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I recently had the privilege of acquiring this crazy-cool '85 Vector in candy apple red, with a hockey stick headstock and LEDs. It's seen its share of use, and has been well loved over the years... damn is my 13 year-old self stupid-happy! The LEDs make me smile every time!

It's been a while since I've seen one of these threads, so I'm hoping I can lure some of you into sharing pics of your favorite guitars. I've been wildly lucky with the guitars I've picked up here over the years, and thought I'd share. I suspect you'll recognize some of these. Thanks again to this awesome community! 79 Black Sunburst 82 Ferrari Red Prototype 84 12 String Pearl White Prototype 98 Blue Sparkle Phantom 07 Vintage Orange Talladega

Some shots of my new Hamer Special FM... Many thanks to HamerLou, Had a great day in downtown Boston (North end, street vendors, walked by where the were filming the Ryan Reynolds movie, had a great lunch). FM's are by far my favorite Hamer, They're a little tricky because the tops range from relatively plain, to poppin with no rhyme or reason but... when you get a nice one, they're incredible cool. This is a '93, it shows as orange here, but it's actually Aztec Gold... I haven't popped the hood but it seems like a Duncan Alnico pro II (in the lead position and I'm not sure (Dimarzio super distortion zebra?) in the neck, will check. really nicely installed bone nut... it's very nice to see someone who can cleanly score and fit a new nut. Plays and sounds nice... neck a little slimmer, but it's solid, resonant and was well cared for. going to make a few tweaks (gold amber bell knobs) but very nice as is... love, love, love the top. Pics, enjoy

so I'm down in florida, (parents getting to that age) so I had to get away from the house... trek up to Sarasota to hit sam ash then swing over to GC near the mall and see this thing on the top row in the used section... Kind of freaky, but looking at a distance, was like, hmmm... that's a usa sn pattern… so I got em to grab it... dig it, and plunked down a deposit while it sits on police hold. played great, felt great, nice V neck, frets are excellent (it's an 09)... interesting inlays, had a hankering for a Dean Z but not loving those Dean Select imports at $899. (899? the new reality for an import) yikes,.. but let that go... Nothing like some retail therapy. better pics when it arrives 1-2 weeks. Dave

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity. Although his mother would have prefered he become a haberdasher, an HFC Member with access to a laser engraving machine generously offered to adorn other member's backplates with the rocking skeleton image featured in your picture, an etching of the calcified remnants of what many believe represented Hamer's integrity following their acquisition by FMIC. As for whom that member was? It is a far, far better thing that he did, than I have ever done; So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.

Photo and concept by Sean Cummings. Appropriately includes two British amplifiers. Ain't this a beautimous presentation? Sent to me from a longtime friend in San Diego, and who wouldn't want to pass this along on this holiday? Thanks, Barney!

I know I’m old because my wife always wants to talk during sex. Last night she called me from a hotel. My wife and I were really very happy for twenty years, then we met... You know you’re old when you’re wife has to retake her drivers test. She got eight out of ten. The other two jumped out of the way. She’s really a great driver though. She hit a deer once, it was in the zoo. You know you’re old when your wife’s cooking is so bad, that the flies fix the screens. I haven’t spoken to my wife in years though. Really, I don’t want to interrupt her. I told our kids about the birds and the bees, they told me about my wife and the butcher... It’s real exciting when you both get old. My wife made me join her bridge club. I jump next Tuesday.

While perusing Reverb over the weekend this beautiful green Phantom A5 caught my eye. I've always had a soft spot for the 6 in-line headstock version, and I'd pretty much decided I had to have it, but as I began to read the listing's description I realized this was an old friends guitar. He passed away a few years ago, and not long after his window sold a number of his guitars to help cover lingering medical expenses. Unfortunately, I had moved away around the same time and missed that opportunity to help. I'm happy to finally have this not only for sentimental reasons, but because it's a badass Phantom. It's just as it was ordered it in '84. That's a Dimarzio MegaDrive in the bridge position, and an extra mini coil split switch for it. This pickup just works like charm in this guitar. Plus, that green! I do find it odd that it has the Hamerlock tuners with the Kahler locking nut as well.

