Fender buys Kaman

[David McCarroll]

Originally Posted by Starbreaker

I'm sorry, but anyone who thinks that a juggernaut like Fender is going to just "let things be" is in for an eventual rude awakening! Kaman may be huge, but Hamer USA is not an overwhelmingly profitable part of the puzzle and you don't maintain being the #1 guitar manufacturer in the U.S. by not influencing day to day operations of the companies you assimilate into the fold. If modern history tells anything, then the abolishment of any Gibson shapes (V, explorer, firebird, etc.) via Jackson's custom shop should indicate the fate of Hamer who weighs heavy on "unoriginal" design.

I don't think the Fender Custom Shop would be markedly different to Hamer in terms of size or approach to making instruments - FMIC want the kudos as well as the products I believe - sure their ownership of Hamer may cause a bit of grief to Gibson, but there was every chance that the same thing could happen to an independant Hamer at any moment at all.

As an almost completely unrelated aside - I saw a Squier copy of a Valley Arts Brent Mason Tele - anyone else see the silliness in a subsidiary of Fender making a copy of a subsidiary of Gibson's copy of a Fender guitar?

[Edwood]

Originally Posted by David McCarroll

...a Squier copy of a Valley Arts Brent Mason Tele - anyone else see the silliness in a subsidiary of Fender making a copy of a subsidiary of Gibson's copy of a Fender guitar?

Whoa. That is dizzying.

I'm a big Valley Arts fan. ['91 Standard Pro; pre-Samick; pre-Gibson]

Do ya have a link to the Brent Mason copy? [I'll google it now, as well.]

[jim777]

I wouldn't mind Fender forcing the Hamer Custom Shop to start making Californians again. It's ridiculous you can't order a Californian from their Custom Shop.

[JackButlerGOT]

For now.. at least acoording to some of the Hamer folk on the actual shop floor.. and its a small shop at that.. they maybe complete 5-7 guitars a week.. with everything being truly handbuilt.. that this past week with the Fender guys coming in and they are reassured that ..for now.. things will stay the same.. Hamer is such a small part of the KMC puzzle and its mostly a boutique style brand.. it will remained untouched for now.
As far as the Gibby styled "Standard" (variant of an Explorer style) and The Vector (a 50s Flying V style).. Hamer has had an agreement with Gibson since the 70s to be able to make these.. and this too will remain the same.. things may be added to Hamers import line..but the USA's will, at least for the coming year stay the same.
The whole coporate aquisition thing became final this past week. I don't hink you'll see an Californian's anytime soon.. at least not USA's.. and they're not really a custom shop.. everything is built, handbuilt to order withing certain parameters.. they won't build anything, but they are open to putting new and different twist on things that they currently build.

[Starbreaker]

I'll bet dollars to donuts that the Standard and Vector models won't be around much longer. Agreements, licensing payouts, lack of threat or anything else you want to call it, were thrown out the window as soon as Fender stepped in.

As far as Hamer USA being 100% handmade, I would think like most production guitars, CNC machines do the majority of work...

[Scali]

Originally Posted by JackButlerGOT

FMIC has said they don't look to "Fender-ize" any of these companies.. they want them to continue as before.

Thank god... For a moment there I had visions of Explorers with bolt-on necks, single-coil pickups and Strat-trems!

I must say, I pretty much forgot all about Hamer. I haven't seen any of their guitars in shops here in the Netherlands in years. I guess Hamer was a much bigger name in the 80s anyway.
Ovations are plentiful here though.

[JackButlerGOT]

At the actual USA shop in CT.. only thing that is CNC is the rough cut of the blank.. everything else is hand work.. been there.. seen it over and over again for years while I was with them. 11 years to be exact. The agreement with Gibson goes so far back into the early 70s.. there's no licensing and no payouts. When they started in the basement of Northern Prairie Music in Illinois, they were the repair center for endorsee instruments for Gibson.. hence the influence on design. A lot of the shredder and bolt-on neck stuff was due to Paul Hamer's influence.. when he left the company and Jol and Frank stayed.. so went his influence.. Jol and Frank wanted to do more boutique style, Gibby scale instruments and introduce a jazz box (the Improv).. as per a meeting just Friday, things will stay unchanged for at least 2008.. then I'm sure you'll see plenty of changes and a larger scope of models likely re-introduced through import lines. At that time, I wouldn't at all be surprised to see Jol and Frank break away and start a new company much the same way Benedetto did after he went through the Fender aquisition process.
Hamers appeal now is targeted more towards boutique/modern vintage buyers.. stores like Willcuts, Dave's, etc. moving a lot of uber high end stuff.. but its more towards the cork sniffer (read mega moeny crowd) than a lot of working players budgets.. 3k and up for normal "production" instruments and 7-10K for anything else. I know Bob Willcuts moves A LOT of that stuff along with a lot of Hubers and the like.