A few wild custom guitars Jim created for ZZ TOP's Billy Gibbons.
Jim's "21 Ball" guitars are featured in Billy Gibbons new book "Rock & Roll Gearhead".
They were the first "Hamiltone" Guitars, built around 1983 - 84 .
Jim presenting Stevie Ray Vaughan
with his new "Hamiltone"guitar
commissioned by "ZZ Top's" Billy Gibbons.
Stevie said; "The new one with my name on the fret board, I call Main for main guitar. Its a Hamiltone, built by James Hamilton of Buffalo, NY. It's basically Strat-shaped but a little thicker and the consruction of the neck is pretty much like a (Gibson) Super 400 except it goes all the way through the body. So the vibrato is on the neck, basically - dead center right there. You can pop the low E string, and the whole guitar has this reverb you can hear even without an amp, because of the strings being within the neck.
Its got an ebony fretboard that's the same width as my beat up '59, and then he added binding on the outside of that because I have big hands and I always play barre chord with my thumb wrapped around. What happens a lot of times is my thumb will push the E string accidentally. So the wider neck keeps me from doing that.
The pickups in there now are EMG's with a little computer chip pre-amp in them, so there's a battery in there of course. I like it alot. They say the battery will last six months, but I can hear it going down - you can hear it in the tone, it gets fuzzier, like it straining but when its got a brand new battery in there, it sounds clear as a bell and smooth. It will sing to you."
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Other Reviews: (From Harmony-Central.com)
Product: Hamiltone SRV
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 10/25/2006 at 03:02pm by blues lover
Features : 10
This guitar is an exact reproduction by the original luthier, Jim Hamilton, of the guitar he made at the bequest of ZZ Top for Stevie Ray Vaughn. SRV then used this guitar quite a lot, perhaps the guitar he is most identified with other then his Number One. The guitar I had Jim Hamiltone makes looks exactly like SRV's, and is identical in every way. It is basically a strat style guitar, but with a neck-through body, the most incredible premium wood, a flatter, wider neck with ebony fingerboard, with Stevie's name beautifully inlayed on the fingerboard. The pick-ups Jim recommeded were Kent Armstrong vintage. The body and neck are highly flamed maple. Scale and controls are like on a strat. Jim Hamilton is a master luthier. I have owned hundreds of 50's vintage Fenders and GIbsons and many top of th eline Fender and GIbson cusotm shop guitars, and I think this guitar is the finest made instrument I have ever played. More..
Click here for a review of the "Hamiltone Custom"
NOTE: Jim Hamilton, is the the common law owner of the "Hamiltone" trademark and is NOT affiliated in any way with the "hamiltone.com" web page. Jim created the original "Hamiltone" guitars in 1983 and has been custom making these guitars ever since. He has not authorized anyone else to make these guitars or use his trademark.