How do newer Charvel compare?

A friend had a Model 6 way back in yesteryear and it was awesome, so I've always thought high of Charvels. But never pulled the trigger on one until recently when I got the Satchel as soon as it was available. I had been eyeing the Suhr tiger stripped shredders, wanted something a little wild, a little 80's neon/wild paint something. I am extremely happy with the Satchel, couldn't imagine getting more guitar for $1300.

Plays and feels great, love the fluence pickups, still fucking hate floyds, but not much choice on that front.
 
Racerxrated":1rsksell said:
EXPcustom":1rsksell said:
All I am going to say is plastic shit in the necks.

That is if you are comparing them to the 80's ones but if you want one like a 2000's they are exactly the same.
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A little steel wool and it's gone. Every newer one I've owned, if it wasn't as bare wood feeling as my 80s USA I just took steel wool to the neck, and it's exactly like the vintage Charvel.
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My necks get smooth from the oils in my hand. I can steel wool it and after a few weeks, it’s smooth and shiny. My hands don’t sweat much though so my necks don’t really get dirty.
 
psychodave":gacvmiib said:
Racerxrated":gacvmiib said:
EXPcustom":gacvmiib said:
All I am going to say is plastic shit in the necks.

That is if you are comparing them to the 80's ones but if you want one like a 2000's they are exactly the same.
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A little steel wool and it's gone. Every newer one I've owned, if it wasn't as bare wood feeling as my 80s USA I just took steel wool to the neck, and it's exactly like the vintage Charvel.
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My necks get smooth from the oils in my hand. I can steel wool it and after a few weeks, it’s smooth and shiny. My hands don’t sweat much though so my necks don’t really get dirty.
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:thumbsup:
I haven't bought a new one, so maybe they do come with some type of treatment to the necks that wears off over time? All I know is every single one I have owned, about 20 post Fender USAs so far have had the EXACT same neck feel as the 2 80s USA Charvels I've owned. No difference whatsoever.
 
I haven’t run into a recent Charvel that hasn’t been at the very least GOOD as far as the neck goes, with the MIJ being my favorite since the “renaissance”, and that is including about a half dozen USA pro-mods, and at least 6 USA Demartini models .

Most recently, I picked up a pair of DK24’s and I can’t find any noticeable flaws/gripes. They feel great - maybe a tad less “raw” than the USAs I had, but could easily be remedied with a ScothBrite pad or some steel wool. Very happy with what they have been putting out lately.
 
My Charvel USA Demartini "Frenchie" plays and sounds amazing. I didn't care too much for the ones that came out around 2006 or so. They didn't have that right feel IMO. Other than that, love the Charvels!
 
Random reply.

I have never in my life waited 4 months for a guitar. This is going to be painful.

TBH I wish every builder used MF or Sweetwater. I would totally buy a Gutierrez or Balaguer if I could finance with my gear card. Having to wait 4 months makes me think I should be waiting for a custom build but whatever I have a feeling this Charvel will be awesome.
 
There was a newer used Mexican Charvel in a local GC for 500 bucks. It was white and I was surprised that it played great and had nothing wrong with it that I could find and sounded good not plugged in. I didn't buy it but I noticed it was gone in a few days. For 500 I don't think you can go wrong, I think you need to play them first.
 
danyeo":2dbfv1lt said:
There was a newer used Mexican Charvel in a local GC for 500 bucks. It was white and I was surprised that it played great and had nothing wrong with it that I could find and sounded good not plugged in. I didn't buy it but I noticed it was gone in a few days. For 500 I don't think you can go wrong, I think you need to play them first.
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I'm guessing that after the first few years in Mexico they worked all the bugs out and the workers are much better in their craft. I've heard nothing but good things from guys who have bought recent MiM Charvels.
When I played one 5 years ago shortly after production switched south it was garbage. Couldn't believe it said Charvel.
Glad to hear they are good again.
 
EXPcustom":2lkb2m3y said:
Done with Jackson/Charvel, have you guys seen that crap Ebony coming out of the custom shop recently?
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No I have not personally however, I have noticed the LTD Deluxe or lower end models having pretty bad Ebony. I can't speak on others as they have been older guitars. I will see in October when the Charvel I ordered arrives.

Ebony (the good kind) has actually gotten scarce. it is becoming harder to find and more expensive so getting lesser quality fretboards is a natural evolution unfortunately.

