Kramer Focus Classic built and gifted to Eddie Van Halen back in the day when Eddie was endorsed by Kramer and was a regular at the Kramer shop. This Kramer Strat came from EVH Home/5150 Studio... right at the Time David Lee Roth re-joined VanHalen.. and Sammy was history.. At 5150 and the Band was practicing to go out on Tour...I purchased from a long time friend/collector.. professional player, that has played with many famous artist we all know. There was no cell phones or internet back in the day, so photo's and video was not at a pull of your smart phone out ones back pocket to capture history, like it is today. Basically Eddie was talking about how he wished he didn't custom route, paint and tear up a 100% Pre CBS Strat in seeking the "ONE" he later found.. In his Franky. So as Ed said and I repeat.. He gave his Pre CBS ( 61 or 62) Sunburst Fender Strat to Kramer on one of his Trips to the Kramer Factory, and Kramer measured and built a Exact Spec Kramer Focus Classic. Gave it a Neck Plate Ser # 65162. #6 is always a special made Kramer Guitar, or 1 of 1 and built for a Famous Artist. 5162.. was for 5150 ( Ed's studio) but 62 was the year Strat.. That really started EVH and the Van Halen Sound. I am Ed Matthews owner of EddieVegas.com Vintage Fender Strat Dealer. I am not a Kramer expert. I have talk to a person that was a sales rep with Kramer at the time Eddie was always there etc. He said this sounds every bit like a Kramer thing. But again, many years past.. there was no internet etc. No computers keeping track of all etc. This is not like a reg 1980's Kramer.. It's high end built.. Next to a real 1962 Strat.. SAME specs. Ed had so many guitar's, many guitar's were giving to him back in the days in hopes he find "His One" and sign with that Guitar company. It's like a Strat.. so Eddie would never really played it in concert.. Ya it's a neat Guitar and when I list it for sale I like to give as much facts as possible to pass on the the next owner/collector. 1 Final. It came in a the Kramer Hard Case that housed The Hot For Teacher Guitar Eddie used in the Video... You see that guitar for sale right now online, and it comes in just a Gig Bag.. So this case adds more to the history. If any help can be thrown this way I be very grateful.. Thanks for reading.. and Lord Bless
Email: Ed@eddievegas.com
Cell: 218 879-3796
Be.ow is just info that you can find on the web..etc....
Like Fender, Kramer had an outstanding budget MIJ series. That Focus series covered all of the major Kramer models at the time, including the Pacer and Baretta, and were startlingly good for their price point.
The necks and bodies were made at the same ESP factory where the lion's share of the parts for the American Series were produced. The main difference is that the American Series guitars were shipped back to the States for assembly.
Japanese production/assembly wasn’t exactly behind the US at the time, and when you factor in that these guitars also had early Seymour Duncan pickups and original Floyd Rose tremolos, there is a lot of bang for your buck with Focuses.
1985 Kramer Classic
Another underrated set of models to come out were the Classic series. This series hosted Kramer’s USA-assembled, traditional take on the Strat and Tele. These guitars tend to age gorgeously and combined classic Fender stylings with Kramer’s construction innovations.
For example, the Classic’s Strat was packed with three vintage-style Seymour Duncan single-coil pickups and had a fourth pickup hidden under the pickguard for hum-canceling. It also featured a vintage Strat-style flicker tremolo that originally appeared on the Pacer, along with a more Fender-style neck shape.
The USA Classics can be a bit on the pricey side, but there was also a Focus series made of the Classic and they are pretty affordable.
While many of the Kramers from this time are quality instruments, others are not so much. For one, the Korea-based Striker series is often derided and avoided by Kramer lovers. Intended for beginners, Strikers and other overseas models were made out of plywood as opposed to ash, poplar, alder, and maple like their Japanese and USA counterparts.
It can sometimes be hard to tell if a Kramer is made overseas because Kramer (like other companies at that time) intentionally made it unclear for their own marketing purposes. You can read more about this in our “How to Date Your Kramer” article.
The exciting part about Kramer is that they made a lot of interesting guitars that time has almost completely forgotten. The Ripley Stereo guitar an out-of-this-world technical creation, but people rarely talk about it. It was designed for Eddie Van Halen and had six knobs, each panning an individual string.