I've been on the prowl for one of these (or the Robin equivalent) for years, and this just happened... My Kanji is rusty, but I think it reads: "Minty !! Tight neck pocket gives loud acoustic voice" This was the first time I've see one in black finish, and black+binding has always been a favorite. Perfect twin for my Schecter PT! In fact, the Tokai neck is a dead ringer for that Schecter neck - same exact width, chunky carve, profile, frets... It shows hardly any signs of wear, and after a neck shim and quick setup it plays beautifully. I will say that the fit/finish is the best of any Fender shaped object I've owned. I'm also learning that I dig single pickup guitars. It all started years ago with a beautiful Hamer Korina Junior which has since moved on (gave way to the BCR version), and the cyclops gang has continued to grow...

Hey there, guys! Surprisingly, Kev did reply to my texto. I wrote to him something inspired by a conversation I had with @Ting Ho Dung a few months ago —Michael and I do chat often and had already talked about this. Kev’s reply, though still a bit sad and nostalgic, also sounds like he’s already seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. I toyed with the idea of transcribing the whole thing for you guys, but finally decided to share here only what directly concerns the HFC —no need to tell you why. So, I beg your indulgence. This is what I’m willing to share for now, which isn’t much, but at least you’ll see he says “hi” to us all here:

The Minus 5 (a side project of Peter Buck and Mike Mills from REM) played here in DC last night. Thought this was a cool shot from the show - Mike Mills needed to grab a backup when his P-Bass crapped out...

This weekend marks the 5 year anniversary of the initial Ultimates run opening up. Congratulations to the Shishkov Guitars team! We've seen incredible work, right out of the gates. Onward and upward!

Kizanski's Ever-Expanding GAS SOLD!

A: My latest guitar: https://davesguitar.com/products/fender/limited-edition-sandblasted-tele-14/ This is my first Fender USA-made (as opposed to a Fender clone put together with USA parts) guitar in a VERY long time. It looks promising, has a two-piece ash body, old-style Tele bridge with brass saddles, and a '70's style headstock logo. With the exception of the sandblasted ash body, it's essentially an American Special Tele. I'd remembered reading about Fender making these Ltd. Ed. 'sandblasted' Teles and Strats a couple of years ago; so when I saw this particular one at DGS, I went to Google to comparison shop for similar ones from past sales/listings on Reverb and Ebay...turns out, there was once a used American Standard Tele version for sale a few years ago at DGS...i'm including that old link here. I think of the two, I prefer the version I snagged over the American Standard version: https://davesguitar.com/products/fender/limited-edition-sandblasted-american-standard-tele-11/ I'm a fan of wood finishes vs. fancy paint jobs, which is what got my attention with this Tele in the first place, especially since it's made from ash. Has anybody here owned one of those 'sandblasted' guitars, or at least played one of those? Any thoughts? In the meantime, I'll be waiting for it to arrive in the next few days.

To expect for things to keep going on and on and on and on over the years is a glitch in the human brain. The best stuff in life usually has a span of only a few years. Actual Punk music lasted for maybe four or five years... New Wave was the same, disco was the same, grunge was the same, thrash was the same... what is good and what is great is usually not sustainable. Kev needs the kindness and grace from the rest of the world to age, live and love without the expectation of: next albums, tours, appearances or interviews. That expectation can drive a musician into a cave for years... look what it did to Vito Bratta & Jake E. Lee! What he achieved with Hell was unbelievable! Most of us wankers never amount to a fucking thing and he actually DID it! I don’t blame him for constricting his social circle a bit while bowing out from the public eye for some rest, recuperation and regrouping. Hopefully he will take advantage of the wonderful NHS and get some treatment... or not and let things heal naturally on their own. Whatever he thinks is best. The dude is a star... made of light. Most of us are made of mud. lolz Cheers to a future with or without playing metal... either way, the mountain has already been climbed... no need to keep climbing more mountains. If one or two present themselves to him and he decides to take them on, I’m sure he will kick some ass and see the summit. Very impressive man and we are lucky he ever gave us losers the time of day. lolz

For my 300th post, I thought it might be time to start an 0093 thread. I took the first picture myself, but all the others are from Trish - thanks. 😊 It started on Monday, July 10, 2017, at Shishkov HQ when I picked the wood for the top. There were several choices and Mike and I discussed the piece that he thought would work best with the color I had in mind. It's the one in the middle. April, 2019: the neck. And the body. June, 2019: the binding. More updates as they occur.

and I'll leave this here:

Lately I have been looking for a Knaggs SSC and had my eye on a few. I was going to start seriously shopping after my vacation. Little did I know that Martin was doing a promotional event in the local music store in Virginia Beach. (Where I am vacationing). The HD-35 was too much temptation. Looks like I will wait a bit for the SSC and I have a noisemaker in my hotel room.

