OMG that thing is F'ing awesome. It's so cheesy, it's awesome.
Wanna trade it for a '68 CHamp?
I am a daily reader of my two local Craig's Lists, and as I've said in another thread, there's rarely anyone who wants less than 85% of retail for their stuff. It's stupid. But I guess it must be working for them, because most stuff isn't listed for that long. Yesterday morning I found a treasure, though...an Epiphone Flamekat semi-hollow, with tuner, picks, an extra set of strings and a cord. I have tons of strings, picks and cords, but the price was reasonable, and the guitar was definitely a head turner (although I realize it's not for everyone). I emailed my fiancee the ad, simply so she could see the cool guitar. To my surprise, she said, "Why don't you go look at it after work?". She was a very capable enabler on this one, and I realize how lucky I am in that respect.
I did go and check it out, and the young man who was selling it was the original owner. He had given up on guitar, and was trying to raise some rent money. After checking it out on his Marshall combo (also for sale), making sure that the switch and pots were all in order, and the frets weren't too worn, I was pretty much sold. There is (or was) some noticeable corrosion on the tuners, bridge, and frets as well as on the hinges of the hardshell case. I offered him $50 less than his asking price and he agreed. I think I could've offered him even less, but the guy is struggling to make rent and it's a great guitar.
I unstrung it almost immediately, as the strings were in bad shape. I've been working on cleaning up the corrosion before I restring it, so I haven't had a chance to play through any of my amps, but it sounded good when I tested it. Pretty beefy for mini-hums. After removing the cover on the back of the master volume, I think it should be replaced. It's a tiny import pot, and it's the only one I can access easily, so I'll replace it eventually. For right now, everything works, and as soon as I get some steel wool for the frets, I'll give it a good shakedown.
And now the required photos:
Last edited by FrankenFretter; August 1st, 2010 at 12:54 PM. Reason: Spelling.
-Sean
Guitars: Lots.
Amphs: More than last year.
Pedals: Many, although I go straight from guitar to amp more often lately.
OMG that thing is F'ing awesome. It's so cheesy, it's awesome.
Wanna trade it for a '68 CHamp?
Cool guitar! I want one. Please post a follow up when you finish cleaning it up and plug it in.
LeadedEL84
Wow. That's like the Andrew W.K. of guitars.
Congrats on the score!
Guitars: Gibson LP Studio, MIA Fender Precision, Carvin C350Originally Posted by Spudman
Amps: Genz Benz Shuttle 6.0 + Avatar B212 / Genzler 12-3, Acoustic B20
Pedals: Pod HD500X, Diamond Compressor, Tech 21 VT Bass, Sonic Research Turbo Tuner
Love the dice fret markers....that is one sweet Epi man...congrats. Ole Kazz has a new guit on the way too.....can't wait for it to arrive so I can take pictures and post the good news :-)
Guitars: 2002 Les Paul Studio Limited Color's Edition | 2004 Greg Bennett Avion Les Paul Copy | S101 Telecaster project | 2004 Washburn D46 Acoustic
Amplification: Epiphone Valve Jr. Head and Cabinet | VOX AD30VT
Effects: Rocktron Delay | BBE Free Fuzz | Big Muff Pi | Boss Flanger | Bad Monkey | Jekyll and Hyde | Cry Baby Wah | Boss EQ | Behrenger TU300 Tuner |
Thanks, guys! C64, yes it is a bit cheesy, but I like cheesy zombie movies and goofy things like that. I also like the Kustom Kulture art, so this is right up my alley. As tempting as that trade may be, the amp and the guitar would be a good pair together, but I don't think I'd want the amp by itself. Thanks though.
I will post more info as it becomes available. Going to get some steel wool soon, then I'll string it up with 10s. This is one that I won't really try to mod, since it's too much of a PITA to work with a semi-hollow.
By the way, the guy also sold me an old Zoom 505 for $15. I haven't had much time to play with that yet, either.
Stay tuned!
-Sean
Guitars: Lots.
Amphs: More than last year.
Pedals: Many, although I go straight from guitar to amp more often lately.
Sweet!
Oh man, do I have the car for you!
Guitar: Gibson SG Standard Natural Burst, Squier CV 50's Tele, Hell Guitars No. 2, Squier CV 50's Strat, Reverend Club King 290, Taylor 522e 12-Fret mahogany,
Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar Bass Short Scale
Amp: Fender Super Champ X2 Head, Egnater Tweaker 15, Fender Mustang I, Acoustic B20 1x12 bass amp
Pedal: Budda Budwah wah, Wampler Ego Compressor, Electro-Harmonix Soul Food, Voodoo Lab Sparkle Drive, Wampler Velvet Fuzz, Seven Sisters Eve Tremolo, TC Electronics Gravy Tri Chorus & Vibrato, Catalinbread Echorec, TC Electronic Alter Ego 2 Delay, Hardwire Supernatural Ambient Verb, MXR Carbon Copy, Catalinbread RAH, Big Muff Pi with Tone Wicker, BYOC Mouse 2.0 Distortion, BYOC Boost/OD-2
Yeah, FF, I saw that one, too. Even though I'm not really looking to buy any gear, I still peruse CL to see what folks are selling. The Kat's paint job would look right at home on a '57 Chevy. Epi semi-hollows are great - I think you'll enjoy it.
