This a Hamer California Elite. It was in the glass case at Guitar Showcase in Campbell California, and I was hooked the first time I saw the boomerang inlays.
But I was 20 years old, and didn’t have the money for it. It was two grand.
However, as a young person seeking instant gratification for my gear addiction, I put the guitar on my credit card.
Oh yeah, the manager at the store loved me. I’d been going there for awhile. He threw in some strings, a strap and picks. What more could you ask for?
I actually gigged with this guitar.
The action is relatively low, but the tone of the mahogany body paired with the pickups is warm and full.
Speaking of pickups – these are Seymour Duncan “Trembuckers” from back in the day. I love these pickups so much.
Fast forward to a handful of years ago…in a weird case of serendipity, I was driving on my street and there was a garage sale. There were a few people walking on my street. I pulled up to an older woman and started talking to her. It turned out that she was Evan Skopp’s mom.
Evan used to be at Seymour Duncan for a long time. She connected him with me, and I went and visited him and toured the factory, and met Seymour Duncan.
The plot thickens…
I really loved those Trembuckers. They weren’t available on a guitar, and stores don’t sell them. I started asking Evan about them.
He had to dig a little. I don’t know where he found them. Maybe buried in a storage room. Evan sold them to me as an OEM purchase. It was awesome. They came in plastic bags. What was even better is that I loaded them onto the guitar that has my tremolo invention.
