To his dismay, McCarty couldnt care less about guitars. Hamer Blitz 1983 Explorer Midnight Blue Electric Guitar $2,495.00 $75.00 shipping or Best Offer 24 watching body only Slammer Hamer Electric Guitar body only project $30.00 $18.50 shipping or Best Offer 16 watching Hamer Monaco Special K Electric Guitar with P-90 pickups. Pickups on the Import Series were Duncan Designed. In 99 Hamer introduced the Vanguard, yet another in its semi-hollowbody Artist series. Besides, I thought guitarmaking was going to be a short run and Id end up a famous musician or race car driver or something. Then he quickly quips, But Dantzig is still available.. The main bass strings were tuned as on a normal bass guitar, with the two smaller strings tuned in unison at an octave above. The bridge is a finetune coupled with a Bigsby vibrato. Also part of the 95 CruiseBass line was the 2-Tek CruiseBass (Model BCRT). Artist Ultimate Around the time of the move Hamer introduced another variation on its semi-hollow Artist guitar, a top-of-the-line Hamer Artist Ultimate (ARTULT). the Sunburst mainly in that it lacked binding and an arched top. The Standard Bass was offered until 84. Pickups were Seymour Duncan Custom and Pearly Gates humbuckers. This was similar to the Prototype II except for a more dramatically extended upper-cutaway horn and a contoured body with offset waists. The Phantom A5 was available with Sustain Block string-through bridge or a new Sustain Block Tremolo vibrato, which basically transformed the fixed bridge into a non-locking Fender-style vibrato. The Mirage Maple Top disappeared after only a year. The decision was made to consolidate all guitarmaking activities in Connecticut, and the Illinois factory was closed. However, this first version did not survive through 84. Dire Straits Mark Knopfler Sunburst The Mirage was equipped with three Seymour Duncan single-coil-sized humbuckers (all perpendicular to the strings) a Hot Rail at the bridge and two split-rail Vintage Rails. This article originally appeared in VGs Sep. 00 issue. C $510.90. However, recent 12-strings have been fitted with a stock Wilkinson design. Muddy Waters & Big Bill Morganfield Rollin Stone: The Golden Anniversary Collection &, Epiphone Zephyr De Luxe Regent and Zephyr Amplifier. Carved flame maple top over mahogany, rosewood dotneck with three-and-three head. This was the source of the mistake mentioned earlier. The Hamer guitar is entirely handmade. You will find original articles, full lists of Hamer USA models as well as old catalogues and articles from various sources. This was the same as the new 84 Phantom A5, with the addition of a Roland hex MIDI pickup in front of the vibrato, with a three-way toggle (MIDI/regular/both) and two other parameter control knobs. Other musicians would ask what it was and would be incredulous when told he made it himself. When we created Hamer, we created the high-end boutique guitar category, but we didnt intend it that way. OBLs were mainly used on the Custom models, though some show up on standard instruments. Probably a set neck. Now the good stuff.. 5,088. Shoes John Murphy 8-String Basses (2) Essentially, this was the Artist equivalent of the Archtop GT, featuring two Duncan P-90s with black covers. Dantzig still has that first bass. Recent versions of the 8-String Bass feature EMG pickups. The Five was essentially the same as the four-string except for having a 2-Tek bridge/tailpiece mounted through the body, and the addition of a fifth tuner on the bottom of the headstock. There have been a lot of Hamer guitars over the last quarter century. The first had the sleek offset double-cutaway body similar to the Phantom guitar, with pointed horns (the upper extended), glued-in neck, and a three-and-three headstock, which changed to a four-in-line. Rockpile Billy Bremner Sunburst The Vector I doubt it's a neck-through. . Finally, all three Cruisebasses were available in fretless versions (Models BCRTF, BCRSF, and BC5TF) identical except for a Madagascar ebony fingerboard inlaid with maple markers. At some point after 83, vibratos were available, and in 84 a few were made with Kahler flat-mount vibratos. Dantzig and Hamer had to work hard, schlepping examples around the world and getting them into the hands of players. Finish was transparent orange. Petersson was playing a Hagstrom eight-string bass as the time. From this era stems the appearance of Hamer models for heavy metal pioneers Judas Priest. $100. And now you know all about them. They remain in the line. Curiously enough, even back then their best customers were not Americans. Shoes Gary Klebe Standard, Sunbursts (2) The 22-fret fingerboard was bound rosewood with dots. The primary difference between the new Phantom and the old Prototype was pickup selection. Dantzig recalls getting more and more requests for instruments they didnt think they could make, but took the plunge and eventually built them. So you shouldnt have trouble identifying a Slammer import. Hamer guitar players have always included pro guitarists who demand a lot from their