Andrew

Very funny… as in not funny in the slightest, as you can see I'm in the UK. Okay, so you don't want to engage. And neither do I any more… so this is my last post on these forums.

Come on, man! Surely I deserve a little more respect than that?

The body of the guitar is an amazing piece of Hamer history. Brilliant item, great story. We'd all love to own it. The rest of the 'assembly' looks off. Very off. Anyone else noticed how the 12th fret does not appear to be half-way along the scale? I thought it was a perspective thing at first, the photo being at an angle, but 5th to 12th looks pretty equal. I'm just not sure? What d'you think? There's questions to answer. We do need to know how it came to be assembled and numbered, we do need to be reassured the neck is USA and not an import neck (check the truss-rod nut for size)

Call me a traitor, but that neck joint looks amateur. Those last Arlington Heights guitars were not Hamer's finest.

Saw him many times with Uriah Heep – Trevor Bolder and Lee Kerslake were a brilliant rhythm section. Sadly missed, the pair of them. Forget the Ozzy débâcle – listen to some Heep instead.

In 94 hardware was Schaller, and I'm pretty sure it was all metric – being made in Germany. Wilkinson stuff should be metric too. New Hartford builds are more random, most hardware being chosen on a whim… seemingly.

#1 of 20 written on the back of the headstock. I can't see any reason other than the toggle for their being any different to the other Diabloo LEs. I think they are all still in the UK from the time of Trace Elliot.

I'd forgotten I'd archived all that stuff and put it online. Pleased someone has found it useful.

I should have realised you were answering the post immediately above. It seems a) bizarre to called something "Limited" when there were several runs of these Diablos. Numerically, they must add up to more than many catalogue models; and b) that the UK market would specify a toggle switch, and that tiny detail would justify a special extra LE numbering; c) there is also a "limited" number of oil-finish bodies, many of those coming to the UK via Trace Elliot.

The Trace Elliot Twenty had handwritten #x of 20 under the serial number, and also a three-way Rickenbacker toggle like the Sunbursts etc.. This is not one of those. although the difference is negligible - only the strat-style switch really.

It's not original - you can see the original black paint in the truss-rod cavity. Typical of Hamer to use quality veneer in a place where you'd never see it. Also, the body wasn't intended as a "natural". Hamer set aside single piece bodies for the natural Blitzes at this time. The original colour may still be present in the cavities. 1983 - should be inked, not stamped. And the spacing is all wrong, which suggests it's not a factory restoration either.

From the shape of the headstock, I guess it probably originally had a pick-guard. With the later headstock shape, they usually didn't. The paint is hiding the screw-holes, I think.

The logos on the DA Sunburst are tiny.

Brilliant! The Hamer bridges are slightly angled, somewhere between the two. Personally, I hate the Wilkinson wrap-tail and their trem.. Hamer's worst ever choice.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1984-Hamer-Blitz-Bass-Uber-Cool-Vintage-Bass-Made-in-USA-Inc-Orig-Hard-Case/143598894859?hash=item216f293f0b:g:UtwAAOSw85Jet1KH Y'know… I don't even have the words to describe what I'm seeing.