Zoner

Liberated!!!! Good work and congrats. That thing is seriously hot looking, and I'll bet it doesn't suck as a player either. Z

Should we take up a collection and "liberate" it from the Evil Empire? Z

http://used.guitarcenter.com/usedgear/deta...istId=105009088 I have only seen these beauties with the red (Spruce?) top, but this looks HOT! I know it is GC, but it is very cool looking. Is the price in the park for one of these or the usual "GC" inflated number? Just curious. Z

http://www.jibjab.com/view/248028 Z

Some of you like these things, right? http://used.guitarcenter.com/usedgear/deta...istId=104762337

These 2 keep me young and are making me grey at the same time! Fatherhood is the coolest thing I have ever experienced, by far, bar none. Happy Father's Day all you HFC dads! Z

David, I hope it is something other than what you may suspect, and will offer my support and prayers for you. Be well. Z

Hey Jaye, as a certified Strat Cat I feel I can give some pointers in the "how do I keep this $%^& thing in tune" dept. First off, unless you have some sort of space-age nut, you're gonna need some lube in there. Nut slots like graphite or something like Big Bends Nut Sauce (never tried it, but folks recommend it a lot for this purpose). Of course, make sure there is no binding going on in the first place. It looks like the plank you are weiding in the pic is at least the American Standard version so I'd be surprised if the nutwork was really shoddy, but you never know. I don't know if you have the trem set up to float at all, but having a good solid setup for your string of choice is obviously step #1. I have my bridges set up so I can pull up a fair bit, too, and that is part of the method I use to tune the dang things and get them to stay there. First off, tune each string bringing it up in pitch to your target. Then, take the whammy bar and depress it so the strings go nearly flat against the fingerboard. Let 'em back up and see where the pitch is. If you have gone sharp, try pulling the bar up and see if it gets you back in tune. If this action gets you back in tune, you're almost there. If not, try doing a whole-step bend and see if you drop back down to tuned. What you are trying to do is find the balance point where any sharpness due to diving or bending can be quickly "pulled" back in to tune. You end up tuning, dive-bombing, pulling up and starting all over again until it staays pretty well in tune no matter how abusive you get. Often times you have to tune a hair flat, do the drop, and it will jump up into proper tuning. I have had great luck keeping most of my Strats in tune this way, with the exception of my Jeff Beck, but that has a special (PITA) roller nut that I suspect is more trouble than it's worth. It might seem like a silly ritual, but with a little time and some proper setup and maintenance a traditional Strat trem can be made to stay pretty well in tune unless you are being radical. You should be able to grab the arm and do very wide vibrato stuff and not budge a bit out of tune. Or, there is always the Floyd Rose system Let me know if you need any help getting that thing dialed in. They are well worth the effort! Love the color choice, too. Z

Caddie, I'll happily jet out there and "fetch" it back to the midwest for you . Last time I went the other way (MN to CA) on my Triumph and it was quick but exciting . I spent a month up and down the PCH and "over the hill" (mountain) daily and really learned a lot about riding that bike. Get out there and flog that Beemer, Punkavenger! Z

Lots of cool Hamer model names, but my fave is by far Phantom. That is a perfect name for an edgy, dangerous rock dude's guitar. Most of the names are cool, but I have issues with some Hamer names being, um, "borrowed" from other prior examples. I have owned both Ibanez, and later Hamer "Studio" models. Same with Ibanez and Hamer Artists. The name "Standard" was not specifically brand specific at the time, but when they came out with production Hamers both "Sunburst" and "Standard" were associated with another guitar company's product. Same with the "Special". I have never owned a Kramer Vanguard or an ESP Mirage, but they came first too, didn't they? Bah, on second thought, what's in a name? I like the racetrack names and all the others, shared or not. The whole musical instrument gene pool is totally inbred and copied freely anyway, and the result is a great mish-mash of cool gear to play with. Z

GREAT work and a perfect look after it is all done. Now we need to see the Kahlered original (pre-zebra), the Zebra-fied state and the finished product all in a row for the "before", "after", and "after - after" effect. That wood has been throgh some journey but it probably never looked better since the day it left Illinois back in the day. Love the corner chippage, too - bold move after all that beautification to go and rough it up. . Z

Well, from my increasingly foggy memory I can give a direct comparison as I have owned the very, very original B.K. Butler unit (I ordered it out of the back of Guitar Player Waaaaay back When) until not too long ago and have 2 TK999's and a Tube Works Real Tube currently in the house. First off, the old standard B.K. unit had some GREAT sounds in it, especially hitting the front of an already grinding Marshall. The best quality it had was the ability to grind with clarity (if that makes any sense). That thing into the front of my Jubillee was a seriously cool sounding combo. In comparison, the Ibanez TK imparts a bit more "color" to the sound and has a greater capacity to get really, really filthy and dark. It sounds like a distortion box as opposed to a raging tube amp. The Original had a real live AC cord and may have hit the tube with more voltage, but I'm just guessing here. The TK is probably a bit more versatile, especially if you are after a heavy-duty metal tone, but I think the original had more musicalty to it (am I making words up as I go?). The 2 TK999's I have contain different boards, and one is screened with B.K. Butler stuff while the other says it is a Tubeworks product. They also sound quite different with the B.K. boarded one being "rawer" and the other being quite smooth and sweet. It could be the tubes themselves too I guess. The Tubeworks Real Tube has almost the same setup as the Ibanez and the original Tube Driver, and probably sounds closer to the original than the TK999. The TK999 has a HORRIBLE AC jack that needs to be swapped to make it usable unless you are permanently mounting it on a pedalboard. If you breathe on the cable it will pop out. I guess I should have asked if you are asking about vintage B.K Butler Tube Drivers or are considering a brand new one as I understand he's cranking them out again. If you are considering picking one of the TK999's up or want to check the out Tubeworks Real Tube (highly recommended but read the label as some were made in Taiwan too), I would be happy to send all 3 to you to "test drive" since I hardly use them anymore (and should sell them but.....y'know) and do a comparison using your rig, I'd just ask for a few bucks for shipping. I hope this was helpful. Z

What would we label this little number? Just curious as I have not seen this version before but it looks pretty tough. Z http://used.guitarcenter.com/usedgear/deta...istId=104597187

Is she touching herself or shielding her bits from your obviously overpowering manly influence? Z

So very sorry to hear of your loss. Many positive vibes for all of you from one who has been there. Take care and be well, brother. Z