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WTH happened here?

BubbaVO

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gorch Veteran HFCer

gorch

Posted
Posted

Well this one looks like a typical Greg Platzer case...and a nice photo show for us in case Greg would have it in his operating theater. :)

Seriously, although it looks a bit odd for a former Duotone, I think it'll deliver a typical hollowbody sound. Might compare to the Artist.

With regards to the original, an expensive offer. Considering the hardware and setup not a bad offer overall.

Behind the curtains, one may get it a little cheaper and have the option to rework it to a true Duotone. Probably, nice project.

DavidE Veteran HFCer

DavidE

Posted
Posted

This guitar started out in life as a hand-made US Hamer DuoTone with a rosewood acoustic bridge, dual output jacks, piezo pickup and active on-board pre-amp and 3 band e.q.. Well, that's not how I got her. When I picked this up she didn't have any electronics, pickups, tuners, strap buttons, control cavity cover or bridge. That's right, the acoustic bridge was missing! This guitar didn't even have the adjustable nut at the end of the truss rod (thank heaven's for Kim Keller at hamer.com). This guitar was a body and neck. I located original Schaller tuners, added new CTS pots, new black tele knobs, Dimarzio P.A.F. neck pickup and Seymour Duncan Custom Custom bridge pickup (both with chrome covers), made a half-ass control cavity cover and modified a new bridge. I painted the control cavity and the back of the cavity cover with EMF/RFI shielding paint and added a coil-split for the bridge pickup. Because the original bridge was an acoustic (and a string-thru) just putting a hardtail bridge on her wasn't going to work. The guitar would not intonate due to the difference in length with the bridge saddles so I got an after-market steel tele bridge made for a humbucker (fat tele bridge). I also needed one that had the 2 3/16ths" string separation due to the string-thru. I cut the bridge baseplate down and used pickup height adjustment screws for the saddles (clever, right?). This closed the neck scale length gap so now she intonates. She sounds a little semi-hollow jangly when unplugged but she sounds terrific when punched into a Carvin X100B head. Not a big deal but I added a new set of Graph Tech V shaped strap buttons. The advertisement said "will add sustain to your old guitar", really!?! Strap buttons? Anyway, she's not a new guitar. She has plenty of dings and scratches but she's a really comfortable and light guitar to play. If you can get over the obvious cosmetic changes, you got a pretty sweet guitar. Guitar comes with new tweed hsc.

BubbaVO Veteran HFCer

BubbaVO

Posted
  • Author
Posted

This guitar started out in life as a hand-made US Hamer DuoTone with a rosewood acoustic bridge, dual output jacks, piezo pickup and active on-board pre-amp and 3 band e.q.. Well, that's not how I got her. When I picked this up she didn't have any electronics, pickups, tuners, strap buttons, control cavity cover or bridge. That's right, the acoustic bridge was missing! This guitar didn't even have the adjustable nut at the end of the truss rod (thank heaven's for Kim Keller at hamer.com). This guitar was a body and neck. I located original Schaller tuners, added new CTS pots, new black tele knobs, Dimarzio P.A.F. neck pickup and Seymour Duncan Custom Custom bridge pickup (both with chrome covers), made a half-ass control cavity cover and modified a new bridge. I painted the control cavity and the back of the cavity cover with EMF/RFI shielding paint and added a coil-split for the bridge pickup. Because the original bridge was an acoustic (and a string-thru) just putting a hardtail bridge on her wasn't going to work. The guitar would not intonate due to the difference in length with the bridge saddles so I got an after-market steel tele bridge made for a humbucker (fat tele bridge). I also needed one that had the 2 3/16ths" string separation due to the string-thru. I cut the bridge baseplate down and used pickup height adjustment screws for the saddles (clever, right?). This closed the neck scale length gap so now she intonates. She sounds a little semi-hollow jangly when unplugged but she sounds terrific when punched into a Carvin X100B head. Not a big deal but I added a new set of Graph Tech V shaped strap buttons. The advertisement said "will add sustain to your old guitar", really!?! Strap buttons? Anyway, she's not a new guitar. She has plenty of dings and scratches but she's a really comfortable and light guitar to play. If you can get over the obvious cosmetic changes, you got a pretty sweet guitar. Guitar comes with new tweed hsc.

yours?

