Convo with Hamer rep

I had an interesting conversation with a customer service rep at the Hamer factory in Con. I was asking about dead spots and what they suggested as a possible remedy.

After talking about the usual things, tuners, fat finger etc. he asked me the year of the guitar. I told him it was an '96, He told me that prior to 97 there were incidences of dead spots but after they moved in 97 they dont enounter them anymore. I asked if he had any idea and he didnt know. I find that interesting, just thought I would pass it on to fellow HFCers.

I cant believe I mispelled Hamer in the subject....forgive me....ahhhhhhhh!!!!1 /emoticons/default_blink.png

Must have been the dirty Chicago air seeping into the drying room at the Arlington Heights factory.

I'll bet you spoke with that "asshole" Ken.

I'll bet you spoke with that "asshole" Ken.

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Ya thats him. Why is he an asshole?

It's an inside joke.

Kim is the guy you talked to and he's a jolly good fellow.

I'll bet you spoke with that "asshole" Ken.

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Ya thats him. Why is he an asshole?

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You actually spoke with Kim. Awesome guy, even if he has a penchant for fishnets.

The "Ken" thing has a long story behind it.

I spoke to a K Keller... I forget if its Kim or Ken.

That's Mr. Fishnet. Helluva good guy.

So...in effect is he saying that the pre-97 guitars are somehow...sub-standard or iffy or....prone to be bad..?

I know of 2 Newports with dead spots.

So, it's not a pre-97 thing.

I played 1 of the Newports at a session I had with another guitarist. He had a bunch of cool hollow bod's. It was the standard Bigs/PC in that Orange sparkle finish. He mentioned the dead spot and it was there when I played it too.

I also recall reading on another forum or maybe here of another cat w/the same problem.

For the record I've had a shit load of Hamers from all era's. I've never had a dead spot on any.

I can see how this would make Kim uncomfortable, but the dead spots persist on a few guitars. I have the good fortune to play the Phoenix collection on a weekly basis, they are perfect or as close to it as possible, but my personal guitar (2003) has several finish flaws that really get under my skin , white under the clearcoat on the bass of the neck joint, exactly where you see it everytime you have it in playing position ( fantastic! ) and the tort binding came w/ some Hameritis and is developing more ( ongoing I suppose ) and now the binding is sinking on the headstock , a crease has developed that runs halfway up ( the worst look possible w/ this problem, all or nothing please ). I guess I should have posted this and not let wild rumors start but who really cares. I stopped using Hamer for a period cause this just pissed me off so bad and combined w/ the stress of being a mod for this board at a very stressfull time just pushed me over the edge. I have since just beat the shit out of this guitar and no longer consider it a problem, but trust me when I tell you that problem happen w/ every company. This was my first new guitar in 15 years ( don't cry for me, I buy used very effeciently ) and now I remember why I don't do that LOL , so there's my big story revealed /emoticons/default_blink.png

bill, you've made some major progress today, we're very proud of you /emoticons/default_blink.png

boring. i liked poe's version about your boycot due to the kaman military helicopter connection better.

btw why didn't/don't you send it back under warranty?

hmmm, it went back to have the truss rod reset, I mad mention of the finish flaws but they were just ignored, I did'nt raise a big stink as I got it under an endorsement deal ( a limited thing called a keyman deal ) the whole thing was a dual edge sword for me, and to be fair to Poe, I did answer one of his emails and state that I did not like the military connection, he caught me in mid rant mode LOL. One interesting fact I found in my investigations about the helicopter/Ovation connection, spruce is the only thing that they could use for copter blades until they developed the "bowl" material, even aluminum degrades at the tip of a rotating copter blade, so at least I chose the right wood

Well for guitarists like Townsend, who send their axes into a rotating frenzy, it must be good to know the damn thing won't degrade in those precious seconds before being pulverized on the edge of the stage. /emoticons/default_blink.png

I know of 2 Newports with dead spots.So, it's not a pre-97 thing.

...

For the record I've had a shit load of Hamers from all era's. I've never had a dead spot on any.

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Yup, much as I love my 2000 Newp, it's a bit dead on the G-string at the 12th fret. Using a wound G helps, which improves up-the-fretboard intonation but kills string bends. Maybe this is a good case for getting locking Grovers, as the change in head mass might make the dead spot go away.

Bill, good call. Helicopter grade tops, america's groosion trio Big Block Dodge and Soulbone, western NC's favorite party band in the house.

I wonder if it will go away or just move. Best case is it moves between the two notes. A micro-tone up or down.