My incredible daughter has graduated and is moving into to her own apartment. Which means, once again, after 22 years, there is a free bedroom in the house to become the jam room. No longer to be stuffed in a corner, I will have space to set up a recording area for both audio and video. Green screens and full studio time. Amps for both bass and guitar, mics, digital drums, (oh well, better than no drums) and space! In preparation, bought a small tube amp, some new speakers to build an extra cab. Bought the bass amp last year, and have lots of mics and other fun things to set up around my iMac. In case you can't tell, Happy man!

I NEED a Telecaster! Bill Kirchen is to the Telecaster what Robin Trower is to the Stratocaster. Bill Kirchen gets a Tele to sound unmistakably like a Telecaster. Redd Volkaert was Merle Haggard's guitar player. He should be considered to have a PHD in Tele tones. Both of these guys have jammed with great players who make other musicians woodshed really hard. Last night's show at The Grey Eagle in Asheville, NC was their third show together. Two guys. Two Teles. Two stools. Two amps. Two microphones. It was great! Bill Kirchen started off the show with one of his better known songs. Although Kirchen and Volkaert took turns on whose song or song choice was played there may have been times that one of them got a couple of songs in a row. It did not matter because both of them played multiple solos during each song. They were joking around a lot, too. Redd Volkaert not only is sharp witted, he can make jokes with music passages, too. Bill's rig was his Rick Kelly Telecaster copy through a Fender Princeton. There was a pedal on top of the amp, but I never found out what it was. He used a tremelo effect on one song, so that was probably what kind of pedal it was. Redd played a Tele that said Aronson on the headstock through a Sho-Bud combo. One could expect too much tinny twang in the tone from two Teles, but tain't so. These guys had their tones dialed in where nothing was too bright. Both played with their pickup selector switches a lot, especially during solos. Their Teles did not sound the same, either. There are definitely differences in their playing styles which was obvious when I heard them doing their soundcheck. While both do some cool chord shapes, Redd will do chord melodies or change chords on every quarter note beat. He also throws in a lot of harmony notes on his solos. Redd also starts licks from a bent note or bent chord and has the notes descend to a lower tone. There were some mind blowing licks that sounded like he was sliding back and forth on notes within a lick. Imagine someone using a whammy bar to drop each note as it is played. Redd did that sort of thing, but he did it really fast and within runs. There are some sound samples of licks on his web site. Bill does volume knob swells often. Something else he does is play with the tone knob in a similar way to volume swells, and it gives him an effect similar to wah pedal. His control plate is reversed with the switch toward the back of the body. His tone knob is in the middle, and his volume knob is closest to the center of the body. He missed some notes. He took a lot of chances, too. When it was time for the last couple of songs in the encore he told Redd that he wanted to go first because he did not want to have to follow him. These guys have a master class coming up in Austin on June 23. The price is not for the mildly interested. Bill also mentioned upcoming reunion shows with five original members of Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen the last week of June in California. I really need a Telecaster!

Let's take a minute and recall the youth of a Hall of Fame HFC-er.

Vintera may cause dizziness, nausea, diarrhea, swelling, or sudden shortness of breath. If you experience one or more of these symptoms, stop playing Vintera and consult your physician immediately.

Over $21M raised in this auction with proceeds to go to charity. Obviously Christie's is going to stick their hand in the pot but still going to a good cause I hope!! Hats off to Gilmour, he could have easily said "I'd like to keep that money and give $1M to charity".

The Mirage 2 that I bought from MCChris last week showed up yesterday. Haven't plugged it in yet, but the guitar is a looker! Light and resonant. Cool flamed maple top on it and the '59 burst is awesome. Almost looks like it has some pink tones in it. Thanks for the deal Chris.

I received this Dallas era Schecter PT from the original owner yesterday. A03xx serial number, 21 frets, skunk stripe, squeaky clean and unmolested. Fantastic neck and low action. This replaces the Dallas era Schecter PT (A04xx) I sold 2 years ago.

