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I think many of you know, I released a blues album last year. Ernie Santella - The Whole Shabang. https://erniesantella.bandcamp.com/album/the-whole-shabang So, just wanted to share this story of what's happened. Even though we are in the 'digital' world of on-line cloud and streaming sites, I printed up a ton of CD's. After all the work, I'm old school and wanted something tangible to actually hold in my hands, not just some digital cloud files. I printed up a couple of hundred, sent copies of it everywhere. (Amazing fact, radio stations, streaming companies, magazines etc still want physical copies and not just links) I've gotten plays all over the US, UK and Europe on radio. And, gotten messages from all over that people really like it - so cool. It's also streaming on all the major sites: Spotify, Apple music, Amazon, YouTube, Pandora etc. I get an update every month on hits from those sites. You get tenths-of-a-penny per play. Honestly, you will never get rich from that, until you get millions of streams a day. Now, the amazing-balls part. I sent it to SiriusXM. Specifically, the B.B. King's Bluesville channel. I sent it totally blind. I didn't know a sole there, just mailed it in with a nice note about myself and the record. Boom, they picked one of my songs "I Owe Myself Money" (Not even my favorite song on the album) for their 'Hot new songs of the week' and I got a ton of plays. My wife and I actually heard them intro it on the channel and I almost crashed the car. It was just like out of that Tom Hanks movie "That Thing You Do". Insane. Like I mentioned above, you don't get much in Royalties from streaming. I think I've gotten $100. total in a year from that. BUT, are you sitting down... For every play on SiriusXM, I get $40. You read that right, $40. (That's double as both the Artist and Songwriter) It really pays to write your own tunes and not just cover songs. I had no freakin' idea they paid that much per play. After the initial run of being on the 'Songs of the week', now, I'm down to getting played once a month, which don't get wrong, I am still HONORED they play it at all! As my wife and I just moved to Las Cruces, NM and building a house, I will start recording a follow-up soon. I already have a bunch of ideas for new songs. Thanks for reading and listening. ernie P.S. If anyone wants any info on all the stuff involved with getting your music copy-written, distributed and having a company manage your royalties etc. Message me, I'm happy to share! I had a friend help me with all that as I had no clue what to do.

It’s right around the anniversary of the Arlington to New Hartford move….1997. Just about half my life ago. About 12 of us left our lives in suburban Chicago and jumped on planes, got in cars, etc and headed East. The shop was downsized considerably and production went from damn near 100 per week down to a dozen. We lost a lot of good people that couldn’t make the move. Many said the “new” ones would never be as good. I think the team did a great job of preserving the brand from a build perspective. Many thoughts. Thank you to Frank and Jol for giving me the opportunity to move and for the advancement opportunities that followed. I’m in a much different spot in life now but a direct line can be drawn from my time at Hamer. Thanks to Dave Brown for putting up with me as a roommate/coworker for two years lol. Thank you Mike, Chip, Clay and the rest of the crew for being such a huge part of my life back then. I’ve lost touch with some but I think about you guys often and wish you all well. We did good Gentlemen. The instruments we built hang with the best of them.

The owner of Guitar Pickers in Wilmington NC hit me up to see if I could turn this one around, there were no bolts through the headstock but it was pretty bad... I don't keep my opinion on relics secret and while I did appreciate the Evel Knievel-esque design I agreed to take this one in hoping I wouldn't regret it-sometimes going behind someone that doesn't know how to properly sand is a fucking nightmare. Anyway, before. After. There's a few more rehabs in the queue that I will post when completed, a couple will be for sale too.

I hate to see unloved Hamer's hanging in GC getting abused by 14 year old kids. Found this one yesterday and had to snatch it up. Needed lots of cleaning,but it's all original, no monkey business other than some minor dings and scratches that I was able to mostly clean up. Non -original case, but very well fitting, and looks a lot like an old Hamer case, just without the logo. Very light and resonant. I've wanted one of these for a while, and I'm thrilled to get it. Good deal too, at least by today's standards.

I sent an email to @JGravelin with pickup questions and found out he is in town (Lexington, KY) with Erik Koskinen playing Woodsongs at the Lyric Theater tonight 6/9). He got my friend and I in the door, getting ready for the show to start. Proof attached. The man, the myth, the legend. And great guy.