instruments. Guitar #8 0196 would be from 1978 and was the 196th guitar numbered that way. Modern players Kiss Paul Stanley Standards (3) It soon became clear that the supply of vintage Gibson PAFs, even broken ones, would not be adequate to support new guitar production, so Hamer commissioned DiMarzio to produce humbuckers to its own specs. I love the guitar and I don't feel like I overpaid at all. In the late 1970s to the mid-1980s Def Leppard used Hamer guitars and basses. However, the truly deluxe features were 25th Anniversary engraved sterling silver truss rod cover and back control plate, a line of sterling silver purfling on the inside of the body binding, and a special silver-colored hardshell case! Finish options included sunburst, cherry, yellow transparent, blue transparent, green transparent, opaque red, and a black-and-white graphic. Beginning in late 83, many featured top-mounted Kahler vibratos. by Ronnie Dungan, "FMIC Suspends Hamer Production" on Premier Guitars website, Hamer Guitars History Interview with Jol Dantzig, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hamer_Guitars&oldid=1126369721, This page was last edited on 9 December 2022, at 00:19. The pickguard was a natty laminated tortoise affair, sort of oval extending under the strings from the neck, but with a kind of batwing extension over the treble cutaway horn. The Hamer Sunburst guitar debuted in 1977 with a retail price of $699, about the same . He showed me a few of the new Bigsby products they were working on, recalls Dantzig with some amusement. Cheap Trick had also ordered at least one 10-string bass for Petersson (one octave string on the G and D, two octave strings on the A and E), and a custom 12-string guitar for Robin Zander. From 86 to 88 some came with German OBL pickups, including HB types. Upgraded with a solid Maple top on Mahogany body, the tone is beefy yet focused and a Dark In 84, the Prototype listed for $799.90, the Prototype 12-string was $849.90, the Prototype II $999.90. Rick Nielsen Limited Edition Artist Archtop, et al It was shaped like a Vox Phantom with Hamer Phantom electronics(! At first, this unit sat on a rosewood shim to give it the right height, but in 78 these were replaced by the Sustain Block bridge, which featured a thicker chrome-plated milled brass base, giving them adequate height. The shop catered to musicians who were interested in high-quality instruments. Ted Nugent Charles Huhn Sunburst Most recent guitars feature Duncans, though the Diablo has DiMarzios, and, again, a customer may order any other type of pickup. Many guitars built between 86 and 89 came with OBL pickups made in Germany. The vibrato was a non-locking Wilkinson VSV vibrato combined with chrome locking Sperzel tuners. In 98, Hamer hooked up again with long-time supporter and enthusiast Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick to develop the Rick Nielsen Limited Edition. Prior to that point production had been one-off custom variations on the original "Standard" and "Flying V" guitars. Get the best deal for Hamer Electric Guitars from the largest online selection at eBay.ca. $449.99. Hamer Cruisebass - Electric 4-String RH Bass Guitar - 1982 - Made In USA $1,183.27 $90.13 shipping or Best Offer 19 watching 1981 HAMER PROTOTYPE - made in USA $1,429.89 $105.87 shipping 1981 HAMER PROTOTYPE - made in USA $1,294.37 $108.69 shipping Hamer USA Special - Yellow TV *exc. Apparently, a number of people around town were beginning to make copies of Gibson designs. The new version (Model BCRS) was redesigned to have a much more rounded form, much closer to a Fender bass design, just slightly more exaggerated waists. This is not to be confused with the 82-84 Gibson Futura, which was a totally different modernistically designed guitar! The Standard Bass Grover tuners were replaced by Schallers in 80. This model remains in the line to this day. Hamer Californian Slammer Series Korean from the Cort factory in 1994. The upper horn remained extended, but was much thicker. Gold Supporting Member . Sunburst switch orientation. To appeal to a broader market, Hamer introduced its first production guitar, the Sunburst, 1977. Hamer never had guitars made in Japan. Glad all worked out for you. Tuners were Grover Super Rotomatics, with the Art Deco buttons. The neck pickup changed, finally landing on a Hfner staple pickup. I paid $350 with a hard case and couldn't be happier. Futura was not the official name of this model. Hamer Guitars was an American manufacturer of electric guitars founded in 1973, in Wilmette, Illinois, by vintage guitar shop owners Paul Hamer and Jol Dantzig. The ones I watched on Reverb tended to sell anywhere from $275 to $450, with no rhyme or reason as far as I could see. $4999. Controls were a three-way select, with two volume and one tone control. The Sunburst Arch Top Flame Top, Californian, Diablo, and Cruise basses were continuations of previous Slammer models. This differed from the approach favored by most others at the time, which was to leave a PAF at the neck and add an even hotter DiMarzio Super