Short Takes: The 1968 “Moonglo” Guitars
So let’s begin with this statement of fact: Moonglo is not and never was an official factory designation for this or any color. Moonglo is a collectors’ term for a unique dark burst pattern that appears on a number of guitars—Deluxe models only!—produced in 1968. So where did the name come from? Per collector extraordinaire Ron O’Keefe:
“I was doing an online article for Premier Guitar magazine, and one of my guitars was in the mix of about 25 guitars, in a spot entitled "Rickenbackers That Rocked the World." (Kind of pretentious, but whatever.)
The editor I was working with spotted this guitar and asked, "what is the name of that finish color?" I said technically it was a dark Fireglo that resembles what RIC called Autumnglo. She said, to me it looks like Moonglo. So the name was born -- or so I believe.”
The article Ron refers to was published in May of 2011. I can find no online reference to Rickenbacker AND Moonglo prior to that date, so the story seems to check out!
Ron shared the story above in 2019, and stated at the time he believed there were as many as 5 guitars with this finish. We now know there are more. There are 9 guitars identified as such on the register although three of them are questionable, and I think I found a 10th (or 7th if we rule out the questionable ones) that’s been hiding from us in plain sight. So let’s start with the ones that have at one point or another been part of Ron’s collection.
1968 366/12. This is the “original gangster” Moonglo, the one featured in the Premier Guitar article. More info and pictures on Ron’s website HERE.
1968 375. More info and pictures on Ron’s website HERE.
1968 365OS. More info and pictures on Ron’s website HERE.
1968 370OS. More info and pictures on Ron’s website HERE
1968 360F. More info and pictures on Ron’s website HERE.
In addition to Ron’s guitars, the next 4 instruments can be found on the register under the “Moonglo” category, but some have been questioned/debunked by the experts. Let’s run through them!
1968 4005. Falls into the “maybe” category. The back and the headstock of this guitar seem inconsistent with other examples.
1968 360OS. Likely refinished as the burst pattern does not match the normal Rickenbacker finish.
1968 360F/12.
1968 365. This one is really questionable. You look and tell me if you think this is really Moonglo. I know lighting matters, but this just looks like a dark Fireglo to me.
Which brings us to the (maybe?) missing Moonglo:
1968 460. Double mid-identified on the register as a “Two-Tone Brown 450”, that sure looks like Moonglo to me. Check the register yourself HERE for more pictures and see if you agree.
Why these guitars exist we simply don’t know. But they do, and here’s the proof!
The 365OS is refinished, so that's not moonglo; the 4005 isn't look at the rest of the pictures of it. the dark fireglo is dark fireglo. :). The 460 is. It's silly anyways - moonglo isn't a color, it was a 'mistake' on a couple of instruments. In hand - there's no mistaking the mistake that is moonglo, it doesn't look like fireglo at all...
Whatever you call it, it’s a beautiful finish!