'90 Cali Custom

[Shredda79]

Hi Everyone,

Greetings from the land down under. (G'day)

I recently bought my first Hamer, and i'm glad i did. It's a great guitar to play.

It's a Californian though i'm not sure of the specifics of it, it may or may not be an

Elite, but it's USA made.

I have submitted the serial number via the hfc homepage.

Someone has re-finished the guitar in a solid green colour, which i'm not totally mad about

(whoever did it messed up a bit, namely painting over part of the 'R' on the headstock).

But overall i think it's a really well made guitar - It's a pleasure to play, sustains nicely,

covers a nice range of tones.

Anyway, i've put a few photos up on photobucket and invite any comments good or bad

about it.

PS - sorry about the crappy picture quality, i couldn't wait to send various people some photos of

it, so i took them with my phone.

Also, i apologise if i've gone about posting the pictures the wrong way for this forum.

Thanks for your time,

Timo.

[Feynman]

OH. Oh. Oh. Oh.

Diggin' it!

Setneck goodness!

Love it long time.

Edited to add props for posting pics in your initial post. Saved us all requesting them.

[zenmindbeginner]

That guitar KILLS! That looks like the top of the line Californian "Custom" which has the glued in neck with the sculpted joint. You can get the headstock paint screw up fixed and get a new logo put on via dry transfer for probably not that much, it'd be worth the investment. What happened to your serial number when it was painted?

[harry65]

nice axe!!!!!!!!!!! my first hamer was a cali i bought new in 88 , not an elite , but it made me a hamer convert for life , bought another cali the following year and they were my only electrics the next dozen or so years, best shredders ever............................

[Shredda79]

That guitar KILLS! That looks like the top of the line Californian "Custom" which has the glued in neck with the sculpted joint. You can get the headstock paint screw up fixed and get a new logo put on via dry transfer for probably not that much, it'd be worth the investment. What happened to your serial number when it was painted?

Thanks for the comments fellas - The serial number is still there, stamped into the wood, just painted

over with green

Thanks again for the comments

[Bennyboy-UK]

God thats the meanest one I've seen for a while.

I'm literally GREEN with envy.

Excellent looking guitar.

I need another lie down.

Cheers and welcome!

Ben.

[LadyScary]

Lovely!!

[cmatthes]

Thumbs up, and welcome aboard!

[Shredda79]

Wow thanks for all the positive replies! I feel that much better about owning this guitar now I'm just unsure of what year it was made and the official model name of it.

[cmatthes]

The model designation, as indicated above, is the Californian Custom (set neck).

You can tell the year by the first number of the Serial. If it is a "9", yours is a 1989 guitar, if it's a "0", you have a 1990 model, etc.

Those are pretty rare guitars.

[Shredda79]

The model designation, as indicated above, is the Californian Custom (set neck).

You can tell the year by the first number of the Serial. If it is a "9", yours is a 1989 guitar, if it's a "0", you have a 1990 model, etc.

Those are pretty rare guitars.

Aha, 1990 it is. a good year lol. Thankyou

[veatch]

I'll give you $350.

Someone had to say it....

Gorgeous guitar, and welcome!

[zorrow]

That one could scare even Lady Scary! Badasssssss!

[analogsystem]

I am feeling the green and the fact that it's a set neck cali puts it over the top for me!!

Love that axe! Treat it well and congrats!

[Devnor]

Seen alot of Calis but only 3 setnecks. Congrats that baby is worth some $$$.

[atquinn]

SCOOOOOOOOORE!

-Austin

[Shredda79]

Seen alot of Calis but only 3 setnecks. Congrats that baby is worth some $$$.

Oh nice. How much do you think it's worth?

Thanks for the nice welcome everyone

[karmma1]

Beautiful guitar. Congratulations, and welcome to the cult o' Hamer.

[GaryT]

Set Neck in very nice condition......nice axe.

Enjoy the Hamer my friend they are excellent tools of the trade.

[holLoWskull]

Oh nice. How much do you think it's worth?

Thanks for the nice welcome everyone

WOW...sea foam green and black hardware has always been one of my favorite combos. Sharp guitar.

As for how much is it worth...the refinish probably brings it down a bit in value to collector types, but I'd still think it would fetch somewhere in the $1,700 - $2,200 (US dollars) range. If you happen to find the buyer who absolutely has to have your guitar (and actually has money to do more than "tire kick") you could get more.

[Shredda79]

WOW...sea foam green and black hardware has always been one of my favorite combos. Sharp guitar.

As for how much is it worth...the refinish probably brings it down a bit in value to collector types, but I'd still think it would fetch somewhere in the $1,700 - $2,200 (US dollars) range. If you happen to find the buyer who absolutely has to have your guitar (and actually has money to do more than "tire kick") you could get more.

That sounds good to me! i paid $1400AUD (roughly $1300USD). I plan on keeping this one though.

[specialk]

I plan on keeping this one though.

Smart move! She's a rare beauty and worth keeping. Congrats.

[Shredda79]

Thanks SpecialK Would there be any outrage among you if i swapped out

the existing EMG's for Pasives? Colour matched, of course.

[veatch]

Thanks SpecialK Would there be any outrage among you if i swapped out

the existing EMG's for Pasives? Colour matched, of course.

If you can find a set of OBLs, they sound killer in the Cali. Seymour Duncan Trembucker and Tremstack were also common in that guitar.

I would recommend putting the original pups in a drawer and keep them for the resale. It may make a difference. But, since the guitar was refinished, that's probably less of an issue.

I've had both an OBL equipped Cali and an EMG equipped Cali. I'd take the OBLs any day. I've heard from others they prefer the Duncans over the OBLs, so it's really a matter of taste.

Pickups are great to swap out: You can always put the originals back. No heresy here. Overall, whatever you prefer is the right answer.

Edited to add: None of my Hamers have the original pups in them, so i'm a bit biased on pup-swaps.

[Shredda79]

If you can find a set of OBLs, they sound killer in the Cali. Seymour Duncan Trembucker and Tremstack were also common in that guitar.

I would recommend putting the original pups in a drawer and keep them for the resale. It may make a difference. But, since the guitar was refinished, that's probably less of an issue.

I've had both an OBL equipped Cali and an EMG equipped Cali. I'd take the OBLs any day. I've heard from others they prefer the Duncans over the OBLs, so it's really a matter of taste.

Pickups are great to swap out: You can always put the originals back. No heresy here. Overall, whatever you prefer is the right answer.

Edited to add: None of my Hamers have the original pups in them, so i'm a bit biased on pup-swaps.

Oh good, thanks veatch 50% of my axes have EMG's in them, and considering my preference is passive, i'm getting a little tired of the EMG sound.

I'm thinking DiMarzio - a ToneZone HB and Cruiser in the neck. They seem like they'd suit this guitar's tonal character well.

As for the EMG's, no doubt i'll keep them around if i ever decide to sell. I plan on returning the finish to it's original look at some point in the future, which should attract the right kind of buyer.

Although if i keep it as is and just fix the paintwork around the 'R' and 'Vai' it up with coloured pickups, i guess it could attract that kind of buyer, too.

In any case, this guitar has made me a Hamer convert and i've already started looking for more think i'm addicted lol