1990s Abel Axe aluminium-bodied electric and shot full of holes!

guitarz.blogspot.com:

The Abel Axe is an American-made guitar designed by Jeff Abel in the mid 1990s, produced between 1994 and 1996. The guitar features a small vaguely Strat-like body which has been made from a single piece of T6 aluminium billet, but what makes it really stand out is that the body is peppered full of holes. Whilst these holes lend the guitar a certain aesthetic, they are not there for appearances alone; they also serve to reduce the body mass and take a few pounds off the weight.

This particular Abel Axe currently being auctioned on eBay weighs in at 9.5lbs. Pickups on this example are a pair of humbuckers; a Kent Armstong HRE-1 in the neck position and a Kent Armstrong HSDE-1 at the bridge. Up at the headstock we have Spurzel locking tuners nicely finished in purple to complement the body, while at the other end the bridge is a hardtail unit, although some Abel Axes were fitted with a Kahler tremolo.

The seller says that the sustain goes on forever, and whilst the cynical amongs us would be of the opinion that "Of course he'd say that!", in this case - considering the body material - I can well believe it.

It's said that there were only 200 of these guitars built, so this is a quite a rare piece. The auction on eBay opened with a starting bid of $0.99 although there is a reserve placed on the guitar. I'll be watching with interest to see what the final price will be.

G L Wilson

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