I would still however expect nothing but the best on a Custom Shop guitar regardless.
 
maddnotez":4q8ou6r9 said:
EXPcustom":4q8ou6r9 said:
Done with Jackson/Charvel, have you guys seen that crap Ebony coming out of the custom shop recently?
Click to expand...

No I have not personally however, I have noticed the LTD Deluxe or lower end models having pretty bad Ebony. I can't speak on others as they have been older guitars. I will see in October when the Charvel I ordered arrives.

Ebony (the good kind) has actually gotten scarce. it is becoming harder to find and more expensive so getting lesser quality fretboards is a natural evolution unfortunately.

I would still however expect nothing but the best on a Custom Shop guitar regardless.
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Prepare for disappointment. I have had four Charvel and Jackson custom shop orders since 2003 and each one had major problems, wrong specs that required rebuilds almost on each one. The Charvel I got had such bad backbow out of the box that the strings were literally resting on the frets when the guitar arrived. Took 18 months for it to be fixed. Shame because it had a beautiful Ebony board.
 
EXPcustom":3exjvued said:
maddnotez":3exjvued said:
EXPcustom":3exjvued said:
Done with Jackson/Charvel, have you guys seen that crap Ebony coming out of the custom shop recently?
Click to expand...

No I have not personally however, I have noticed the LTD Deluxe or lower end models having pretty bad Ebony. I can't speak on others as they have been older guitars. I will see in October when the Charvel I ordered arrives.

Ebony (the good kind) has actually gotten scarce. it is becoming harder to find and more expensive so getting lesser quality fretboards is a natural evolution unfortunately.

I would still however expect nothing but the best on a Custom Shop guitar regardless.
Click to expand...

Prepare for disappointment. I have had four Charvel and Jackson custom shop orders since 2003 and each one had major problems, wrong specs that required rebuilds almost on each one. The Charvel I got had such bad backbow out of the box that the strings were literally resting on the frets when the guitar arrived. Took 18 months for it to be fixed. Shame because it had a beautiful Ebony board.
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You must be the unlucky 8 ball Charvel guy then. I've had 3 post 2004 Custom stratheads, 3 05/06 pointy reissues and they were all top shelf players, resonant as hell. Like LP resonant. No flaws whatsoever. Compared to the 2 original 84-85 pointys I've also owned and they were all virtually identical in fit/finish/playability.
I guess if I had your experience I wouldn't be a fan either.
 
EXPcustom":vg448moj said:
maddnotez":vg448moj said:
EXPcustom":vg448moj said:
Done with Jackson/Charvel, have you guys seen that crap Ebony coming out of the custom shop recently?
Click to expand...

No I have not personally however, I have noticed the LTD Deluxe or lower end models having pretty bad Ebony. I can't speak on others as they have been older guitars. I will see in October when the Charvel I ordered arrives.

Ebony (the good kind) has actually gotten scarce. it is becoming harder to find and more expensive so getting lesser quality fretboards is a natural evolution unfortunately.

I would still however expect nothing but the best on a Custom Shop guitar regardless.
Click to expand...

Prepare for disappointment. I have had four Charvel and Jackson custom shop orders since 2003 and each one had major problems, wrong specs that required rebuilds almost on each one. The Charvel I got had such bad backbow out of the box that the strings were literally resting on the frets when the guitar arrived. Took 18 months for it to be fixed. Shame because it had a beautiful Ebony board.
Click to expand...

I must have had a dozen custom shop Charvels made since 2005 and all were great. A few were really stand outs. My current white one that is a Music Zoo nitro aged has been the best of the bunch.
 
Well worst case scenario I return the guitar to Sweetwater if it is a Lemon. I truly hope that does not happen, I am excited to get this and the wait is going to be unbearable.

But the guitar I ordered isn't really a Custom Shop, it is one of those Super Stock Limited Runs. I am not expecting top notch Custom Shop quality but I do hope for that!!!!
 
Isn’t the SS Limited a MIM guitar?

Anyway, back on topic since this thread wasn’t really about the Charvel CS, I picked up a couple more over the weekend - both hardtails - one was the Okuome Tele, and the other the White w/gold San Dimas. Typically I HATE hardtails that aren’t T-O-M bridges, but am very happy with the feel and tuning stability of these. Necks on both are great as expected - no sharp fret edges. Either I’m really lucky and got 4 good ones in a row, or they have this down now.
 
Chris O":7ixoxk0n said:
Isn’t the SS Limited a MIM guitar?