“I hope I can make it to then,” he said to me. He was referring to his birthday. Not to be an alarmist or anything, but that’s only 4 days from now. James “Jay” Toland, AKA: Ed Rechts is dying of Stage 4 cancer, but his thoughts are with his virtual family. A family from which he has been expelled. Don’t get me wrong – he earned it. He earned it several times as a matter of fact, during his tenure on the HFC, but we’ve come to accept that as part of his charm. “If I go, write a good tribute to me on the HFC, will you? I would love the guys to laugh again.” I’ve been asked to do similar tributes before. When my friend, Dave, one of my closest friends since high school, attended my brother’s memorial service and was touched by my eulogy, he took me aside afterwards and asked me, “When I die, will you give my eulogy?” At first, I thought it was one of his typical expressions of dark humor, but when I half chuckled, I noticed that he wasn't. Dave is a Firefighter, so this eulogy could come at any time. As luck would have it, that was 13 years ago. Hopefully, I won’t have to put any (more) thought to it for another 20 or 30 years, but suffice it to say it is something that I take very seriously. Probably more so than anything in my life. So, when Rechts asked that of me, he may have been just expecting I post a few of our old Photoshopped images that we traded back and forth, playfully busting each other’s virtual balls. But this is a lot more personal to me. This is literally a dying man’s last wishes. That this would be entrusted to me is nothing to treat lightly. JeffR broke the news to me several weeks ago of Rechts’ terminal disease, but in the periodic chats I had with Rechts since then, I didn’t let on that I knew. It’s his story to tell and he would tell me when he was ready. Yesterday was the day. He told me that he’s in a great deal of pain, but he’s keeping himself “semi-jacked on opiates.” “I sure would be,” I said, “And not ‘semi’.” “I'm doing all I can to manage this body pain,” he said. “My guts feel like they are eating itself. I can feel it.” We’ve all read tributes. Threads about someone we all knew having passed away, and all of the outpouring of affection that follows. We feel terrible and we say what we feel in our hearts, especially if we knew them well or for a long time. What I would have really loved back in June of 2012 was for my brother to hear that eulogy and all of the love that everyone in attendance relayed to me about him. This is why I’m writing Rechts’ tribute Now. Now, when he can still read it. (Rest assured, he still visits the HFC daily). I have a lot to say about Jay, but I will attempt to edit myself (somewhat) out of consideration for the reader. Otherwise, I could go on for hours. In one of our earliest conversations, Jay and I were talking about our screen names and, as a big Top Gun fan, he knew exactly from where mine came. “GET ON IT, KIZANSKI!’ he texted in CAPS. But where did “Ed Rechts” come from? I had to know. Jay is a brilliant, well-read man, so he offered, “Do you know your Sophocles?” “Huh?” I responded, (the obvious reply of someone not well-read). “Oedipus Rex!” he shouted. “The original motherfucker!” If there was ever a perfect screen name; brilliant, funny, clever, and, well, accurate. Over the years, Jay and I would talk on the phone, email, text, etc., but I never met him in person. Funny how you can feel close to someone you’ve never technically met. But in the closeness, there was a distance as well. Months would go by without a word from him, but then you’ll hear from him and it’s as if you spoke yesterday, and you’re back to poking fun of this or that situation. No time had passed after all. Back in the glory days of the HFC, often likened to the wild west, Rechts reigned supreme. That’s not hyperbole. His posts were that of legend, ranging from biting wit to elegant prose, always making his point, be it sophomoric or a genuine response to someone requesting information. He once even wrote a lengthy post (about what I can’t remember) in the voice of a character from the Victorian era. It was both brilliant and twisted. He could obviously trade barbs with anyone, but the last thing you wanted to do was get in his crosshairs. There was no worse fate for someone that had motivated him to fire up his Adobe Photoshop. In fact I happen to know that there were times when he found himself without a working install of Photoshop, so he would slay someone with Microsoft Paint. When you’ve been parodied by someone with MS Paint, you really got on their bad side. Right now, many of you HFC OGs like myself are thinking of an unfortunate former HFC-er who went by “AnDy” (and who Rechts dubbed “pAnZy”). And you’d be right. When epic battles (and eventual beatdowns) are discussed, this was the blueprint. This was example to which all other would be compared. To this day, he’s still proud of it, and I don’t blame him. So, there are tons of Photoshopped images of and by Rechts in my archives. Some of them are of me in compromising situations, and I did my best to retaliate – all in good fun – but I knew going in that I was overmatched and outgunned. The whole while I was laughing at him and at myself. At the heart of it he was an inspiration to me learning, not only how to create some silly memes and images with someone’s likeness, but how to laugh at myself. It would be a crime if he left us without knowing that. I’ll post a few of these images and I’ll provide some context where I can when it’s not obvious. Many of you have some, too. Please post them. He should laugh too. Jay's not Photoshopped favorite picture of himself from BITD. After we chatted for a while, he said that he was tired and he needed to lie down. "I'm kinda resigned to this. Unless there's a miracle." I guess we have this to look forward to come Christmas time. He made that one - not me! Humor never dies.

I just accidentally bought another Hamer 😄 I went onto Reverb to look for some kidney bean tuning buttons for my Greeny and happened to see a nice looking Hamer p90 goldtop just like mine. I clicked on it to see why this clown thought his Chinese Hamer was so expensive only to quickly realize it was a 3 minute old listing for a very well priced US model. Sold! Should be here Tuesday. Looks fantastic overall aside from the chip right at the bottom of the gold top.

