NBD - '84 Hamer Blitz

[gearHed289]

I just bought this from pilgrim9 (who I believe still has a nice red Bach bird for sale). I've been trying to find an Explorer that worked for me for a while. Tried a 2013 Gibson and it was close, but something was not quite right. Then I grabbed an Epiphone off eBay and the neck was like a baseball bat. I already knew I liked the Hamer necks, so I figured I'd give it a shot and I love it! The width at the nut and the 20th fret are identical to my favorite '89 Ric 4003S. It's surprisingly super light and balances great sitting down or on a strap. They had the good sense to position the rear strap pin pretty far off center. Sound - wise, it has a strong P-Bass vibe, which is surprising considering the all mahogany/set neck construction. Can't complain cause I didn't have that flavor in the arsenal until now. Bone stock with Hamer-branded Schaller bridge and tuners, DiMarzio pickups, Hamer stamped pots, and original case with key in a Hamer ziploc bag. I did replace the original plain black knobs with Gibson speed knobs. Its a winner!

[uwe]

Bit unsymmetric for my taste. 

[uwe]

But OTOH, anything containing the word "Blitz" can't be entirely bad. 

[uwe]

That is sort of the budget version of what the Def Leppard guy played, Rick Savage, right?

[slinkp]

I think there's other videos where he played a P/J version. Dunno about which was more budget-y.

[uwe]

Might be this one then ...

[slinkp]

Or this white one - check it at 1:05, f-f-f-foolin'!
Thirteen-year-old-me thought this white explorer was the coolest thing I had seen since Entwistle's Exploiter.

[uwe]

I'm unashamed about liking Def Leppard back then and even today. They are reassuring proof that five guys who really don't excel at anything they do by themselves can form a band that becomes massive and gives the term "hookline" new meaning within hard rock.

But I much preferred the grit and youthful ebullience of Pyromania (you could still hear Sheffield in that album) to Hysteria which had all the life drained out of it. The songwriting was still good, but Hysteria has no heart, just dogged determination in the face of what must have seemed insurmountable odds.

[gearHed289]

Thanks for soiling my new bass thread with Def Leppard! But seriously... The white one looks like a regular Blitz. The black one has a reverse headstock. I think the first one (natural?) is a nicer one with binding. I was hoping for one with double humbuckers until I plugged this guy in. Again, the P tone is great, and my LP and FenderBird already do the 'bucker thing spectacularly.

[slinkp]

Sorry Gearhed! I honestly still like that band.  And I'm jealous of your new bass

[gearHed289]

Sorry Gearhed! I honestly still like that band.  And I'm jealous of your new bass

Thanks! I do remember liking On Through the Night. 

[chromium]

^^ Still listen to that, and High and Dry occasionally   Savage's amber Standard bass gave me GAS early in my adolescence... Always wondered why I could never find one, but turns out there were only around 50 or so Standards ordered. Those were all snowflakes in terms of specs. I've seen 'em with dual HBs (various positions- even one with three!!, and supposedly there is one floating around back East with a single X2N), jazz pickups, P/J, single P, and the earliest ones had combos of old Fender Jazz pickups in a dualie config, and Gibson EB and TB pickups.  Various bridges - 60s Gibson Tbird, 70s 3-points, Schaller rollers, other?? - some with binding, some without, 4/8/12 string configs, and so on...

The Blitz was their non-custom-order offering along with the Cruise, but every bit as good quality wise (IME).  Not many of those were made either, when compared with the quantities that Gibson pumps out.  Thought I recall reading that Hamer produced ~50,000 instruments total.

Congrats on the Blitz - looks like a nice one!

[uwe]

"Thanks for soiling my new bass thread with Def Leppard! "

And I always thought that people who like - and buy - Explorer basses, Hamer ones to boot, have that all-important chromosome missing that determines whether we are able to feel any kind of shame or not. 

[gearHed289]

 

I'm shopping for curly wigs and Union Jack shirts now.

Actually, it was more about this guy than anything.


I thought about Alembic-izing it, but it's too original and already sounds great, so I'm not changing anything.

[uwe]

Actually, the first Explorer that I saw that made me want to have one, was a Hamer too!