Distortion to the bridge. The treble horn had a white pickguard with a Rick Nielsen logo. While the Flying V-shaped bass didnt go into production, there were a few guitar versions produced between 77 and 81. The SATFW comes And like the Sunburst Archtop, the Artist Archtop played more name games as it evolved. Technically speaking, Dantzigs 73 Flying V bass was the first Hamer, the model never went into production. Single Cut LP Style $599.00 $40.00 shipping or Best Offer 30 watching The unbound 22-fret rosewood fingerboard had a 243/4 scale and dot inlays. The Gear Page is the leading online community and marketplace for guitars, amps, pedals, effects and associated gear. 1993 Hamer USA Archtop Studio Electric Guitar w/ OHSC. [2], The company was incorporated in Illinois in 1976 by John Montgomery, Jol Dantzig, James Walker and Hamer. The first few Standards were fitted with original Gibson PAF humbuckers, many of them non-functioning units obtained from the repair shop at the Gibson factory in Kalamazoo and rewound by Larry DiMarzio. These were used on virtually all two-humbucker Hamers up to 82. The neck is carved from the same choice mahogany and is reinforced with a carbon steel trussrod that is fully adjustable. McCarty was not impressed with the new Hamers and reminded Dantzig that the Explorer had been a failure when it was first introduced. Pickups include two Duncan Phat Cat single-coils, with three-way select, volume, and tone controls. The Sunburst was a double-cutaway Les Paul Junior copy, with a British Honduras mahogany body, glued-in mahogany neck, tapered three-and-three headstock, and a bound, flamed maple top with red-to-yellow sunburst finish. 90 Hamer Slammer (covered, DiMarzio) Kaman Music agreed to purchase Hamer in late 1988. I was the hands-on guy who liked to make guitars and do marketing. Adding Bass Strings and More This first Hamer pretty much replicated a Gibson Flying V. It had a variety of pickups, though the bridge pickup was always a Gibson EB-3. Great Condition USA MADE! It had no serial number, and when it was done, Dantzig began to take it to gigs. [5][6], As of January 25, 2017 KMC Music announced at NAMM 2017 the re-introduction of imported Hamer Guitars with 5 models. The headstock was the split-V three-and-three with a black face. The Import Standard basically replaced the old USA Standard. Soon, this guitar would become known as the Standard. Untermyer had the dual role of general manager of both Hamer and Ovation. Pickups were the specially modified DiMarzio PAFs (de-wound zebra neck, cream bridge). Through the small community of guitar traders, I had made the acquaintance Chicagoan Jim Beach, owner of Wooden Music on Lincoln Avenue on the city's North Side. $140 is good but I'd offer $250 for both. . Indeed, as you read about special features that come online, these might appear on any instrument as a custom-order feature, so if you find an unusual Hamer, think twice before you conclude that it has been modified. This looked like the old model, complete with pickguard, but was now made of solid maple with a glued-in neck and scimitar headstock. The Eclipse and Mirage Maple Top disappeared after 98. The beginnings of Hamer Guitars (pronounced Hay-mer, not hammer) go back to those heady days of the early 70s, when Chicago was the breeding ground of soon-to-be-famous rock bands such as REO Speedwagon, Styx, and Cheap Trick. The top was carved, highly figured silky maple. The unbound two-octave fingerboard had pearl dot inlays. The list of Hamer artists currently featured on their website (www.kaman music.com/hamer) is considerably smaller than the peak of the mid 80s, but includes Gary Bell, Felicia Collins, Stephan Jenkins and Kevin Gadogan of Third Eye Blind, Shane Theriot of the Neville Brothers, Joel Shearer, David Sinclair (Sarah McLachlan), Mark Rivera, Lyle Workman, Billy Joel, longtime friend Wolf Hoffmann, and of course, Rick Nielsen. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited. While many early models were adaptations of Gibson designs like the Explorer and Flying V, Hamer readily brought more modern finishes and features to their instruments. standard with a Wilkinson Tremolo and classic Hamer controls and switch orientation. I came across a Hamer guitar that is made in Korea, sort of a red subtle flame color with 2 hum buckers. This was more or less a version of the 96 Gibson Futura. 