# The "UNOFFICIAL" Kramer Guitar Thread



## InstrumentalJams (Nov 15, 2007)

Eddie Van Halen is my favorite guitarist. When it was time to get my first "real" guitar, I of course got a Kramer (a white Focus 3000D). Over the years, I've acquired two more - a Baretta and a Ferrington. 

Of course, we all know the history. Eddie Van Halen went with an Ernie Ball endorsement. Kramer went out of business. The remains of Kramer were bought by Gibson and the brand has been clawing its way back. Gary Kramer has started a new guitar company, Gary Kramer Guitars, which compete's with his old, Gibson-owned company. Will the drama never cease.

So, who here owns a Kramer? What model do you have? If it's one of the pre-Gibsons, do you still play it often? Does anyone own one of the new Gibson/Kramers?

Peace.


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## ne1roc (Mar 4, 2006)

Guilty. 
Mine is a white 1987 Baretta USA New Jersey original!
It has the pointy soloist headstock. This is a well made guitar and stays in tune for ever. Its great for hard rock and of course VH tunes but not versatile enough for me to gig with due to the single bridge pickup. Its a keeper and will never let go of it! I play it all the time.


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## Greg Ellis (Oct 1, 2007)

Kramer Focus 2000, bought new at Steve's in Toronto around '85 or so?

It had a truly original Floyd Rose (no fine tuners) when I bought it and was a real pain to keep in tune. I replaced the bridge just recently; much better now. I still play it sometimes.


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## Hamm Guitars (Jan 12, 2007)

I had a black Baretta back in the late '80's. It had the older style headstock than ne1roc's, and the body had more of a roundover to it. It also had a Dimarzio X2N in it.

It was pretty cool, and at the time it was the guitar that everyone seemed to want. I think I sold it for $400 before I left the east coast (88).

Anyone have one with an aluminium tuning fork neck?


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## zontar (Oct 25, 2007)

Hamm Guitars said:


> Anyone have one with an aluminium tuning fork neck?


I don't have a Kramer--but when I think of Kramer--I think of those aluminum necks. They were kind of cool--literally. I remember trying one at a music store many years ago. The aluminum seemed to be several degress colder than anything around it--it was an unusual feel to the guitar for that reason, and the necks felt heavy. Still they were different, and cool. If I'd had the money at the time I tried it out, I may have bought it though. I did like it.


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## al3d (Oct 3, 2007)

OH...my first real expensive guitar i could say was the 1985 Barreta, still have some peices of it..LOL..body repainted SO many times, it's in bad shape, but i'm having her rebuilt this winter. 

What was nice is that all kramer peices were built in quebec actually, so were the jackson stuff as well, so we had access to jackson and kramer guitars for REALY cheap in the early 80's..

Anyone bought the new barreta reissue ones?


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## guitarzan (Feb 22, 2006)

my first Kramer was a Focus 1000 with the real floyd of course.
i presently own a 87 Kramer american pacer custom 2. it needs work, the former owner let it go abit.
i need a JB for the bridge and i have 2 strat single coils to drop in the neck and middle. i wll probably eliminate the three way coil tap mini switch and just wire it up for normal strat like setup on the 5 way. it is a "claw" neck and plays pretty nicely.


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## guitarzan (Feb 22, 2006)

al3d said:


> OH...my first real expensive guitar i could say was the 1985 Barreta, still have some peices of it..LOL..body repainted SO many times, it's in bad shape, but i'm having her rebuilt this winter.
> 
> What was nice is that all kramer peices were built in quebec actually, so were the jackson stuff as well, so we had access to jackson and kramer guitars for REALY cheap in the early 80's..
> 
> Anyone bought the new barreta reissue ones?


Lasido (Godin) did do part supply for Kramer but ESP in Japan also made necks and bodies. i suspect my "american" Kramer has an ESP made neck and body which was normal. they were assembled in the US However.


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## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

ne1roc said:


> Guilty.
> Mine is a white 1987 Baretta USA New Jersey original!
> It has the pointy soloist headstock. This is a well made guitar and stays in tune for ever. Its great for hard rock and of course VH tunes but not versatile enough for me to gig with due to the single bridge pickup. Its a keeper and will never let go of it! I play it all the time.