So last thursday... I posted the GC PSA about their sale... (10% off, plsu 10% GC bucks if you use the credit card, sale ends tonight BTW) friday afternoon, no one jumped on the FM Special and I said, f it, I'll grab that thing as I have a thing for Aztec Gold FM's pretty solid... some fretwear, but very playable. light dings but finish fully intact, no hameritis along the fretboard and I suspect it's a late '93 as the profile is closer to the slightly fuller 94/95's Top nicer than the terrible GC pics and I love that the finish has darkened to a vintage amber. I got a nice surprise when I opened it up... nicely packed with OHSC. so nice I almost wanted to keep the box and the fixins but I left it. good deal.

I finally got a 4 digit Standard back in September.

One day in October of 1984, while living in Houston, Texas, my friend/bandmate Kato called and said he was going to look at some speakers for his bass amp and asked if I would like to come along. I said sure. We went to Musician’s Shop, a small music store in a strip center on Bissonnet Street in nearby Bellaire. While he was engrossed in conversation about speakers with one of the sales staff, I wandered over to the guitar area. By this time I already had two Hamers: a 1978 Sunburst, purchased used from Lake Charles Music (Lake Charles, Louisiana) in 1982, and a new Blitz, special ordered through Evans Music City in Houston in 1983. But I was always on the lookout for another. There, on the left-hand side of the store on a floor-level rack, was a black Hamer Special. It was new – it still had the Hamer hang-tag attached – but it looked like it had been there for a while. The finish was smudged with fingerprints, it was out of tune and was missing a string. The hand-printed price tag read $820.00. I put my left hand around the neck and knew it instantly: I had found The One. It if was a movie, blue lightning effects would have been added in post-production to indicate the “electric” connection between the guitar and me. For many guitarists – including me – the shape and feel of a guitar’s neck is of utmost importance. I like them on the thinner side, while some players prefer the opposite; it’s a matter of personal preference. But this neck was perfect. (Many years later, when Mike Shishkov was building a guitar made to my specs, I sent him measurements of Blackie’s neck for reference.) I didn’t say anything to the Musician’s Shop employees, but after Kato dropped me off at home I gathered some cash I had squirreled away for just such an occasion and drove back to the store. I got the attention of the guy behind the counter and said, “I’m kinda interested in that black Hamer, but $820 seems a little high. Anything you can do?” “Hmm,” he said, and poked at his desk calculator. “How about $775?” “I don’t know,” I said, “that still seems like a little too much.” “All right, lemme see what I can do,” he said, and in a classic used-car-salesman move disappeared into the back of the store. After several long minutes, he came back. “Okay. I can do $725.” I’ve never been much of a negotiator. I don’t like “haggling” and have always hated the ridiculous cat-and-mouse game traditionally associated with buying a car. So I don’t know what came over me in that moment, but suddenly I was bursting at the seams with a buyer’s confidence I’ve never experienced before or since. Maybe it was because I knew, without a doubt, that that guitar and I were destined to be together. Ignoring his $725 offer, I calmly said, “How about this: I give you THIS” – I pulled $600 cash out of my pocket and laid it on the counter – “and you give me the guitar?” He hesitated for a beat and then said, “I’ll go get the case.” Beneath my calm exterior, I was ecstatic. He was gone for a long time. While I waited, I browsed some guitar straps on display near the front of the store and selected a blue nylon one. (I always liked the color combination of black and blue.) He finally returned and said, somewhat sheepishly, “We couldn’t find the case. I’ll make it $525 and you can have this one” – a generic rectangular one-size-sort-of-fits-all guitar case. “Works for me,” I said. “Oh, and I’m taking this strap too.” He glanced up briefly from writing up the sale and said, “Yeah, that’s fine.” And that’s the story of how I got Blackie. For many years I assumed it was a 1984. But, later, when I learned more about Hamer history and how to read their serial numbers, I realized it was a 1981 – which explains why it was so dirty and the case was nowhere to be found. It sat there in the store for three years, waiting for me to come in and rescue it. It’s been my constant companion ever since. It went with me every day to GIT when I was going to school there – and it became part of my identity. (At Musician’s Institute in the 1980s, where guitar nerdiness was elevated to extreme levels, people were often identified by the guitar they played: the guy that plays the red Ibanez RG, etc. I was The Guy That Plays the Black Hamer.) I’ve always been careful with all my guitars, but any instrument that gets as much use as this one is going to end up with some battle scars, and Blackie has plenty. Like where the finish has been worn off where my right forearm contacts the body, or chips in the paint where it got hit by a falling cymbal stand. One night in 2007 during a Rhythm Dawgs gig, the stitching on that blue nylon strap – the one I got from Musician’s Shop all those years ago – came unraveled and the guitar went crashing down onto my pedalboard. The impact knocked several chunks of paint off the lower edge of the body and put a huge gouge in the neck between the nut and high-E tuner. But thanks to rock-solid Hamer craftsmanship, nothing broke. As my guitar collection has grown over the years it doesn’t get quite as much playing time as it used to, but I know it’s always there for me. It always gets played at gigs, even if for only one song. I’ve changed the bridge pickup a few times – Duncan Distortion, Duncan JB, DiMarzio PAF 36th Anniversary – but a couple of years ago I came across the original in a box of old stuff, so if I ever decide to put it back in I can. A while back longtime Dawgs/SUIT drummer Bill Asa asked me, “When was the last time you did a gig without that guitar?” My answer? “Before I got it.” 1990: 2023:

I found my 1992 Sunburst in a pawnshop 31 years ago. They were asking $1200 and accepted my low-ball offer of $500 cash. This old thing sat disassembled and unplayed while I waffled on selling it or not for longer than I care to admit. I finally decided that I should own at least one guitar with factory paint and decided to keep it. Since it was staying I decided to do a few things. 1) Resanded and buffed so it's as close to new looking as it can be, there's a couple dents and the clear topcoat has taken on that nicotine stained look that some folks seem to like. I'm not a fan personally but fuck it. 2) Señor Gravelin posted this awhile back and I went with a Slammer V2/PAF set, as expected they sound great. 3) The Switchcraft barrel jack got 86'd and replaced with an Electrosocket, yeah I drilled it... 4) Tonepros bridge and tailpiece. And 5) took it to former Arlington Heights and New Hartford Hamer employee Clay Conner who's just a few miles down the road from me for a little fret level and dress. Still great after all these years. Oh yeah-zoom in, it goes to 11 now.

My Mom passed July 4th after a long bout w/ alzheimers, she would have been 94 next month. She left a few bucks behind, so I spent about twice what I typically spend on a guitar (that I really didn't need 😁). I owned an Epiphone 339 awhile back, I liked the smaller sized body, but eventually moved it on after awhile, as we do. I found this custom shop 359, basically a cosmetically upgraded 339 w/ a blingy top, plek fret job, and tight setup. Damn sexy, plays and sounds great. It's got whats called a 60/30 neck (or 30/60?) which is a slightly thicker 60s slim taper, but smaller than their 50s neck spec. Took the pickguard off today. Very cool.

I've been using a Player Tele almost exclusively for gigs the past few years. Covers all the styles from country to pop to rock and you don't have to worry about dings and wear. Don't have to hassle switching guitars in the middle of a set. Last night I took my 2002 Studio Custom and played it the last set. Maybe not as good for country tones but still very good. There were several highlights that will make me take it out more often. The appearance is fantastic. The vintage natural flame top looked great under the light, much more dynamic than at home. Last song was a rock inspired House of the Rising Sun jam. The woody tone from the neck pickup was great for the first lead, not available on a standard Tele. Second lead was on the bridge pickup with a wah, that tone really stood out. Pickups are @JGravelin Ultimates with UOA5 magnets and slight tweaks, most excellent. I'm at the point where I feel guilty having nice guitars and not playing them. Not worried about honest light wear from playing. The more you play them the better they sound and play, I'll still use the Tele most due to the song mix of the band. The Hamer and Les Paul will be getting more playing time.

Enrico "Frank" Glavash Tom Dave: Gary: Todd: Mike: The New Hartford Crew:

I've been on the lookout for a black Newport of any variety for many years. In Kaki's listing of her natural Newport Pro (https://www.hamerfanclub.com/forums/topic/104071-psa-hamer-newport-pro-and-check-out-the-seller/), she mentioned that her black one got more use. I couldn't help myself and PMed her saying that if she ever thought about selling that one to please let me know. One thing led to another, and: I love how it's clearly gotten a ton of playing time but still looks beautiful. You can probably see in the 1st pic how Kaki's fierce nails impacted the top. Interestingly it's the lightest of my three and has the most top and bottom end. My Pro Custom has a very mid-focused sound, and the N90 is somewhere in between. What can I say, I'm a lucky guy!

From the soldering iron and warped wit of our own Jim Gale ... A Emerson Paramount Drive circuit tied into a BJF Honey Bee circuit in one box, that can be switched either/or, or both layered in series. With HFC Inner Circle-approved casing art that dates back to 2004. I can't stop laughing.

Honduran mahogany Ebony board Maple top tortoiseshell binding sustainblock Gravelin custom Charlotte wind in a Dimarzio/Hamer style base Awesome.

A good friend of mine (old work nickname 'Rudeski') built my favorite amp for me. I recently added the custom logo in his honor. Our own JGale built my first ever pedal collection (I had only the tuner and wireless gizmo). My entire rig was handmade by true friends - I'm a fortunate guy. Thank you Gale. Thank you, Rudeski.