97 Hamer began to shift its Korean imports from the Slammer Series into the Import Series, switching Slammer production to Indonesia. In March of 80 the Standard with dots listed at $1,199.95, Standard with crowns $1,299.95, the 8-String Bass was $1,499.95, 12-String Bass $1,700, 12-String Quadbass $2,000, Sunburst with dots $799.90, Sunburst with crowns $869.90, and the Special was $699.90. By 1930, and already known as a banjo maker, Epiphone was offering its Masterbilt guitars, and it went on to rival Gibson as the top jazz guitar maker of the era with its Emperor and other archtop models. $99.99 shipping. Tom, I had an Indo sunburst. Contemporary stars like Jan Akkermann and Rick Derringer (VG, August 98) were clients. Looking at the company today, its interesting that Hamer still has somewhat of an ambivalent image, somewhere between high-end boutique and budget vintage, perhaps best summarized (yea, perpetuated) by its own well-used advertising slogan, modern vintage. Well, after surviving this long, Hamer can now lay claim to some real vintage guitars, too. Aerosmith Brad Whitford Standards (2) Posted July 12, 2013 On 7/12/2013 at 12:52 PM, serial said: Post pics and we can help a lot more. In 84, the Phantom A5 changed to a second version basically the same as the earlier one, except it featured a six-in-line headstock and Kahler Flat-Mount vibrato system was standard. Basses Hamer Slammer DA21 SSH Black Electric Guitar. They were, in fact, one of the early vintage guitar stores, before there was such a thing as the vintage scene we know today. Hamer made some great guitars with sometimes dubious choices in pickups and finishes. Until this point, Hamer guitars were essentially derivative, inspired by Gibson designs. Hamer began publicizing its instruments in 1974, with small black-and-white ads in guitar magazines. Sterling By Music Man StingRay Bass Guitar- Sunburst. With the influx of cash, the company relocated to Palatine, Illinois, to a larger space with some new equipment. Dick & Alex Alex Parche Standards (2), Sunburst Both guitars are still used by Tipton on stage as of 2020.[4]. So did their friend (and occasional jam partner) Rick Nielsen, of Cheap Trick (VG, January 92, September 97). Guitar #8 21416 was made in 1988 and was the 21,416th guitar so numbered. Hamer DC Flame Maple Studio Archtop Guitar Tonerider P90 Pickups Made in Korea . The Artist Archtop (sometimes also called the Artist Arched Top or Archtop Artist -fun, eh?) After a 4-year hiatus since Fender had discontinued the Hamer models in 2013, the brand was re-introduced as a subsidiary of KMC Music, which announced the return of imported Hamer Guitars at the NAMM Show that same year. Seller might even be ok with $250, but it's your call. Blues Brothers Matt Murphy Sunburst Upgraded with a solid Maple top on Mahogany body, the tone is beefy yet focused and a Transparent Black on figured Maple veneer results in a visually inspiring instrument. By the 90s, virtually all other vibrato guitars featured Schaller Floyd Rose systems, cast with a Hamer logo. Crushed, Dantzig returned to Chicago. The Hamer factory was very inconsistent with custom requests approving for some and denying the same requests for others. Newport In 95 Hamer introduced the Artist Archtop (Model GATA), the Studio Archtop Artist, and the new version of the CruiseBass. Hamer gave its specifications to the young pickup maker Larry DiMarzio, who began making versions of his own DiMarzio PAFs to Hamers spec, with a de-wound neck pickup. Listed: 2 years ago Views: 963 Watchers: 46 About This Listing In any case, Dantzig and Hamer decided to build a hybrid of their favorite guitars. Roy Buchanan Roy Buchanan Standards (2) In 97, Kaman/Ovation found itself with excess capacity in its New Hartford, Connecticut, factory and operating a second (Hamer) factory in suburban Chicago. Beginning in around 88 Hamer basses increasingly used EMG pickups, which began replacing Hamer Slammers. Mine is a black flame, found it used at Sam Ash. Except for the bound flame top, the Standard was pretty close to a Gibson. Sweet Andy Scott Standard Still living off income from selling the collection, Hamer and Dantzig looked for help, and found it in 78 in the person of Frank Untermeyer, a fellow getting a Masters Degree in international business at the University of Wisconsin. Free shipping on many items | Browse your favorite brands | affordable prices. So our perspective has always been a little skewed. The Import Diablo, too, was similar to its forebear, with maple body and neck. Figured Maple veneer and it features a smooth playing mahogany set-neck and an Ebony Ca. | Browse our daily deals for even more savings! For pick players, these could be reversed. Circa 1970, Dantzig was playing bass in a club band called Heartbreaker. The Special It might be a Hamer Sunburst model, I have one which has the same control setup as the pictured one, 2 vol and 1 tone. USA guitars and import lines from Korea and Indonesia. Hamer did get lots of good publicity, however. With a glued-in neck, the Echotone had bound solid maple top and back with bound f-holes. $500 $600. The Daytona, Mirage and T-51 have either Wilkinson VSV vibratos or HT100 stoptails. It was a pretty nice guitar. zekmoe. Shoes Jeff Murphy Standard, Sunburst The guitar has quailities of Sunburst and Standard. By 1996, Hamer had begun to modify its import strategy and made a transition for its Ko-rean models which would end up being called the Import Series - basically upscale copies of its better Hamer USA guitars, still made in Korea. Mirage Until recently, virtually all four and five-string basses featured Schaller-made bridge units with the Hamer logo.
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