Damascus | guitars

1984 Charvel San Dimas

"Damascus"

#3239

Made in 1984 in the San Dimas Charvel / Jackson 'factory', Glendora, California. This was originally fitted with a Charvel brass 'v-trem' ... the slotted plate on the trem cavity gives it away. As far as I'm concerned, v-trems on guitars with pointy headstocks are a daft idea ... the headstock splaying the strings across the nut can cause all manner of tuning issues. As a result (and also as a result of the unfortunate reality that v-trems are pretty poor under heavy use) lots of similar guitars were modified by fitting a high performance trem. The lucky ones were upgraded to a Floyd. The less lucky ones ... got a Kahler. Like the one fitted here.

Technically, these are pretty efficient trems. Tuning stability is good (as long as they're maintained), they're capable of pitch bends up and down, and pretty much everything is adjustable, but they FEEL more fluid than a Floyd. Not WORSE, but different. But if you're used to using Floyds, then these feel ... odd. Whatever. Simply, old Kahlered Charvels are worth far less than old Floyded Charvels, so i picked this one up quite cheaply. When i bought it, it had THE most dreadful finish. Matt black, applied with a spray-can, not lacquered, and not buffed. Nasty. And to make things worse, the hardware was re-fitted before the paint cured, making it 'ooze' out from under the pickup rings and neck plate. Eww. SO. I had it refinished in quite a nice orange Bengal, with a light relic treatment. I'm entirely happy with the finish now, so it's staying put.

An old crack at the scarf-joint opened up during shipping from the States, as a result of the seller being a pathological dumbass. I knew it was there, but assumed that it would be packed in more than a gig bag and a few rolled up T-shirts for its journey over the Atlantic. It clearly took a few knocks on the way, as the crack had opened up a lot by the time it arrived here. That was repaired and the wound was re-oiled, making this now play as good as I could have hoped for. It's fitted with what appears to be the original pickup (an old DiMarzio), and the original electrics and brass shielding plate in the control cavity are intact. This now plays really well. The neck is what you'd hope an old charvel (i don't want to call it 'vintage') would be ... smooth, effortless and comfortable.

I'd happily go for another original San Dimas Charvel, but would certainly want a Floyd next time. I would also be pretty insistent that it was shipped in a proper hard-case!