After much internal debate on how to significantly reduce my collection and which guitars to let go, I have decided to sell 2 Explorer/Standard shaped guitars, beginning with this incredible Shishkov Ultimate #0011. My Momose Korina MEX will be going up next. I'm the 2nd owner and can't find a mark on it. It has a pretty chunky neck (0.95" at the first fret, 0.98" at the 12th) and only weighs 7.6 pounds. I don't think I need to pour out any accolades here. Everyone here is familiar. SOLD - $5,500 shipped

Did, I just become a loothier? YUP!! lol pics of my precision guitar parts kit... got it for a good deal used. I did some light sculpting of the heel.. My training was watching Mike Shishkov do it for 15 minutes at the 2003 Hamer Open house... glued it... (clamps from harbour freight $4 each) and resting peacefully. Will get to grain filling soon. My plan is to shoot it with aged clear nitro... and then hit it with Oxford Vintage formula nitro and lightly relic and check it... I think the grain looks pretty good. More pics to come. edit... out of clamps and I cleaned up the heel a little more, not as elegant as a Hamer or Gibson Custom Shop but I was happy with it... done by eye with a rasp and a file (more harbour freight) I could have rounded it more but I didn't want to take away extra material. Seems like a very resonant neck and body. Weight is 4 lbs 15 oz as is, guessing high 7, low 8 f;;lly loaded.

So here are a couple of pictures of my 1978 b&c Sunburst that I recently aquired. It's an absolute stunner. The one piece neck is definitely on the slimmer side but that is my only concern. Might get used to it. I know it's just a maple veneer but it does look very nice, flames and all, maybe not the depth of a thick piece of maple wood I suppose. it had different tuners installed at some point. Were Grovers that bad in the 70s? The former owner had Grovers reinstalled but you can see the extra holes on the back. Everything else is in excellent condition. The original red plush case has silver hardware, latches and hamer logo in silver too. Didn't know these existed.

Stingy bastards. I don't need you anymore. Pretty cool, eh? ---

I always liked it but thought it was a bit lacking in the looks department. Had a friend that works for a well regarded boo-teek amplifier company recover it, I think it's a big improvement. Also just picked up a used Ceriatone JCM52 and promptly changed out the logo badge.

As I get older, I'm finding clean tones are really working for me. Well, this new toy has beautiful, chimey cleans and looks sexy as all get out, a little under 8 lbs., couldn't resist. And while it's called Cadillac Green, it has this blue/green thing going on, very similar to my old Eclipse.

I took a chance on this one. It was listed for sale in Japan for a very reasonable price. From the posted pics, I was fairly certain that the back of the neck had been refinished and probably indicated a headstock break or other issue, but that wasn't enough to dissuade me. It also had a pretty good amount of playwear and a couple of screw holes where, I'm guessing, a pickguard was installed. It was delivered today and the neck has definitely been refinished, covering up the serial number. However, there is a wood spacer under the sustain block bridge and the headstock is the early long version. So I'm guessing that it's a '78. It also looks like a layer of clear coat was sprayed on the headstock front as some of the dings look to be covered with it. The good news is that the neck is straight and it plays well up and down the neck. The frets are in great shape, so probably a refret at some point in its life. The pickups are older Dimarzios, so are hopefully original. I confirmed that everything works as it should, but haven't had the opportunity to really dig into it yet. Definitely a player grade, but still a vintage Hamer that I can play without worries. Here are a few pics, so if anyone wants to add their thoughts or correct any of my assumptions or conclusions, please do. I may bring this one up to Chicago this weekend for the get together.

Thanks to a stray response to a FYI Superpro post (that ended up being a scam), I was made aware of a nice Hamer Monaco Elite for sale in Louisville for, I think, a pretty decent price. Condition is almost mint, though there are a few minor surface marks. The top is nicer than it looked in the pic, IMO. Nice sized neck, which I prefer. Fretboard is ebony, which I think contrasts nicely with the natural finish. And yes, there is a first fret victory inlay that probably drives some here nuts. But I like it. No COA, unfortunately, so I can't trace its history for sure. Needed some serious adjustments, but now have it playing to my liking. Pickups are the originals, a set of Duncan Custom and Custom Custom. Higher output pickups really aren't my thing, so I dropped a set of Bare Knuckle Mules that I had sitting around. I like the way it sounds much better now, especially clean. After being Hamer-less for a while, I have worked my way back up to 3. This one, the Triple Threat I obtained earlier this year and a nice 12-string Eclipse.

Final reduction to £3200 and will ship if any interest. Reduced to £3400. Finally managed to talk myself into putting this up for sale. Ultimate flame top, virtually no fret wear, some very light worming on back but that's about it. Fitted with Bare Knuckle Mules which suit it perfectly. With original case and custom order certificate. Haven't seen another one like this but from what I can remember, it was about the same price as the korina Vectors. Looking for £3800. Would prefer not to ship due to size/packing.

