I haven't read every post here, but I feel compelled to comment. There seems to be a limited market for expensive guitars nowadays. Mostly it is (now) middle aged men thar are/were the driving force of high end electric guitar sales. Most of us are now paring down our collections and hanging on to 1 or 2 prized possessions. My prized possession is my 4 digit standard that plays like the holy grail 59 Les Paul I once owned. That being said, there are just too many "good" guitars being produced for such good prices. When I started playing guitar I bought an Epiphone strat copy and a cheap gibson amp new as a package for about $125 in1973 dollars. both were offshore versions. The Epiphone was essentially unplayable, wouldn't stay in tune, strings about an inch off the neck, terrible tone. The amp was about 5 watts, solid state that distored unnaturally and shut off after about 20 minutes of playing. Today I can buy an new fender (squire) tele or strat or epiphone for less than $300 new and these instruments are playable and "good". Not great, but good. I'm not saying its a good thing, but how could the Hamer brand stay competitive with such attractive alternatives? Even today I think long and hard about spending over $1000 on a guitar, but I'll buy a $300 guitar on an impulse and not think twice about it. And I'll play in at a gig and the difference in the sound in a bar setting is marginal. I will continue to cherish my Standard but I'm looking forward to the Epiphone Wildkat Royale I just ordered for $296.