cmatthes

Pedal received and in totally new condition too. Adrian is a great guy to deal with - one of the smoothest transactions ever. Thanks much!

Mark Twain didn't say that. Ben Franklin did. No wait, it was Charles H. Smith... Aw, hell, I don't remember.

Just sent you a PM... Let me know if you didn't get it. Thanks!

A fool His money

For some reason, I think it was selling in the $6k range back in 1999 or so (can't recall the exact year). Flynn Guitars had it, that much I do recall.

Definitely a USA Cali. Although the early import Calis had dot inlays, that isn't one of those. USA all the way. Somebody got a good deal if the seller comes through!

Stike said it best. I have known a number of people who have (and still do) work at the PRS factory. Ceeb also is correct about the promote-from-within philosophy at PRS. There is no escaping the fact that Paul has built a fantastic brand and product in the last 25 years. Simply put, there IS a considerable amount of top-quality luthiery going on in Stevensville - I have seen it in action plenty of times. What you're missing here is that yes, there is a certain level of "factory" work that goes on, but that stuff is pretty much the rough out and basic work. They could have a lot of those functions machined or subbed out, but some things (like sanding) do still require human touch - helps out the local economy as well. PRS production is currently many times what the Hamer shop turns out in a year, and to meet those high production goals, they have to take a number of production efficiencies. Cheap sanding labor is one of those, just like using CNC machines. Hamer and most other companies also utilize CNC machines, so that is hardly a bad thing, btw! At Hamer, pretty much any of the guys have the experence to swap stations or complete a guitar from the ground up. The PRS workers start at sanding and if they manage to stay with the company beyond a few months, they can actually end up doing okay and will learn a lot about the craft/industry. PRS honestly treats their people very well - better in fact, than most of the local (MD Eastern Shore) employers. Sure beats the hell out of agriculture or most of the other opportunities out that way. At $10 an hour for an entry level position, they are probably on par with many other employers in that area, and provide a good path for long-term employment if an individual has the aptitude and the desire to stick with that as a career. They're doing the most basic stuff only. It's also a situation where if you can't handle the drudgery of being the sanding guy (or sanderella), you won't last long as an employee. Everybody has to start somewhere. I don't see the point in knocking PRS hiring entry-level workers at $10/hr, because it's not like those same $10/hr people are handling any of the finishing, fretting, inlay work, neck carving, electronics, or most of the other stuff that goes on there. The QC in Stevensville is pretty damned good too - they don't get very many returns ever, and if there is the slightest thing out of line on a guitar, ANY employee has the right to question it and send it back down the line or can have something sent to the dreaded bandsaw...even a $10 sanding dude. Personally, I prefer the thought of the craftsmanship and artisan feel of the Hamer shop v. the factory environment, but both turn out spectacular guitars. Different strokes for different folks maybe, but I really have a hard time thinking of anything bad to say about PRS. On the Eastern Shore, I think that still does the trick!!

Heard that one before, Gavin's bro! It's Steve's brother...no, it's Steve...no...

Ah, memories... (my 2nd H.S. band, from '83)

Agreed - I think a lot of people (myself included) were planning to go, and probably would have ended up going. Between work, family and the aforementioned fuel expenses, I think we all need to play some things by ear, unfortunately.

That is just so cool in so many ways, Kurt!

Cool!

The bigger logos make those sound better.

Amen to that!

So...like, where do you live?

It's the regular Line6 Footboard, not the FBV.

Enjoy your day, Rob!

Absolutely! Make a slide show and call it a "Staycation".

Nothing subtle about that!

Yes - it was in a late-80s Hamer ad and catalog as well.

The "Main" red strat and the Hamer-necked version are two different guitars.

The red "strat" with the Hamer neck I'm talking about is a complete Hamer guitar. It's different than the red strat above - I've got pics of it that I'll have to dig up.

Brad also played a version of his red Strat with a Hamer neck (Bigazzed stadium logo and all) for many years. He mentioned last week at the taping EL and I attended that the #1 red Strat is, and always be, his "go-to" guitar.

We're thinking about ya here in the DC area... All the best to ya.

The best Strat I ever owned was a new '89 '62RI (one of the Mary Kaye LE models). The only Strat I ever wanted back - it played incredibly well, had a perfect, solid feel and sounded great. That trem, the standard RI trem at the time, NEVER had a problem. My Stikedelic Daytona with the Wilkinson trem is similarly stable, and it also stays in tune as well as my PRS. Agreed 100% that the setups help with those things.