This move is a little odd unless it was mostly a business decision. KAxe6 travels to South America for the last shows in makeup and is then summarily retired in favor of the Jackson Axe. More often than not we see it covered in blood as on the left in Irvine Meadows, CA or in this photo from an unknown date, but it's also seen frequently during the tank finale. KAxe6 doesn't get much stage time during the 10th Anniversary Tour but it seems to have been the preferred choice for Gene's blood-drooling solo spot. This nut is decidedly larger than anything Gene had used before and I assume it was to "fill in" the additional space created by using a nut and a zero fret.Īlthough the #2 Spector was called upon for the actual live performance on Fridays, a choice that probably reflects Gene's comfort level with his trusted Spector more than it does any dissatisfaction with the Kramer, the Axes were used for the rest of the promotional work surrounding The Elder. One feature KAxe5 and KAxe6 share is the massive brass nut as seen here. Sadly the photos I have available to me from the Mexican jaunt leave a lot to desired as far as quality goes but thankfully KAxe6 is used for several other photo and video shoots over the coming months.Īs usual the handcarved cracks on the blade can easily differentiate between the two as in these photos from Rock Pop and the World Without Heroes taping over Halloween weekend 1981. KAxe6 has 20 frets, a long scale, a massive-looking humbucker which is most likely a DiMarzio Model One, and some different marks on the blade. This bass has also replaced the zero fret with a new, very thick, brass nut. The cavity for the second humbucker was carefully filled and there was a new finish applied over the "fix". This bass has 24 frets (count them!) and a distinctive pair of cracks which matches the ones on the bass used for the Pop Rock performance. (This photo has been identified as Sydney by various sources but compared to newspaper clippings from the time it appears that it is rather from one of the shows in Perth.) The photo on the left here shows the details of the blade. (This mod is actually one of the more professional ones that Gene had done to any of his basses as we'll see later.)įirst time it shows up is in the Countdown footage shot in Perth on 1980.11.08 but that footage and the stills from it doesn't show us much other than that it's a short-scale, single humbucker Axe. The bass that Gene uses live during this part of the tour is KAxe5 but now there's only one humbucker. The Axe doesn't actually get to see the stage until the band travels to Australia in November and now, true to form, the modifictations begin. It is a weak and incidental connection but it is the only one I've found. It wasn't revealed to the public until 1981 but prototypes were surely available for the right person to try. The only possible connection I've been able to find is a mention by Paul in an interview: "Then Kramer just made me a guitar I haven't had the chance to use yet, which looks like a stick." (Sounds 1980) Kramer had just one "stick" guitar, the Duke, which happens to be the last of Kramer's aluminum neck guitars. Of course, that doesn't begin to explain why Gene should choose to work with Kramer and decide to try the aluminum neck concept - as far as I can tell Gene himself has never mentioned it and there are actually relatively few facts available about the Kramer Axe. Lest anyone confuse the two aluminum beasts Kramer also opted for a forked (or split) headstock.īy 1980 Kramer had slowly moved from more or less traditional dual-cutaway shapes into more bold designs, the XL and XK series had some angular and "modern" body shapes so the Axe shape was probably not perceived as particularly odd. According to the 1979 Kramer catalog the design idea was to "combine the strength of forged aluminum with the warmth of wood for playing ease and comfort". Kramer is refreshingly upfront about the fact that he just took what Travis had created and tweaked it: instead of a solid aluminum neck he chose a T-profile with inlayed wood sections which also served to combat what Kramer felt was a relatively heavy neck on the Travis Bean. (Kramer soured on the relationship because Travis secured the patent for his aluminum neck under his own name and not registered to the company. The Kramer story begins in the early 70's when Gary Kramer and Travis Bean had a partnership Kramer was basically the financier and handled administrative duties, simply because he saw potential in aluminum neck guitars, while Travis handled the guitar side. Since neither Valdez nor Carr had managed to build the Axe that Gene envisioned Gene took a "next man up" mentality: next in line turned out to be Kramer.
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