File this under Django49s "I didn't even know these existed" hyper-boo-teek territory. This goes beyond the realm of guitars and into some weird new zone of art and woodcraft. Somehow I stumbled across Ceci Guitars on Reverb. One of those things where you type in some search and end up down a rabbit hole of stuff you've never seen. Patrik Ceci is from Italy, and has built maybe ten guitars. Each seems to have been different, and each has a name. His designs, to me, seem kind of Art Deco, with a geometric, 1930s Raymond Loewy influence. Even the metal bits he makes (apart from tuners) and he uses Mojo pickups, from England. All were interesting, but one in particular kept me coming back to look at the photos. So many reasons not to buy. First, I found only one YouTube review, and one review on his site. Even the Gear Page geeks had not a mention of this guitar. And did I really want to chance international shipping, and who knows what as far as customs duties, and if I didn't't like it, the return process could be horrifying. But nothing ventured, nothing gained... and even with shipping it was a smidge over $1000... I hit it. Patrik was a prince as far as communication. Answered every communication and kept me up to date on every little thing. Italian authorities were a little slow to release it, but it still arrived in about a week. Very well packed, and the case was a cool (Italian-looking) sort of jumbo briefcase, very sleek. Inside was... a lot more packing material. Patrik packs well. I got it out, and my wife and daughter even were going "Wow!" Meet Domino. The body is one piece of mahogany, with the back entirely cut away, leaving a solid center block and hollow sides with a pair of round sound holes on the front. The back is then covered with aluminum plates, with edges smooth as silk, finished in a nitrocellulose white. He uses this same painted aluminum for the "poker chips" behind the volume and tone knobs and the pickup mount. I think also the output jack plate. (If you don't like plastic.. this guitar is almost plastic-free. Just the knobs, I think.) Then the construction gets weird(er). The back also has two strips of maple, that are, from what he described, over a pair of channels that contain solid brass bars that run from the tail of the guitar (and are secured by polished brass nuts) along the length, through a polished aluminum block that serves to mount the bridge, and finally to the heel of the neck, where they meet another aluminum black that secures the neck. The guitar is kind of a mahogany block with a metal spine, with components mounted to the spine via aluminum blocks, with acoustic chambers on either side which are covered by aluminum plates. The neck is there pieces of mahogany with the most insane woodwork I've ever seen along the edges of the fingerboard. It's somehow a maple fingerboard (9.5" radius) with an edge of mahogany, and inlayed bone blocks, while at the end, the mahogany is cleanly radiusd away to leave just maple. The end of the fingerboard is round, and floats over the body. The frets, incidentally, are domed, not flat on top, with perfect ends, and are so level the guitar came with action too low for me (which is saying something). The truss rod is double-action and very sensitive, needing only a 1/16 turn to get it level as a railway track. Size is on the larger side of medium, getting to "chunky" and a very neutral round, that doesn't swell much as it goes up. Not weird at all: I was somehow expecting it to feel awkward. The only quirk, and I asked Patrik about it, is that the high "E" is well in (probably 5mm) from the edge of the fingerboard. He says it's deliberate, as you can use a pretty heavy vibrato or bend and not go off the edge. You don't feel it at all, but it looks odd. Has Kluson tuners which I have not seen before, a bone nut and zero fret, a really unique looking Mojo custom-made gold foil pickup, handmade brass strap buttons, handmade brass bridge, handmade aluminum tailpiece. It really was almost intimidating to hold, there was so much detail work in it, and there is NOTHING about it that says "Oh, like a Telecaster, like a Les Paul, like a Gretsch." It's completely its own thing. Unplugged, it sounds more like a flat top acoustic guitar than an arch top with F holes. You could probably bring this to an open mic and no one would give you dirty looks for bringing an "electric" (gasp!) Perfectly easy to play, though 11s on a 25.5" scale take some effort to bend. Well, I thought, time to plug in. I may hate it now. First thought? Kind of a high-octane Gretsch. Pretty powerful, kind of a "woody" thing, not as much treble as I'd expected considering the amount of metal in this guitar. Knobs are very useful: you don't lose high-end when you ease off on the volume, and it doesn't go too dull when you roll the tone off. Shocked that it doesn't feed back like a banshee with high gain. It doesn't do shimmering or quacking or zingy... no Fender sounds at all. Somewhere in the Gretsch meets a Les Paul land. This would make a good raunchy blues guitar, and with the tone down, surprisingly nice jazzy sounds. It's beastly heavy though. 10.36 pounds. It's well balanced, but all the brass and aluminum add up. I don't think I'd play it more than 45 minutes at a time. The only other quirk (aside from the aforementioned high "E") is that I can just feel where two of the three pieces of the neck are laminated. Its finished in Tru-Oil, so nothing is covered by lacquer, and it's not an issue, so much as an observation. Bottom line is this is a genuinely unique guitar, build to please the builder, with no compromises, but also takes some getting used to. As a tool for gigging, I'm not sure it would be the only guitar for many people, but it's a great example of lutherie, and honestly really nice to play.

