NOSGD: Anyone here like Koa?

[xenophobe]

Sweet fiddle. Is the heel really fat or is that an optical illusion from the woodgrain?

It's a set-neck guitar, so it has to be bigger because the body is one solid slab of koa, not bookmatched or pieced together. The heel is a little bit beefier than a Shannon, but it's much more comfortable than a bolt-on.

The rhythm tone is incredibly wicked and the lead tone through the humbucker isn't as sharp as a maple/alder combo and it's more lively and organic than a mahogany/maple/ebony, at least to my ears. I like the sound so much, I may spec a neck-thru Demon in full koa w/ebony board to see if it can come close...

[vampire dark]

now thats a different guitar from the others ....I'm not really into the natural finishes, but as long as you're ok with it, what can I say?One thing for sure, its a special guitar and a neck-through strathead!!!

[Sephiroth]

Sweet. I like those Fender showmasters and wish Fender had made more of them.

[VitaminG]

very nice. I wouldn't change a thing

[xenophobe]

Hey Sep! Thanks! Long time no see!

very nice. I wouldn't change a thing

In person, the gold hardware is very blingy on that. I think it distracts you from the wood. The black hardware will actually accentuate the darkness in the wood. Plus, I put black hardware on everything I own.

[Anders]

Awesome!!! Must feel good to have such a unique piece! Looks beautiful!

Now, take a bottle of Fiebing's dye and ebonize the hell out of it!

[Vass]

There is something incredibly sad about a guitar like that being built with such care and of such material just sitting for 13 years doing nothing. Glad to see it finally ended up with someone who is already talking about it like its his child Congrats on finally getting her off the bench and into the game.

[xenophobe]

Awesome!!! Must feel good to have such a unique piece! Looks beautiful!

Now, take a bottle of Fiebing's dye and ebonize the hell out of it!

Thanks, it does... and I used a black permanent marker... is that bad?

There is something incredibly sad about a guitar like that being built with such care and of such material just sitting for 13 years doing nothing. Glad to see it finally ended up with someone who is already talking about it like its his child Congrats on finally getting her off the bench and into the game.

Most of it's life it was marked "not for sale". After it had a price put on it, it's issues probably kept it from being sold, well along with the fact it was in the Vintage Room... there are so many guitars in there that by the time you're finished looking at them all, you've forgotten most of them. It's like information overload. lol

I can't wait to get it back. There's a minor delamination at all the fret ends that I didn't notice that the luthier pointed out as well as needing a fret level due to the neck settling for those 13 years. I'm fairly certain that it's stabilized and won't have any further issues after it's all corrected.

I bought it knowing that it had the fret buzz and that it would be handled by CS warranty, didn't notice the very minor delamination, but he said they're going to make sure that all the issues are corrected and that I wouldn't even be able to notice that anything has ever been done with it. So I'm good with that. I'm not putting it in a glass case, I'll be gingerly playing it.

[toejam]

Floyd it!

[dvscool]

Amazing...awesomely cool! I sounds like the tone, sounds how the guitar looks....deep n dark....

[Anders]

Thanks, it does... and I used a black permanent marker... is that bad?

Hahaha, black sharpie FTW!!!

On a serious note, good to hear that you're getting all issues addressed!

[ilbianconero]

very beautiful. Congrats

[Dog Boy]

Beautiful! Good call on the black hardware too.

[shreddermon]

Cut some meat on that butcher block. LOL That's a prime cut for sure, congrats.

[xenophobe]

Cut some meat on that butcher block. LOL That's a prime cut for sure, congrats.

I was looking at Suhr's and Andersons... and then I saw this:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/140836916623

Then I realized how much a bargain the Fender was... it was valued at an unadjusted 1999 price. And the neck issue wasn't really bad, but it probably kept it from being sold. NOS means full new warranty, so I had to jump on it. I just love how dirty and twisted this wood is. Every different angle gets a different view and the closer you look the more amazing it gets.

Now I'm thinking about dropping my pursuit of a new Jackson Custom Strathead and revising my old custom 7/8's Dinky Demon idea...