Those were a stock epi item a few years ago. They are similar in size to an LP about the same thickness as a Dot semi hollow. They are quite a nice guitar.Originally Posted by FrankenFretter
I also have a 505 and it is fun to play with. I got mine new back in about 98.
They are quite noisey though.
The Blues is alright!
Guitars: 1968 Gibson SG, 2005 Gibson SG Standard, 2006 Gibson LP Classic Gold top, 2004 Epiphone Elitist LP Custom, 1996 Gibson Les Paul Standard. 2001 Epiphone Sheraton II, 2007 Epiphone G400.
Fender Strats: 1996 Fender 68 Reissue CIJ, 2008 Squier CV 50s, 2009 Squier CV 50s Tele Butterescotch Blonde
Amps: Blues Junior Special edition Jensen in Brown Tolex with Wheat front, 65 Deluxe Reverb reissue,1970 Sonax reverb by Traynor, Avatar Custom 2/12 Cabinet with Eminence Legend V1216 speakers,
2008 DSL100 Marshall Amp , Fender Super Champ XD,Fender Vibro Champ XD
Effects and Pedals: Fulltone Fulldrive II, Fulltone OCD, Fulltone Mini Deja Vibe, Fulltone Fat Boost, Dunlop Crybaby Wah, Boss DS1, Boss DD20 Giga Delay, Boss TU2 tuner, Boss BD2, Ibanez TS9 Tube screamer, Zoom 505. Radial tonebone hot british.
Very cool guitar. Nice grab!
Guitars: Charvel/Jackson CSM-1G, DeArmond M-75, DeArmond Starfire Special, DeArmond S-73, Epiphone Collegiate UK, Squier 51, Michael Kelly Patriot Custom, Harmony Sovereign, Taylor 310, Takamine 12 string, SX thinline, Fender MIM Strat, Ibanez JTK30,
Amps: Earth Sound Research G-2000 Super Guitar head into Avatar G212H cab, Fender Sidekick 20 Chorus, Peavey Classic 20, Peavey Classic 30, Peavey Express 112, Fender Super Champ XD, Vibro Champ XD
Effects: Digitech EX-7, Digitech RP-250
sweeeet!
“Your sound is in your hands as much as anything. It’s the way you pick, and the way you hold the guitar, more than it is the amp or the guitar you use.” Stevie Ray Vaughan
That is one kickass lookin' guitar!
Good find, FF!
Guitars:
Fender 2006 MIM Fender Stratocaster HSS in 3TS
Ibanez RG 570 with a bridge Invader
ESP M II Deluxe with a Tune-o-Matic bridge
Eleanor, the magical, mystical Road Worn wonder Tele
Blackstar HT Club 40
Samick makes a similar size semi hollow body. It is called the Royale. I would bet that the Kat series was made by Samick.
The Blues is alright!
Guitars: 1968 Gibson SG, 2005 Gibson SG Standard, 2006 Gibson LP Classic Gold top, 2004 Epiphone Elitist LP Custom, 1996 Gibson Les Paul Standard. 2001 Epiphone Sheraton II, 2007 Epiphone G400.
Fender Strats: 1996 Fender 68 Reissue CIJ, 2008 Squier CV 50s, 2009 Squier CV 50s Tele Butterescotch Blonde
Amps: Blues Junior Special edition Jensen in Brown Tolex with Wheat front, 65 Deluxe Reverb reissue,1970 Sonax reverb by Traynor, Avatar Custom 2/12 Cabinet with Eminence Legend V1216 speakers,
2008 DSL100 Marshall Amp , Fender Super Champ XD,Fender Vibro Champ XD
Effects and Pedals: Fulltone Fulldrive II, Fulltone OCD, Fulltone Mini Deja Vibe, Fulltone Fat Boost, Dunlop Crybaby Wah, Boss DS1, Boss DD20 Giga Delay, Boss TU2 tuner, Boss BD2, Ibanez TS9 Tube screamer, Zoom 505. Radial tonebone hot british.
After spending hours on Friday cleaning the 'Kat, including a great deal of time spend polishing the frets, I finally got to plug it in to my "big" amps up in the music room yesterday afternoon. My initial impression is that it suits the Vox Night Train well, and the Marshall...not so much.
I happened to have way more sets of 9s than 10s, so I strung it with the set of Ernie Ball Super Slinkies that came with it. I've been using 10s on my Lesters, and now 9s just feel wimpy. I think it's time to stock up on 10s and restring this Kat. I don't really like the way that these XL strings feel on the beast, and I'm pretty sure it'll sound better with 10s, too.