And those that know and love Ben "Stike" Stikeleather...

I don’t know where else to post this. But, looking thru “The Ultimate” and my son’s favorite guitar is the Elliot Easton left handed Phantom. He’s 2 and I’m 99% positive he’s going to be left handed. It’s simultaneously the cutest and most inspiring thing ever... he keeps stopping me on this page and pointing at the guitar and shouting at “ahh! ahh!” Seriously warms my heart and makes me think I’m doing something right...

Like THIS?

That's years ago, unless you're selling a Carvin.

It sure is flaming

'....Ciese and Dissist....'. Kinda says it all.

It’s me who has Kev’s 4-digit Standard. I have his email and his phone number. I even worked with him on a side project —successfully, must I add. However, at a given moment he stopped replying to my emails. He did tell me he was having problems with his wrist —I think it’s no longer a secret around here. I haven’t tried to text him or to call him ever since. I guess it’s about time though. The man is a great individual and an awesome musician.

A few others that weren't on the phone... No, really...I can quit any time!

I’ve probably got a few kicking around. Stike has done such great work for me over the years, I’m running out of colors and I think the one he’s working on for me now may be similar to a color he’s done for me before, maybe a decade and a half or more ago.

The Fackyo Melocaster The Fackyo II Stratobird

That guy is a lying POS. He has a HORRIBLE reputation, and is well known in the area as being fully of shit, but loves to toot his own horn about his connections to KISS, etc. Those guitars are clearly Chinese imports, and when I asked him about it, he denied it. His ad copy is intentionally misleading, if not fraudulent.

My favorite Hamer. I don't know who ordered it but it's exactly what I would ordered. Probably overpaid for it at the time. Now it seems like a steal.

Thanks...... it is my last remaining Hamer...... more of a tele guy these days...... It was a Custom order from 05-06-ish?!?!?

That was a very exciting time for those of us who were able to get in early. When the initial order sold out in a couple of hours, Mike & Trish expanded the offering, so I know there are a lot more happy people out there enjoying some killer guitars! I was psyched because I got to pick up more than just one when I got mine, so got to play and check out some of the first ones.

Robin Savoy from the infamous "Chuck" on the Robin Forum... Robin Kizanski #1 (the one with coil taps)... Robin Fakimba Avalon known as "Quiltus Maximus" ... Greg Platzer's best bud Stevie Clay's "El Hefe"... BCR Greg's Avalon (thanks again to my good friend)... My favorite Les Paul... The '87 '59 Les Paul Reissue Quilt... Just a few more before I'm deemed the asshole.

First is a Hamer Studio from the early 2000s. This one has a chip on the back and some scratches as well. The top is clean and gorgeous. Neck is full, not huge but certainly not skinny. This one was modded with a phat cat in the neck and it has been played. Frets may need leveling soon. Price *sold* shipped conus. Comes with Hamer case in good condition. Second is a 2004 Monaco Elite with P90s. Other than swirl in the pick area and minor worming on the back, this one is very clean. Also comes with Hamer case in good condition. *Traded* shipped conus. Other than making room, I have no good reason to get rid of these guitars. They are both great. I may be interested in trades but I want to reduce my inventory by one. Pics of whatever you want to see on request. The first pic is the chip on the back of the Studio.

I just got a guitar in with broken split shaft pots. Super hard to find Hamer Taper pots. I suggested changing them out but the owner wanted to keep the Hamer pots. He was changing knobs anyway so I did this: removed the pot, got a solid pot adapter, put the broken part in the adapter on the pot and flowed a little solder in to make it all stuck together. Reinstalled and it worked perfectly with the screw on knobs he was trying to install. Just thought I’d share with you all!!