Backstory:
I am a huge MetallicA fan, but I have too many
guitars. This one doesn’t get played much, but I have taken the time to set it up properly and it sounds and plays awesome. I purchased this
from a young man who told me that this guitar belonged to his brother; the seller didn’t have any further information about it (he was selling
several pieces of music gear that I assume also belonged to his brother).
When I discovered the Japanese “kanji” writing inside, I sent pictures of it to ESP thinking that I may have found one of the “25”, but ESP replied back and let me know that they couldn’t confirm or deny anything about the markings because many records were lost during the
80’s and 90’s.
In my honest opinion, this guitar is a replica.
The Japanese kanji “Han” Mystery Markings:
Hidden inside under the neck pickup and the rear electronics cavity is handwritten Japanese kanji that says “Han” which is most likely the name of the luthier who built the guitar. Based on my brief research, in traditional Japanese guitar craft, matching handwritten names were used to dynamically mate bodies and necks together during assembly.
Wishful thinking – could this be parts from the ESP shop on 48th street (built by “han”) that were assembled elsewhere? Probably not, but that would
be a cool thing to discover.
The point is that someone put some effort
into building this guitar. I wish I had more history…
The Guitar:
This is a nice example of a James Hetfield “EET FUK” Explorer tribute guitar. I once owned a USA Gibson Explorer; this guitar plays and sounds much better than that one ever did. It weighs 7.2 lbs which is
much lighter than most production Explorers that normally weigh 8.5 to 9.5+ lbs. (my assumption is that the light weight is because it is made of quality tonewood – mahogany). The electronics operate in complete silence while plugged in. It features heavy-gauge, bare copper ground wire (which is something I have never seen on a guitar), smooth-turning pots, a blue-jacketed output wire, and yellow-jacketed pickup wires with well executed solder joints. The pickups are passive (see the wiring
picture) and I fully believe that they are knock-offs, but I may be wrong.
The Case:
This guitar comes with a brand new Epiphone Explorer case (very plush).
Metallica – James Hetfield:
It features the iconic “middle finger” fretboard inlays made famous by MetallicA during the “…And Justice for All” era.
Blemishes:
There are a few small imperfections in the finish (a few small chips, scrapes, etc.), but nothing major. I took pictures from every angle and will send you more if you just ask.
This guitar comes from a climate-controlled, smoke-free home. It is a gig-ready rock machine and
an incredible conversation or display piece.