Selling my late brother's two basses after much deliberation and a long time in storage. Disclaimer: Many of you are aware of this bass and its story, but I'll lay it all out here from the beginning. It is also listed on TGP (the price below is TGP price (hint hint), and much of what you will see/read is taken directly from that ad. What we have here is a bass from the heyday of BC Rich, a 1981 Eagle Bass in splendid Blueburst. My big brother, Joey, custom ordered this BC Rich from Sam Ash Music on 48th Street in NYC, paying a whopping $981 for it (some of you may remember that was a LOT of money for a guitar back then) and we all thought he had taken leave of his senses. It is 100% original. Outside of the strings, nothing has been changed, and even those are reeeeaallyy ollld - at least 20 years old. Likely older. Condition is Excellent+. You won't find a finer example, and if you did I'll bet it's in Japan, and I'll bet you it's not Blueburst. Comes with OHSC. He used this bass and his 1976 Fender Precision Bass exclusively until his band split and he stopped gigging in around 1988. These are the only two basses he ever owned. They rarely saw the light of day again until his passing in 2012 and have been in my care since. I don't play bass so not much has changed, as I said before not even the strings. More knobs and switches than you'll know what to do with. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that the preamp battery will need to be replaced. Q: How sexy is this? A: All the sexy. The head. (Notice the absence of headstock dings). The serial number. (Notice the... serial number). $4,500 for local pickup (I'll meet you somewhere halfway if possible). $4,600 shipped to the lower 48US. BONUS MATERIAL: The Eagle in action onstage at some random punk club, c.1982.

Here’s a plot twist. I called Music Zoo and let them know about the likely crack underneath the white stinger. Music Zoo got back to me and offered to sell it at a lower price… How it started: I dropped the guitar off at reputable guitar shop in the Chicago ‘burbs while in town for the Hamer 50th even last October. FedEx just delivered it to me this afternoon:

Where do I start... Some background, as I've conveyed in previous posts. I bought 7 0094 in 1986 from Eastside Music in Bondi. It was my second decent guitar, I traded an Ibanez RS315CS for it, plus cash. The store was previously called Gaslight Music, opened in 1975 by Daryl Miller. Daryl knew Paul Hamer prior to Hamer guitars coming into being. Daryl brought Hamers into Australia early in the piece, Sunbursts were coming in by 1978. He may have brought 4 digits in as well - I have one, so...... Over the years, I've seen very few Sunbursts in Australia. I have a '79 that I bought in about 2012. Jacksons Rare Guitars had three - two sunburst Sunbursts and a black Sunburst, '78/'80/'80. Joel's Vintage currently has the 1980 previously sold by Jacksons https://web.archive.org/web/20120322042425/http://www.jacksonsrareguitars.com/hamer-sunburst-1978-sunburst-finish-usa.html https://web.archive.org/web/20110318203315/http://www.jacksonsrareguitars.com/hamer-sunburst-1980-in-black.html https://web.archive.org/web/20110318203729/http://www.jacksonsrareguitars.com/hamer-sunburst-1980-cherry-finish-faded-to-tangerine.html https://reverb.com/au/item/86978536-hamer-sunburst-double-cut-1980-w-flame-maple-top So....My heart skipped a beat when I saw this on the Guitar Factory Paramatta store website. 7 0095. What are the chances. I've spoken with Daryl Miller and he's pretty sure it came through Gaslight, and it certainly is reasonable to believe that it did. Add to that, the staff at Guitar Factory told me that the owner, selling on consignment, bought it new in Sydney (Paramatta and Bondi are both in Sydney). Additionally, stuck on the case is the previous owner's blood donation card (don't ask me why) with his address (a Sydney suburb) and DOB, which places him in his mid-70s. So, this is all adding up. The case tells a story - what exactly, I'm not sure. There are radio station stickers, milk labels, honey labels, freight companies, Ibanez stickers, etc etc, all from the era. The previous owner painted his name in the case. So here we are. 7 0095 is in quite amazing condition. I thought 7 0094 was in great nick - I've babied it - this is even better. Quite clearly it can be seen that the sunburst spray is different between the two. The body and neck are very clean, apart from a few headstock chips. Minimal scratches and one small body dent on the top, hardly noticeable. There is minimal fret and fingerboard wear. CTS pots date to the 30th week of 1977 (July). DiMarzio PAFs are in place. Bullseye Grovers. One anomaly is the fret nibs, they're sorta not there on every fret. Some lower frets have a small nib, then none up until the 13th, nibbed to the 22nd. The frets are the same size as 7 0094, 2.3mm wide. It has a darker fingerboard than 7 0094 I paid AUD $995 for 7 0094 in 198. Of course 7 0095 was more, but not unreasonable for the condition, and what it is in the realm of Hamer history. And the fact that I now have sequential serial number 1977 Sunbursts. How friggen cool is that ! Thanks to Peter Fung for his encouragement - 'The two belong together !' - and knowledge L: 7 0094 R: 7 0095 7 0094

