1981 Charvel San Dimas “Hot Rod Flame”

1981 Charvel San Dimas Hot Rod Flame
An original 1981 Charvel San Dimas “Hot Rod Flame”.

A remarkable early production Charvel San Dimas Guitar from the San Dimas era, featuring a breathtaking “Hot Rod Flame” finish! This 1981 Charvel San Dimas Model guitar includes two additional switches that have been disconnected, alongside a “kill switch” that remains connected to the circuit, all while being in otherwise outstanding and original condition.

Equipped with a pair of DiMarzio pickups, it produces the intense lead tones one would anticipate from a super strat of this period, and the maple neck offers comfortable, low action, ideal for rapid runs that complement this striking graphic. These guitars are becoming increasingly rare, particularly in custom finishes, making this a perfect addition to any collection.

Named after its origin in San Dimas, California, the San Dimas® Style 1 emerged from a vibrant new wave of incredibly skilled and technically proficient Southern California guitarists in the early ’80s, who were on the lookout for instruments packed with high-performance features. Even now, our Charvel San Dimas Style 1 guitars are at the forefront of modern technology and innovation, and they continue to be the preferred choice for some of the best players around the globe.

Grab attention and blow minds with this boldly awesome modern day Super Stock Charvel San Dimas Style 1 – a high-energy throwback that seems like it’s been making waves since neon was all the rage. The worn black nitrocellulose finish, decked out with a striking yellow diamond design, hints at a history of endless late-night sessions and packed club shows that never really took place (but definitely could have).

John E. Davis is a Texas Rock Guitarist offering FREE guitar lessons videos and covers guitar equipment, concert, destination and music news. Visit the website for information on Guitar Lessons, Guitar Repair and Live Music Performance videos.

The Charvel Pro Stock DS1

The Charvel Pro Stock DS1

Make a statement. The Charvel Pro Stock DS1 delivers more new tonal and stylistic options to the new world of the modern guitar player.  The Pro Stock DS1 has a single-cutaway mahogany body with a carved top and neck-through-body design.

The Charvel Pro Stock DS1 Features include a mahogany neck with contoured heel, cool color-contrast binding (Gold Metallic features cream binding) and pickup bobbins, compound-radius rosewood fingerboard (12″-16″) with 24 jumbo frets and alumiloid keystone inlays, Seymour Duncan® ’59™ humbucking neck and JB™ bridge pickups with 3-way toggle switching, Charvel bridge specially designed for compound-radius fingerboards, satin chrome hardware, three-on-a-side locking Charvel tuners, and metallic and sunburst finishes with matching headstocks. Available in Black, Blue, Red Metallic, Gold Metallic and Cherry Sunburst (dual Seymour Duncan® ’59™ pickups on Cherry Sunburst model only).

I picked a Charvel Pro Stock DS1 up at a local guitar shop, guess it’s a limited production run. I’m glad because It’s a fantastic guitar. The Charvel Pro Stock DS1 guitar is a very nice instrument and really resonates with tone. The neck feels fantastic and is really smooth owed to its unfinished nature. Also It is very stable, It came stock with nine gauge strings which is unacceptable for my tastes, so i bumped to tens, then eventually put on eleven guage EB power Slinkys and just hoped i did not need to take it in for a setup in a week. Have had no problems maybe slightly raised the action but not enough for me to take it in or risk self tightening the truss rod, and i mean slightly. I have had a maple Strat neck that did alright moving to elevens but there was more movement in that guitar’s neck than in the Charvel. The pickups are fantastic, I have never had Seymour Duncans and they are great. If you make a mistake they let you know… and reward you for good playing. Very accurate.

John E. Davis is a Texas Rock Guitarist offering FREE guitar lessons videos. Visit TexasRockGuitarist.com for information on Guitar Lessons, Guitar Repair and Live Music Performance.