” bit that invariably comes up in any conversation about the 4002—it absolutely is—but what the whole point of the 4002 was supposed to be.
The conventional wisdom today is that the 4002 was a “super-deluxe model”, and that’s true—it featured premium appointments like an ebony fingerboard, figured maple wings, top-of-the-line Schaller tuners, and two-ply black-and-checkered binding—but that’s not what the 4002 was all about.
The 4002 was conceived as a precision studio tool, engineered for players searching for clarity, control, and routing flexibility instead of the grind and clank of the 4001. Its perceived competition in Santa Ana wasn’t the P-Bass, J-Bass, or even the 4001. It was high-end boutique instruments like Alembics and Wals.
The heart of the 4002—indeed the point of the 4002—was found in its complicated electronics package. Two “super-humbucking” pickups (click to learn more) with side-by-side coils—one of which was bifilar, which is to say it had two completely separate sets of windings on each coil—fed an extremely complex wiring harness that included both high and low-pass filters on each tone control, and thence to mono, stereo, and low-impedance outputs. It was all about surgical precision of tone. If you haven’t, you really should go read our full article on the 4002 to understand just how unique the wiring on this guitar was.
And it was ungodly expensive—almost $7,000 in today’s dollars. That specific a purpose at that high a price…no wonder they’re rare as hen’s teeth today.
John Hall officially killed it off in the great culling of the catalog he undertook after his purchase of the company in 1984. From a line rationalization standpoint it was absolutely the right call. But whenever something truly unique disappears, the myth grows.
And in the case of the 4002, the myth was strengthened over the years by keen-eyed visitors to the Rickenbacker factory. Rickenbacker seemingly never throws anything away, and more than one of those keen-eyed visitors spotted a pallet of what were unmistakably leftover 4002 body wings. Their figured maple and two-ply black-and-checkered binding couldn’t be anything else.
Over the years, a few pairs of those wings got pulled off the pallet here and there. There was a 12-string 481/12 one-off (click to learn more) in 2011.
At least three got turned into short-scale 4030JFKs (click to learn more) for Death From Above 1979’s Jesse F. Keeler in 2018:
And in March 2026, Ben Hall announced on Instagram that “something” was going to happen with the final fifteen pairs of wings on that pallet, including the one there in the front with longtime woodshop manager Dick Burke’s signature on it.
And in June we got our first look at something that looked a lot like a 4002. Only it wasn’t a 4002 exactly, it was a 4002 SPC.
So what exactly does SPC mean, and why did this version of the 4002 earn that title? In the Ricktionary (click to learn more), we define SPC as “Special. A model with special features (custom color, binding, extra pickup, etc.) sometimes produced for a specific dealer, but the SPC label doesn’t really tie directly to any particular feature. It basically announces, ‘Here’s a weird thing we made on purpose’.”
The first difference you’re likely to notice between the original 4002 and the SPC you probably notice is the fingerboard. The original 4002 had a bound, dark ebony fretboard with dot inlays. The 4002 SPC features a streaky Macassar ebony fingerboard with crushed-pearl triangle inlays.
Up top, the headstock is unbound, unlike the original 4002. It also had standard Gotoh-made Rickenbacker-branded Kluson-style tuners as opposed to the original’s Schaller M4s.
Funnily, prior to 2022 the original 4002 was the only model to feature both walnut headstock wings and a skunk stripe (click to learn more). During the 4000’s (click to learn more) and 4001’s (click to learn more) skunk stripe years, the headstock wings were maple. Beginning in 2022, all basses had skunk stripes and walnut wings, unintentionally evoking the 4002. Including the 4002 SPC.
JThe modern V2 bridge replaced the older, circa 1961 vintage version in 2018, so obviously the 4002 SPC was also so equipped. And that takes us through the cosmetic differences between the 4002 and the 4002 SPC. Which brings us to the electronics.
So did the 4002 SPC get the fancy, bifilar super-humbucking pickups? It got HB1s (click to learn more). Did it get the fancy wiring harness with all the extra filters? It got a standard 4003 harness—including the vintage tone circuit (click to learn more) push-pull pot. Did it get the XLR low-impedance output? It didn’t even get Rick-O-Sound (click to learn more) stereo output. Mono only.
They did all come in different colors, though.
So here’s where I’ll share my capital-T thoughts. Original wings or no, these guitars are a shell of the 4002. Without even a nod to the special electronics—the very heart of the originals—they’re just cosplaying as 4002s.
Are they pretty? For sure. Will they retain value? Absolutely. Will they ever approach the value of the original 4002, especially given that they’re even rarer still? Absolutely not.
And so ends the story of the famous pallet of 4002 wings?
Not so fast. As of this writing, we’ve only seen six of them. Walnutglo, Amber Fireglo, Moonglo, Bottle Green, Blueburst, and Purpleburst. There’s also apparently a seventh one that was sold privately. And just this week we saw a sneak peek from the factory that seems to suggest six more are in process.
So while it appears more are in fact coming, maybe the final few pairs will sit on that pallet for a few more years. Only time will tell. But the 4002 SPC earns its “special” in the “here’s a weird thing we made on purpose” way. Even if it’s not nearly as special as the original 4002.