DavidE Veteran HFCer

DavidE

Posted
Posted

This guitar started out in life as a hand-made US Hamer DuoTone with a rosewood acoustic bridge, dual output jacks, piezo pickup and active on-board pre-amp and 3 band e.q.. Well, that's not how I got her. When I picked this up she didn't have any electronics, pickups, tuners, strap buttons, control cavity cover or bridge. That's right, the acoustic bridge was missing! This guitar didn't even have the adjustable nut at the end of the truss rod (thank heaven's for Kim Keller at hamer.com). This guitar was a body and neck. I located original Schaller tuners, added new CTS pots, new black tele knobs, Dimarzio P.A.F. neck pickup and Seymour Duncan Custom Custom bridge pickup (both with chrome covers), made a half-ass control cavity cover and modified a new bridge. I painted the control cavity and the back of the cavity cover with EMF/RFI shielding paint and added a coil-split for the bridge pickup. Because the original bridge was an acoustic (and a string-thru) just putting a hardtail bridge on her wasn't going to work. The guitar would not intonate due to the difference in length with the bridge saddles so I got an after-market steel tele bridge made for a humbucker (fat tele bridge). I also needed one that had the 2 3/16ths" string separation due to the string-thru. I cut the bridge baseplate down and used pickup height adjustment screws for the saddles (clever, right?). This closed the neck scale length gap so now she intonates. She sounds a little semi-hollow jangly when unplugged but she sounds terrific when punched into a Carvin X100B head. Not a big deal but I added a new set of Graph Tech V shaped strap buttons. The advertisement said "will add sustain to your old guitar", really!?! Strap buttons? Anyway, she's not a new guitar. She has plenty of dings and scratches but she's a really comfortable and light guitar to play. If you can get over the obvious cosmetic changes, you got a pretty sweet guitar. Guitar comes with new tweed hsc.

yours?

No, quote from the auction.

edrock Member

edrock

Posted
Posted

Hmmm . . . an interesting resurrection in a "Mad Max" sort of way. If it sells at or near the starting price, might not be a bad buy for a one of a kind player.

tbonesullivan Veteran HFCer

tbonesullivan

Posted
Posted

seriously... why would ANYONE gut a guitar like that? there just isn't a REASON to.

now that it's got the hardtail, probably best to leave it on. It's tempting but I've got 3-4 guitars that need setups and fret work, and those come first.

tbonesullivan Veteran HFCer

tbonesullivan

Posted
Posted

Hmm, could you slap a sustain block on that puppy and have a nice hollow body sustainblock Special?!?

I'd maybe see if it was possible to put back in the electronics or a more modern version with a piezo bridge. so it would end up being a duotone with an aftermarket bridge. Just a shame to see what's become of it.
hamerhead Veteran HFCer

hamerhead

Posted
Posted
Hmm, could you slap a sustain block on that puppy and have a nice hollow body sustainblock Special?!?

That could be interesting. Doesn't Fishman make Strat saddles? Hmmmmmmmm..........

BubbaVO Veteran HFCer

BubbaVO

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Hmm, could you slap a sustain block on that puppy and have a nice hollow body sustainblock Special?!?

Exactly what I was thinking at one point. But I ain't going near this one.

edrock Member

edrock

Posted
Posted

Looks pretty cool in a really deranged sort of way.

When you're given lemons....

Exactly. Since none of us did (or would ever! Heaven forbid!) the "modifications" to this guitar, I look at it this way: a guy finds a butchered Duotone, & with the means at his disposal brings it back into the realm of a usable guitar. A laudable endeavor if ever there was one. He then offers it at a low price. Hell, it even comes with a nice lookin tweed case that appears to fit it nicely. Decent guy.

If I were to go the Piezo route on it, I'd send it out to Rick Turner & have him fab up a bridge & install one of his 18V Timberline Systems in it. Then you'd have a killer Duotone!

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