So, I went and did a thing…. I’ve always loved the look of Les Pauls and god knows how many rock gods and my personal influences have used them over the years. While I do like the bursts, they’re the classic look and what everyone thinks of when “Les Paul” is mentioned, I’ve always been partial to the elegant simplicity of ebony and cream. Classy. Like a tuxedo. I wasn’t planning on buying new. Wanted to try them out first. But, my guy at sweetwater made a close out deal on their old stock (it’s a 2023) and with their 55-pt inspection and 30 day “no hassle” return policy, I took a chance. Well, I must’ve gotten a good one. Cuz, if this isn’t a good one then I can’t imagine how much better a good one could possibly be. Feels great. Plays great. Sounds great. The burst bucker neck pickup may rival my Talladega DD as favorite neck tone ever. It sustains FOR-EV-ER…. Bridge pickup had some good chunk and does well with some rock rhythm a La Zep, Kiss, and AC/DC (I know, wrong Gibson)…. Not a finish flaw on it. Haven’t pulled the cavities yet to check the insides. Maybe at the first string change…

Zenith Music are in Perth, Western Australia. They're a family business that has been around since 1969. This guitar was listed on their website with a few pics only, no price. I emailed them and was happy with the price, and negotiated free shipping to Sydney. They are very old school - after the guitar was paid for, I was emailed a photo of an hand-written receipt, which I received with the guitar. And of course, it's a great guitar. I've always been after a semi-hollow, never owned one before. There's a wonderful zing, and the middle position is to die for. I'm ok with the Duncans in this guitar, I did change them in my Monaco Elite, but I'll keep this stock. It's quite amazing that it remained unsold for so long. They would put it out in the shop for a time, then put it back in storage when it didn't sell. Despite it being in the shop for 20 years, it looks and feels unplayed. Zenith Music has 4 other NOS Hamers, which are now listed on their website. I have prices if anyone is interested. https://zenithmusic.com.au/search?type=product&q=hamer

Seems to fit well

After experiencing hurricane Milton, I went through with my plans to go to Chicago and I’m highly highly happy that I did. It meant something to talk to Paul Hamer. It meant something to get together with some people that I hardly knew and make some music. It meant something to sing a couple songs I had no idea I was gonna sing, and I screwed up one totally, and did the other two semi decently, hopefully the people that listen to the CD will not be too critical of me, but it was a lot of fun. It was also a lot of good energy and the whole weekend was a lot of good times to shoo away some of Uncle Milty’s lingering bad feel. Thanks to Scottcaid, Diablo175, and Stevie Conlan from here for making music with me. Talked with Kizanski and McChris there but they must have cut out early or something but it still fun to talk with them for a minute. Chris Herman and Robert Schaffner really did a great job of putting things together. 😎👍❤️🏁

Please move this to another section if needed! So yes guys: I got my permanent residency visa for Canada a few weeks ago. So I am moving permanently to Ontario in August. I'm bringing the wife Michèle (Canadian) and the dog Ross (English) too. I hope to start my guitar repair business Fret Friend there too. Exciting

I finally got my mitts on the Centaura I purchased from Guitar Center Used last week. It shipped super fast, which while normally am awesome thing was in this case a bit of a complication, as it showed up before I got back to town. Had a friend snag it from my porch and hold it for me till today. <whew> So it turned up without the tremolo arm & bushing, which I expected because none of the pix in the listed showed a trem arm. But it also turned up with an original Hamer hard shell case, which is way cool because that was not mentioned at all in the ad. Sweet! The guitar itself is gorgeous — always hard to tell for sure from photos, but the sunburst is a nice, subtle fade without a hint of clownishness, if you know what I mean. And the maple board has a stunning grain pattern. I plugged it in long enough to make sure the electronics work — all good there. The thing has clearly been loved and even more clearly has been gigged and rocked hard. A few deep nicks (all pictured in the ad) and a layer of grime that I suspect dates all the way back to the ’80s. I’m prolly gonna spring for a full cleaning & setup at my local shop. Might as well, as I’m gonna have a treble bleed cap installed. So, not meandering tone-test videos yet, not till I’ve got my preferred strings on it & have it cleaned up & set up. But here’s a short clip from the unboxing video I took — I cut out all the ASMR bits to shorten the running time, lol:

Hello all, first post here. It´s been a really long time since I´ve been wanting to try and take the plunge at a nice Hamer... I´ve read this forum lots of times, seen posts and everything here and other places. I have and had a lot of guitars fortunately... tried WAY to many to count, modern, vintage you name it. Still, no Hamers. It was like a debt to myself to finally own one and i am so glad i did. I was chasing a studio or an artist, and my first choice was one with humbuckers. Living in Argentina means having to spend extra to ship it here so my choices we´re a bit limited this time. I lurked forums and reverb and this one finally came up. It´s funny because i think i even read about this guitar here... So long story short, here she is. It´s a 2001 P90 Artist. It has a neck antiquity mini humbucker and a lollar p90. The guitar had a headstock repair and the neck oversprayed so I payed accordingly and got a great amazing value. The guitar is sick and it looks and sounds AMAZING. I can´t believe i got so much for so little. I am sure this won´t be my last. So very happy to say the least.