Anyway, back on topic since this thread wasn’t really about the Charvel CS, I picked up a couple more over the weekend - both hardtails - one was the Okuome Tele, and the other the White w/gold San Dimas. Typically I HATE hardtails that aren’t T-O-M bridges, but am very happy with the feel and tuning stability of these. Necks on both are great as expected - no sharp fret edges. Either I’m really lucky and got 4 good ones in a row, or they have this down now.
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Yes MIM. Not sure how Custom Shop came into this but if this SS is even close to the quality of the Reissue I got from Racerxrated I will be happy. Not expecting that high of quality but something close would be nice.
 
maddnotez":3mi9tf89 said:
Chris O":3mi9tf89 said:
Isn’t the SS Limited a MIM guitar?

Anyway, back on topic since this thread wasn’t really about the Charvel CS, I picked up a couple more over the weekend - both hardtails - one was the Okuome Tele, and the other the White w/gold San Dimas. Typically I HATE hardtails that aren’t T-O-M bridges, but am very happy with the feel and tuning stability of these. Necks on both are great as expected - no sharp fret edges. Either I’m really lucky and got 4 good ones in a row, or they have this down now.
Click to expand...
Yes MIM. Not sure how Custom Shop came into this but if this SS is even close to the quality of the Reissue I got from Racerxrated I will be happy. Not expecting that high of quality but something close would be nice.
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Your guitar is made in the custom shop, by the some of the same guys that built the original pre pros and early-mid 80s pointys. So anyone saying that the pointys from 04-06 are production models are wrong. They did make 'runs' of certain colors/pup combos but they were built entirely by the custom shop guys, and not on the production line where my 09 SoCal was built. Just a heads up as there seems to be some confusion on the pointy reissues from 04-06.

On another note, I'm thinking about buying a pre pro neck and throwing it on a MiM body.....just to see what all the fuss is with the pre pro necks....
 
Racerxrated":1impjn69 said:
Your guitar is made in the custom shop, by the some of the same guys that built the original pre pros and early-mid 80s pointys. So anyone saying that the pointys from 04-06 are production models are wrong.
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I was referring to his newer "88 Reissue" he was talking about, not the pointy one in his avatar. Pretty sure I got the Charvel thing nailed, since I've owned literally a hundred or more since the late 80's. ;)

The 88 Reissue looks really cool, and I was thinking pretty hard about one as well, but I'd like to see one in person first. They look more "brown" in some pics than I might want, and I can only chuckle but to notice that in all the stock pics, the strings are wound under the pegs instead of over. Ooopsss... Attention to detail, Charvel...
 
Chris O":27ktuuqr said:
Racerxrated":27ktuuqr said:
Your guitar is made in the custom shop, by the some of the same guys that built the original pre pros and early-mid 80s pointys. So anyone saying that the pointys from 04-06 are production models are wrong.
Click to expand...

I was referring to his newer "88 Reissue" he was talking about, not the pointy one in his avatar. Pretty sure I got the Charvel thing nailed, since I've owned literally a hundred or more since the late 80's. ;)

The 88 Reissue looks really cool, and I was thinking pretty hard about one as well, but I'd like to see one in person first. They look more "brown" in some pics than I might want, and I can only chuckle but to notice that in all the stock pics, the strings are wound under the pegs instead of over. Ooopsss... Attention to detail, Charvel...
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Sorry I wasn't really responding to you personally, just making the response based on the Custom Shop question, as to when it was brought up. At some point someone said the pointy reissues were production guitars and they absolutely were not. All anyone has to do is pose the question on the net, and a JCF forum topic will usually answer that for anyone interested in the Charvel/Jackson history.
My favorite guitars, and yes I've owned/played Hamer USA, TA, Suhr, ESP, Kramer etc etc.
:rock:
 
Chris O":3952t6jw said:
Racerxrated":3952t6jw said:
Your guitar is made in the custom shop, by the some of the same guys that built the original pre pros and early-mid 80s pointys. So anyone saying that the pointys from 04-06 are production models are wrong.
Click to expand...

I was referring to his newer "88 Reissue" he was talking about, not the pointy one in his avatar. Pretty sure I got the Charvel thing nailed, since I've owned literally a hundred or more since the late 80's. ;)

The 88 Reissue looks really cool, and I was thinking pretty hard about one as well, but I'd like to see one in person first. They look more "brown" in some pics than I might want, and I can only chuckle but to notice that in all the stock pics, the strings are wound under the pegs instead of over. Ooopsss... Attention to detail, Charvel...
Click to expand...

Agreed on the color. The stock photos look awesome to me. The only real pics I could find make it seem much more brown and glossy but we will see.
 
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