Sustain Block Material? Hamer Fakes?

[Michael_B]

A friend of mine just bought a CNC mill and I'm thinking of playing and making a sustain block bridge and saddles. Based on this thread, it looks like they are chrome plated brass. Is that right?

In the same thread, Chris mentioned that Ed Roman made some fake Hamers. Are these fake Hamer guitars or just fake Hamer sustain blocks? I'm curious because, when buying Hamers, I never consider the possibility that one may be fake.

[Sugartune]

Ed Roman has "Ghost Built" guitars of other brands, suppose it wouldn't be unheard of to do a Hamer.

My guess though, knowing him and his history, that'd they'd be repros of "iconic" hamers, as opposed to straight up fakes of production models.

[hamerhead]

..... they'd be repros of "iconic" hamers, as opposed to straight up fakes of production models.

What's the difference?

[bubs_42]

You know after all these years we still talk about the same stuff over and over again. I'm all about educating each other but the Ed and Sustainblocks are very well documented. Ed and Fakes are very well documented.

If you want to make a Sustainblock, buy one, measure it and do it. I've done it, i've measured them drawn my own blueprints and have had it quoted to do the work myself with the outsourcing of plating and then I said "No thanks to much work, no profit in it." I have purchased more of them over the last 5 years than I could use. They are out there you just have to dig.

[Michael_B]

You know after all these years we still talk about the same stuff over and over again. I'm all about educating each other but the Ed and Sustainblocks are very well documented. Ed and Fakes are very well documented.

If you want to make a Sustainblock, buy one, measure it and do it. I've done it, i've measured them drawn my own blueprints and have had it quoted to do the work myself with the outsourcing of plating and then I said "No thanks to much work, no profit in it." I have purchased more of them over the last 5 years than I could use. They are out there you just have to dig.

I got one. It's all drawn up. Just wanted to confirm the material as brass.

[Sugartune]

..... they'd be repros of "iconic" hamers, as opposed to straight up fakes of production models.

What's the difference?

Well a (edit - Rick Nielsen) checkerboard Standard is different than a '96 hog. One has iconic status. The other doesn't.

You know, like the checkerboard "Standard" Rick has that's apparently a Blitz redone by Ed Roman.

[Sugartune]

You know after all these years we still talk about the same stuff over and over again. I'm all about educating each other but the Ed and Sustainblocks are very well documented. Ed and Fakes are very well documented.

If you want to make a Sustainblock, buy one, measure it and do it. I've done it, i've measured them drawn my own blueprints and have had it quoted to do the work myself with the outsourcing of plating and then I said "No thanks to much work, no profit in it." I have purchased more of them over the last 5 years than I could use. They are out there you just have to dig.

I got one. It's all drawn up. Just wanted to confirm the material as brass.

Yep. Brass.

Yep. Ed Roman fakes.

[cmatthes]

Hamer never authorized ANYBODY to ghost build for them - they wouldn't have ever needed that.

Ed Roman had made a number of counterfeit Hamers over the years, and he actually used to have pics of them in the build process on his site. He claimed to be the only person Hamer ever allowed to use their logos, however, Kim Keller has a very different version of this story.

I recall at one of the early HFC factory events, somebody brought in a guitar to show Frank U., and both he and Jol looked it over very carefully and both said (at different times in my presence) "that's not one of ours - where did you get it?" Apparently, the East Coast Music Mall sticker on the case confirmed who faked that one.

It always amazed me that he would spend $500 worth of labor and parts to dress up a $350 Import to make it look like a USA Hamer, and then sell it for...$500.

[Sugartune]

Just to clarify, I wasn't suggesting ANY of his "Ghost Builds" were authorized.

Is that what he did??? Dressed up imports? Bad idea alert!

[cmatthes]

You know what they say is stranger than fiction...

[Steve Haynie]

It always amazed me that he would spend $500 worth of labor and parts to dress up a $350 Import to make it look like a USA Hamer, and then sell it for...$500.

If someone got the import as a trade-in from a lopsided deal then the only investment is time.

[Tres Aardvarks]

Then of course there's the "Hamers" that keep popping up in South America

[cmatthes]

Then of course there's the "Hamers" that keep popping up in South America

DO NOT get me started on that shit!!!!!

[cmatthes]

If someone got the import as a trade-in from a lopsided deal then the only investment is time.

...and a billet of flame maple, Sustainblock bridge, pair of DiMarzio PAFs, Dunlop Straplocks, real Schallers...even the lipstick on a pig can eat into your profits from selling bacon!

(not counting the labor involved or the finishing costs)

[stonge]

I started with brass bar stock from mcmaster carr:if you get the right sizes you can make the job a lot easier lol.

[Michael_B]

I started with brass bar stock from mcmaster carr:if you get the right sizes you can make the job a lot easier lol.

Thanks for the advice.