The Last Bass Outpost

Cool that it's back up. I don't post a whole lot but I still check it out all the time.

Jacks basses are 32" scale set neck, those imports are 30" scale with a bolt on neck. Back when you could still order one from Hamer USA they priced out about $3000 street. I've had 5 of them and still have 2. My first Blades was one like the one in the above video that was made for him for that 85 tour, it was lavender with fuscia  painted bevels and the same white hardware. Wish I still had it.

That V8 was one of my custom orders. I tried to get it done in a 4 string but they wouldn't do it for some reason. It has my last name on the headstock under the logo and my name on the certificate. I was very disappointed with it to say the least. I asked for a smaller neck and shorter headstock was told no problem. The headstock came out fine but the neck (width at the nut) was huge. When I got it I tried to like it but I just couldn't handle the big neck so it sat in the case until I traded it to Jon.

Here's a couple of pics of his, I tried to grab it when it was for sale years ago but it didn't work out. The headstock on his was the smaller banjo tuner headstock. I had more pics but can't seem to locate them.

Quote from: chromium on June 24, 2014, 09:54:13 AM
Has anyone here spec'd out a bass with him?  Looks like that is an option....

http://www.shishkovguitars.com/custom-guitar-estimate

I did, I tried to get him to do one of the first 12 as a short scale bass about an hour or so after his site was up. He told me he couldn't do it on the first run. I also put in a quote for a double cut short scale and got the same message back from him that mc2NY did. I figure it will be awhile. I'll just have to wait.

Fine looking bass, congrats.

Nice one! I've been looking at that one for a while but with my track record for Hamer 8 string basses I've stayed away from it. I'm still waiting on him to cut loose a 4 string version myself. I've been waiting at least 10 years, He's a cool guy with a lot of cool Hamers.

Quote from: dadagoboi on February 27, 2014, 04:13:14 PM
2.5 mm is around 3/32 inches.

Yeah, I didn't do the conversion so I overstated the gap a little too much. The one pic looks like I could stick my finger between the string and the fret board at the neck pickup. I had to lower the pickups on my white one to the level of the rings to keep the strings from hitting the pickups. Like I said before it's probably not anything that couldn't be adjusted but it did keep me from going higher on my bid.

Sniped by someone. I was watching the auction and was high bid right up till the end, thought I was going to snag it for a little less than $400 which was my max bid, then a couple of bids hit at the last few seconds and I was done.

I was a little concerned about the neck or I would have went higher to begin with. It's probably fine and can be adjusted but in one of the pics it looked to be about a 1/2" above the last frets. He said the "neck looks straight after tuning" and his pic measured at the 12th fret looked to be about 1/4th of an inch. The one of the neck at the nut it looks like the strings are almost touching the frets.

Another will come along somewhere down the road.

Here's a shot of the headstock. If the one on ebay doesn't go crazy in price I'll have it too.

I believe it's short scale, arched/carved top, the body is already routed flat in that spot for that Greco labeled bridge like the one on ebay. That's just a mahogany shim I put under the Schaller to raise it up a little. The Greco labeled bridge is really a gotoh (I forget which model) as are the tuners. The gold on mine when I got it was not as nasty looking as the one on ebay but was still pretty bad.

One of the best basses I own. Hardware and pickups have been changed on mine. I hate gold. I might need the black one to go with my white.

I love speculation.
If it would have been a Hamer I would have bought it no questions asked.  That's my personal favorite when it comes to basses. The short scales are good but the medium scales are their best.(IMO)
I had the oppurtunity to buy the bass before it went on eBay. The bass was made with a leftover Gibson body from the Custom Shop and a Gibson neck that was bought on ebay from Kalamazoo, Mi. I was bidding on the neck myself and backed off to let it go to the person who had the bass built. The pickups came off of eBay also, I was bidding on those as well. They came from the UK, seems the guy had a bunch of them. I wound up with 3 of them also.

The bass was made to look like a Hamer. The previous owner has been a Hamer player for many years and I know for a fact that he had the first B4S (short scale 4 string) made when Hamer started offering them up again in "01" or "02" which ever it was. I ordered the first B4M around the same time. I just got a short scale 8 string Hamer a month or so that was his at one time.

The headstock is cut Like a Hamer and the pickup routes are cut like a 4 digit bass from the 70's to early 80's. There were about 750 custom instruments that were made from the start of the company in the 70's up through the early 80's that carry a stamped 4 digit serial number. Martin Turners Hamer is serial #0001 and everything on his bass is from a Gibson Thunderbird.

The regular production guitars had an inked serial number, I think this started in 1979 and only the customs were stamped. All models are stamped with the number and USA on the headstock now. I believe this started in the early 90's.
I have 4 custom ordered Hamers since 2002 myself. Three of the B4M's and the 8 string VBass. I also have the 8 string double cut.. I have also owned at least 20 other different Hamers over the years too.

If you want to see the date stamp on the Explorer you'll have to take the neck off of it because the date is stamped on the bottom of the dovetail and in the neck pocket. It's a cool bass, I would love to have it. Even if no one will admit they built it I honestly believe a certain person did and they did a fine job on it.
I also believe the story I was told regarding the bass. I know the person and know he's not telling me a bunch of BS.

Speculation is still cool though.





 

Thats a cool one except for the gold, I was never much of a fan either but my first Hamer back in the middle 80's was a medium scale double cut that was made for him. I was hooked as soon as I played it.
I sold the one made for Jack a few years back but have ordered 3 custom double cuts and an 8 string short scale VBass since that time. Best basses I've ever had the pleasure to play.

You better be ready to lay down some cash for one of those. Which of course I would do if I thought I had it to spend. They only make 4 string basses on a custom order basis but their medium scale solid body double cuts are killer. And the Night Falcon has the look of a EB2 even though the body's smaller.

The bass body is the same as the headstock of the guitar and the headstock is the same as the guitar body. It does have a Geddy Lee sound to it.