Senior Year 1968, I know, old as ****. The Who played a concert in our high school gym. They were killing time before playing the Grande Ballroom. Tickets were a few bucks. Got the whole show including the destruction during My Generation!!! Debra and Joan went on to become the band's groupies and the un-named male is still a roadie for the group!! arniez

It took a long time, but it was worth it. It lives. If I didn't know where to look, I'd never know it happened. Isn't she lovely?

Current Hamers... And the whole bunch.

Beautiful Daytona SOLD!! I can't say it's like new but dang near. Ash body and neck. Frets are in excellent shape. Has the original Duncan pups in it. Transparent Blue. It's dark and looks black in low light but changes to a beautiful blue in bright light. I bought this about a month before I found my Melancon. I don't need 2 S style guitars and the Mel seems to fit me better. OHSC I have Suhr and have had Anderson guitars this is equal in quality to either of them. $SOLD Buyer pays Shipping Cont USA only!

They have arrived, my Sonic Explorer x 2, by Paolo Salcuni. Haven’t tried them plugged, but they feel great in my hands and are surprisingly light. They came with hard cases, which I wasn’t expecting. Tone report will follow as soon as I’ll have time for that. Cheers!

Hamer 30th Anniversary (2004) #22 of 30 This guitar is a truly special one. Only 30 of these guitars ever made. AAAA ultimate book-matched flamed maple top. One-piece hand carved Honduras mahogany body. Nickel Seymour Duncan Antiquity pickups. Multi-striped ivoroid binding to entire guitar. Brazilian Rosewood fingerboard. MOP (Mother Of Pearl) victory inlays. Kluson tuning machine-heads. Spectular natural burst finish. Hamer GC-30 Limited Edition Brown Leather Hard Shell Case Weight: 7lb 6oz 1st Fret: 0.89" 12th Fret: 0.95" Scale Length: 24.75" Condition Notes: Replacement lampshade knobs (original bell knobs included), Pickups, bridge, tailpiece show small finish pitting. Very Minor playwear. SOLD MORE PICS https://imgur.com/a/pbXYHlW#D8sOt8l

Father's Day gift to me (from me) showed up this week. String change and clean up today...plays and sounds great! Came with OHSC, original p/u's & bridge, Hamer registration card, and original purchase receipt from 1997 (this guy was the original and only owner of this one)! Happy Father's Day!

This ‘69 Princeton Reverb was at an independent music store. Didn’t break the bank. It looks as if it was just set aside for years. Really dusty. Had a replacement speaker, which I’ve replaced. It was all original except the power cord, speaker and 2 tubes. 5 of 7 tubes were original RCAs with ‘67 & ‘68 date codes. Has all nos RCAs in it now. I sent the chassis off and had it serviced. Cleaned all the dust bunnies out of the cabinet & cleaned the tolex. Just finished reassembling it and am getting acquainted with it. I had briefly posted pics of it in the “ask the experts” when I was looking for a tech. Apologies if you’ve seen it before. But this time it’s functional. Sorry for the crummy phone pics. Any love for the PR?

I have had a self-imposed "no new (or used)" guitars thing going for a while, but I did trade several basses for a Les Paul (and walked with $100 cash) earlier this year and also finished up one of the many (TOO many!) projects on the pile in 2024. The LP The "project" - with major input from some badassed HFC'ers (Gary/"Slingblader", and Stike), is the "Custom Twangcaster", which is a 1.12" thick Musikraft neck (!!!) and a 3.8lb (after routing) Musikraft Swamp Ash body, bound with real Rickenbacker checkerboard binding, a NOS Duncan "Double D" neck pickup, and a kill/stutter switch (just because). Done in trans Surf Green:

Maybe it could come and be played at your house? 2005 Studio Custom made from Korina. Dig the Korina backplate. I got it with no pickups. Duncan Antiquities installed with 3 push/pull pots. Fun beast. $5000 plus $150 shipping BTW, it goes to 11. 😎👍🏁

Time to unveil my in-progress custom order from http://www.sonicguitars.com As you can see, I have my standards too. 😉 What do you think about the logo? 😎

Hey, I talked to Kev this morning, he’s doing great, sounds energized and happy. Also, in one year he retires from his regular job. We talked music and guitars, of course, as well as about the HFC, and he asked me to say HI from him to you all here. I don’t know if he’ll show up later, but in the meantime I’m doing my part by transmitting you guys his warmest regards. Stay well! 🙏🙇‍♂️

Sold. Thank you. --- This was my first real Hamer, and it's come back to me (to sell, as would be expected). Very good overall condition. One small nick through the finish near the knobs (see photos) Back of guitar has many indentations and overall signs of playing wear, though nothing through the finish. See photos, but this is hard to photograph. Approx 8.5 lbs Includes OHSC, etc. I've been away from this stuff for a long time now, so I don't know how to price it. Let me know if I'm off base. I'm easy to talk to. Asking $2400 shipped. Thanks for looking, and please let me know if you have any questions.