friendofpugs Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 PSA - 1988 Hamer Californian Custom, $800, no affiliation: https://milwaukee.craigslist.org/msg/6127691967.html
texwest Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 I saw this earlier today. I am fairly close and am thinking about driving to Racine to get it. What do you guys think of this. Is this a good deal? What are these going for these days? Do you think the finish is legit? It almost looks like it was stripped and refinished. Looks like the frets could be n better shape too.
hamerhead Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 If that finish is original, it's the worst I've seen on any Hamer. Looks pretty rattlecan to me. Looking at the spring cavity, it was black at one time. Even the fretboard looks like it was sprayed with something. The added switch isn't a bonus, either. A 'good deal' would be $300-$400 less.
cynic Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 Agreed. That's the price a minty fresh Cali Standard would get. If that is the factory finish...nevermind, it just can't be.
george4th Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 8 minutes ago, hamerhead said: If that finish is original, it's the worst I've seen on any Hamer. Looks pretty rattlecan to me. Looking at the spring cavity, it was black at one time. Even the fretboard looks like it was sprayed with something. The added switch isn't a bonus, either. A 'good deal' would be $300-$400 less. Agree 100%, IF and I am 99.9% sure its not original, that is one of the Fugliest finishes I've ever seen on a Hamer. And No, It is not a good deal.
cmatthes Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 It's actually the original finish. I'm not kidding. It's not "one of a kind", as they did several in that finish, but it's real. Fugly as hell, but legit.
texwest Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 14 minutes ago, hamerhead said: If that finish is original, it's the worst I've seen on any Hamer. Looks pretty rattlecan to me. Looking at the spring cavity, it was black at one time. Even the fretboard looks like it was sprayed with something. The added switch isn't a bonus, either. A 'good deal' would be $300-$400 less. Exactly my thoughts. You can see the grain depressions in the finish. And it looks like it has some shiny finish on the rosewood. And the spring cavity gives it away. But he's got some quote from Dantzig.
texwest Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 2 minutes ago, cmatthes said: It's actually the original finish. I'm not kidding. It's not "one of a kind", as they did several in that finish, but it's real. Fugly as hell, but legit. OK assuming its legit, what is it worth then?
cmatthes Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 What he's asking is more than reasonable. You won't make any money flipping it, but it's worth buying at that price if you're keeping it.
Punkavenger Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 Seriously ... haven't you noticed? Anything cool, vintage, old ... no matter what shape is EXPENSIVE these days. Figure whats it realistically worth then double or triple it. That guitar is almost 30 years old and in decent shape. You're lucky it even exists. The 71 Mach 1 with shaker hood I bought in 1983 for $2000 is now going for $100,000 ... no lie
hamerhead Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 51 minutes ago, cmatthes said: It's actually the original finish. I'm not kidding. It's not "one of a kind", as they did several in that finish, but it's real. Fugly as hell, but legit. I woulda lost my ass on a bet. Jeezus that's terrible.
cmatthes Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 1 hour ago, hamerhead said: I woulda lost my ass on a bet. Jeezus that's terrible. Me too! I'm glad I didn't bet!
texwest Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 2 hours ago, cmatthes said: What he's asking is more than reasonable. You won't make any money flipping it, but it's worth buying at that price if you're keeping it. Thanks that's helpful.
diablo175 Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 The DTDP switch is original? Sheee-ooot. Learning a lot of things about Cali's with this.
diablo175 Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 6 hours ago, cmatthes said: It's actually the original finish. I'm not kidding. It's not "one of a kind", as they did several in that finish, but it's real. Fugly as hell, but legit. Understatement.
DBraz Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 Ugly she may be but I bet once she's plugged in you'd learn to love her.
diablo175 Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 2 hours ago, DBraz said: Ugly she may be but I bet once she's plugged in you'd learn to love her. Quite possibly. But a new, loud, graphic finish would definitely increase the odds of that...
JustKid Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 I guess, there were some Calis in Natural ( although I've seen only one - perfect natural finish). This particular one does not look right to me with the grains and the pours and all. I can imagine the guitar would be painted in Natural and the "log book of souls" may say that ( who saw that anyway?), but I just do not imagine that this would be the paint quality. Looks like 2-3 coats of clear ( sucked into the grain) without even polishing. I think, once you touch it, you'll know( given that you've seen a few guitars in your life). There will be signs, trust me, most likely in control cavities and surely in the neck pocket. And if you have your doubts - there is always a black light ( $2-$3 ) - the headstock is legit and you'll see the difference ( if any) in the body reflection. If she was in fact stripped, then we can pretty much assume that all the other controls were added later one - in this case I'd say around $650. If you feel strongly that it's all factory, then it's a good deal. But from what I see...makes me skeptical.
cmatthes Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 It's real. They did a small handful of those - oiled finishes, very "unHamerlike" - back in the late '80s, IIRC. It was supposedly to showcase the mahogany and was likely a dealer request. Serial has known about them for years (but had never actually seen one), and Jol recently confirmed that this is indeed one of those. I was convinced it was a crappy refin too, because I'd never seen anything like that ever from AH.
LordsoftheJungle Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 16 minutes ago, cmatthes said: I was convinced it was a crappy refin too, because I'd never seen anything like that ever from AH. Surely that's the case, I can't imagine the builder letting it out of the factory looking like that.
cmatthes Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 5 hours ago, diablo175 said: The DTDP switch is original? Sheee-ooot. Learning a lot of things about Cali's with this. No - that is not original. I was only talking about the finish.
diablo175 Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 4 minutes ago, cmatthes said: No - that is not original. I was only talking about the finish. Hence, the question mark at the end of my initial post.
JustKid Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 1 hour ago, cmatthes said: It's real. They did a small handful of those - oiled finishes, very "unHamerlike" - back in the late '80s, IIRC. It was supposedly to showcase the mahogany and was likely a dealer request. Serial has known about them for years (but had never actually seen one), and Jol recently confirmed that this is indeed one of those. I was convinced it was a crappy refin too, because I'd never seen anything like that ever from AH. You are killing me right now. I had exactly the same finish one about 5-6 years ago. Figured it was some amateurish refin. Cavities were under clear as well, so I figured it was one of those ugly sunburst colors that was stripped and spraycanned. And before I came up with the idea of what to do with it, I decided to sell it as stripped. That switch thou does look mighty ugly. Why they never use push-pull is a mystery to me.
texwest Posted May 12, 2017 Posted May 12, 2017 1 hour ago, cmatthes said: No - that is not original. I was only talking about the finish. Ok that was my next question. I'm thinking the tone knob and extra switch are non-original? I was thinking that it looked like an oil finish because I have done them on mahogany before. What about the fingerboard looking like it has that oil finish on it as well?
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.