The New York mini-humbuckers sound good, but they're not for Metalheads. Trying to get a metal sound out of this guitar is probably an exercise in futility, and I don't know why I even bothered except for the sake of curiosity. It sounds great clean, and even very good all the way up to a heavy crunch, but add too much drive and it kind of craps out, sounding like a $50 department store guitar. For blues, classic rock and good old rock n roll, it's excellent. Probably decent for country too, but I couldn't tell you for sure. I imagine that it would also be a good surf guitar. It definitely has that semi-hollow boom to it, lots of bottom end. The minis also have that "jangle" factor going. As long as it's not overdriven too hard, it's extremely articulate. The neck pickup has a really nice mellow tone, but also enough beef to get the job done for heavier stuff. If I knew how to play jazz, I'm sure it would be great for that. The bridge pickup is brighter and has a bit more growl to it. Both pickups together make a really nice balance, and having individual volumes and a master volume means you can totally tweak the tone until you find what you're looking for. The tone knob doesn't do much, other than when it's either full on or full off, which is pretty typical. Speaking of knobs, those dice knobs look cool, but they're far from ergonomic. That probably goes without saying. Do they bother me enough to replace them with standard knobs? That remains to be seen. I'll leave them for now. The die on the switch knob doesn't want to stay there, so that may be a problem.
So far I'm loving this new member of the family. She sounds as good as she looks, and she plays as easily as either of my Lesters, but without all the weight.
From what I've learned from the limited info I've been able to find when researching this guitar, I know it's made in Korea and it has a mahogany body with a maple top and maple neck. The rosewood fretboard is so dark (even more so after applying lemon oil) that it looks like ebony. I also have heard that there were a few different incarnations of this 'Kat during the brief time it was produced, including models with a genuine Bigsby unit. I don't know much about the pickups, which I'd like to learn more about.
That's it for now, my lunch break is over. I may post more at the end of the week, if I have time before I leave on my vacation.
-Sean
Guitars: Lots.
Amphs: More than last year.
Pedals: Many, although I go straight from guitar to amp more often lately.
Sweet hot rod, Doug! Is that yours?Originally Posted by Tig
-Sean
Guitars: Lots.
Amphs: More than last year.
Pedals: Many, although I go straight from guitar to amp more often lately.
I was at a big pawn shop I used to frequent and I saw a tuck and roll Kustom amp. It looked similar to the one below but the entire top was tuck and roll and the grill cloth had red,orange, and yellow flames. It would match the guitar and the street rod so well. Not sure of the model but it was a tube amp with 1x12. Not sure if the grill was original or a customization. I looked for a pic of one like it on the web but couldn't find one. Add some dice knobs and it would be a perfect match to the KAT.Originally Posted by Tig
LeadedEL84
I wish!Originally Posted by FrankenFretter
Actually, I'm not a fan of most flame jobs, as they are a bit over the top.
I like a subtle ghost style...
However, this one looks cool...
Guitar: Gibson SG Standard Natural Burst, Squier CV 50's Tele, Hell Guitars No. 2, Squier CV 50's Strat, Reverend Club King 290, Taylor 522e 12-Fret mahogany,
Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar Bass Short Scale
Amp: Fender Super Champ X2 Head, Egnater Tweaker 15, Fender Mustang I, Acoustic B20 1x12 bass amp
Pedal: Budda Budwah wah, Wampler Ego Compressor, Electro-Harmonix Soul Food, Voodoo Lab Sparkle Drive, Wampler Velvet Fuzz, Seven Sisters Eve Tremolo, TC Electronics Gravy Tri Chorus & Vibrato, Catalinbread Echorec, TC Electronic Alter Ego 2 Delay, Hardwire Supernatural Ambient Verb, MXR Carbon Copy, Catalinbread RAH, Big Muff Pi with Tone Wicker, BYOC Mouse 2.0 Distortion, BYOC Boost/OD-2
Sfaik, they are made in more than one Korean factory, and some, maybe most, are not Samick. My WildKat was made in the Unsung factory.Originally Posted by ZMAN
Here are the reported Epi factory codes:
Korea
I = Saein
U = Unsung
S = Samick
P or R = PeerlessChina
DW = DeaWon
EA = Gibson/QingDao
EE = Gibson/QingDao
MC = Muse
SJ = SaeJung
Z = Zaozhuang Saehan
BW = ChinaJapan
No letter or F = FujiGen
J or T = TeradaCzech
B = Bohêmia Musico-DeliciaIndonesia
SI = SamickChris
Congrats FF!
Visit Crash Pad at:
http://www.CrashPadBand.com
http://www.facebook.com/CrashPadBand
Gear List/Pics:
http://krashpad.fortunecity.com/brian.html
Read a review:
http://www.ink19.com/issues/july2002.../crashPad.html
Thanks, Brian! It looks like mine is a Samick. Good to know.Originally Posted by Brian Krashpad
-Sean
Guitars: Lots.
Amphs: More than last year.
Pedals: Many, although I go straight from guitar to amp more often lately.