Kramer Baretta build

[Doughboy]

My dream 80s guitar has always been a creme / off white Kramer Baretta.

The Baretta body looks like a weird off set strat. Does Warmoth or anyone else sell such a body & the original banana headstock necks?

 

[Cederick]

They don't, but they have a hockeystick headstock similar to the Kramer. But nothing exactly like.

However, I'm all for this project and wanna see something if you go ahead with it!  :toothy12:

I hope you're into 1 slanted humbucker guitars

 

[Cederick]

Personally I can't get along with that weird Kramer body.

If it was a regular strat body (like Warmoth makes) I would so be drooling over these Kramers when they come up used.

 

[swarfrat]

Guess who currently owns Kramer's name? You guess it.  The Gibson Lawsuit and Sometimes We Make Guitars Too Corp.

The slapshot headstick now has a "Sand off Here" bump as a result

 

[Kostas]

Check W's competitors, you'll find a Pacer body and banana headstock although I agree. The Pacer/Baretta body looks weird to me. The curved body of the Stagemaster was my favorite from Kramer's line.

 

[Doughboy]

They don't, but they have a hockeystick headstock similar to the Kramer. But nothing exactly like.

However, I'm all for this project and wanna see something if you go ahead with it!  :toothy12:

I hope you're into 1 slanted humbucker guitars

Challenged accepted.  :headbang:

I'm going to start an authentic 1984 Kramer Baretta build next week.... in creme / off white with authentic black old school Kramer decal.

I hate slanted pickups, no neck PU or none recessed floyds, but this is going to be authentic, so I'm biting the bullet & going 100% retro.

1984, here I come  :guitarplayer2:

 

[DangerousR6]

Cool project, I love Kramers, I have several. Although my first one I bought in 1984 was just like that creme one only in black. I gave it to my step son years ago. But I still have my Pacer my bass and my doubleneck.

 

[SabrePanzer]

...Just an odd question: Does Warmoth even make bodies with the slanted bridge humbucker rout anymore? I have not seen one in ages. I want a Warmoth Strat body with one (for that '80s shredder vibe), but I don't even know if they do that sort of thing anymore. I mean, they still have that "X-X-AH" rout listed for the rear-rout bodies on their pickup routs page, but I haven't seen any with that rout. Is it just a "by request only" sort of option, or have they stopped doing that?

 

[Strat Avenger]

I don't dig the Kramer body shape either. I also never liked the "hockey stick" headstocks. 

I'd like to see a Strat body with the single humbucker & knob, a Floyd, and the "beak" headstock that EVH had in the early '80s (I think it originated from Tom Anderson).

 

[Cagey]

Does Warmoth even make bodies with the slanted bridge humbucker rout anymore? I have not seen one in ages. I want a Warmoth Strat body with one (for that '80s shredder vibe), but I don't even know if they do that sort of thing anymore. I mean, they still have that "X-X-AH" rout listed for the rear-rout bodies on their pickup routs page, but I haven't seen any with that rout. Is it just a "by request only" sort of option, or have they stopped doing that?

I can't say for sure, but I wouldn't be surprised to learn that they don't do it any more. I don't mean to poke at you, but it's kind of a goofy mod, in that it does nothing for tone,  appearance, convenience... nothing. Some Aqua-Net long-hairs with more Spandex than brains may have used them in addition to some really pointy guitars for aesthetic appeal, but nobody knows why. Probably money. Delicious stuff, that  :icon_biggrin: 

But, you could call them and ask. Easy as scrambled eggs. The number is 253-845-0403. Take you 1.2 minutes to find out, if that. If they won't do it, there are lotsa guys out there (myself included) with templates for routing out pickup cavities. We can put those little rascals anywhere you want them.

 

[Doughboy]

I'm sure Warmoth could easily do a slanted bridge humbucker. It is a goofy looking mod & the only reason it was done was Eddie wanted to pole pieces to go directly under the strings & slanting it made it possible.

You can do that now with floyd spaced humbuckers. However, slanting does change the tone a bit due to the bass pole pieces being further away from the bridge.

I personally would slant it the other way as I like that tonal quality better, but if we're going for true blue vintage Baretta look, we'd have to consider all the 80s mods.

I may just get a straight pickup in the bridge on a Baretta body, but then that would make it a Pacer.  :dontknow:

 

[Strat Avenger]

Eddie wanted to pole pieces to go directly under the strings & slanting it made it possible.

And his pickups were Gibson-spaced, which is why it was necessary. Humbuckers today are available with Gibson or Fender/Floyd spacing, so there's no longer any reason to angle the pickup.

 

[swarfrat]

That doesn't make sense. F-spaced pickups are 51mm, Gibson spaced pickups are 48mm. Angling a standard humbucker reduces the spacing even further (not to mention the other coil doesn't line up).

 

[pabloman]

Just look at the picture. One coil has its outer pole piecelined up with the 6th string while the out her coils outer pole piece lines up with the 1st string. Think of the pickup as a whole and not the individual coils.