I dig this one here. If it had a single coil in the neck position it would be very similar to my MBernard


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## Steeler (Oct 31, 2007)

I had a Kramer Ferrington (Strat Shape), with a big sorta-oval sound hole and pizo pickup. Bought it new in 1995 for $400. 

I thought it looked cool, at the time.
Bright Red with a White Binding. I didn't really like it. Sold it within a year to a chick singer who needed an amplified acoustic guitar.


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## Accept2 (Jan 1, 2006)

Ive owned a couple of Kramers but they were both late 80s import disasters. A Ferrington which was real cool, but the top ended up looking like a hillside, and a Focus which seemed to be made from scrap wood. I've played some of the good ones that were made in Japan, like the early Focus and the "American" Series, so they did make some great guitars before they self destructed, and some were even made in Canada.............


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## al3d (Oct 3, 2007)

guitarzan said:


> Lasido (Godin) did do part supply for Kramer but ESP in Japan also made necks and bodies. i suspect my "american" Kramer has an ESP made neck and body which was normal. they were assembled in the US However.



Actually the company was named Guitabec in La Patrie Qc. Just around where godin is now i think. all US Series were made there, Barreta, Carrera and the other one i can't recall the model. body, neck and paint all done there, then they would put all the electric in a plastic bag as a kit, and send it to the US and they would be assemble. I bought 3 of those kit actually for less then 400$ at the time when a Barreta was selling for 1495$ at steve..


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## Robboman (Oct 14, 2006)

*My first guitar - Kramer*

The Kramer on the right was my very FIRST electric guitar. I still have it but it's been without pickups for, oh... 10 years:banana:. 

I've been meaning to haul it out and put some pickups in, it was a great player with big frets and a nice neck. I recall it had some tuning stability issues.. it has a Floyd Rose bridge but not the double-locking Floyd II kind, there are no locks at the bridge end. I bought it used in 1987 or 88, so I'm not sure what year it was made or exactly what model. It has been heavily basterdized as you can see. It was originally black and had the same single tilted bridge pickup as ne1roc's. I installed the neck pickup myself, using wood chisels to rout out the body cavity and a long drill bit to drill a wiring hole between the two pickup cavities. My then-girlfriend did the custom paint then I wet-sanded and did a few clear coats. Then I installed EMGs that have long since been yanked out and sold with a different guitar.


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## Kenmac (Jan 24, 2007)

I also had a Kramer Ferrington acoustic but mine was the Tele shape and it was also bright red with white binding. I eventually traded it in 1994 for the Simon & Patrick acoustic I stilll have. 



Steeler said:


> I had a Kramer Ferrington (Strat Shape), with a big sorta-oval sound hole and pizo pickup. Bought it new in 1995 for $400.
> 
> I thought it looked cool, at the time.
> Bright Red with a White Binding. I didn't really like it. Sold it within a year to a chick singer who needed an amplified acoustic guitar.


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## Rico-Rickster (3 d ago)

InstrumentalJams said:


> Eddie Van Halen is my favorite guitarist. When it was time to get my first "real" guitar, I of course got a Kramer (a white Focus 3000D). Over the years, I've acquired two more - a Baretta and a Ferrington.
> 
> Of course, we all know the history. Eddie Van Halen went with an Ernie Ball endorsement. Kramer went out of business. The remains of Kramer were bought by Gibson and the brand has been clawing its way back. Gary Kramer has started a new guitar company, Gary Kramer Guitars, which compete's with his old, Gibson-owned company. Will the drama never cease.
> 
> ...


took me 33 years but right after Ed passed my wife decided i had waited enough and got me a K 1984 , that i upgraded 5150 , pickup made by Pariah to 5150 specs, alnico 2 , and all the rest , color numbers, with the help of crazy VH fans in Can and USA but i am finally happy and it sounds killer .


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## BlueRocker (Jan 5, 2020)

I've been waiting 5535 days for someone to respond...


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