Hamer Guitars Company Information

Hamer Guitars started building custom-made premium guitars in the 1970’s. They offered 12-string basses from 1978 through 2012. Some insiders estimate that between 500 to 1,000 USA-built 12-string basses were sold during this period, plus additionally many hundreds of imported 12’s.

The Hamer catalogs primarily pictured the B12A, B12S and B12L models, with later versions also including the CH-12. Custom 12’s were built in many different additional body styles. Some of the endorsing artists who played Hamer 12-string basses were included in their catalogs and information sheets. The 12-string basses continued to be pictured through the 2009 catalog.

The first 12-string bass to be included in a Hamer catalog appeared in 1978 with the inclusion of a photo of the first Quad bass, but there was no description or information about that bass included. At that time the company was located in Palatine, Illinois. Within a couple of years the company moved to a larger facility in Arlington, Illinois. Hamer was purchased by Kaman Music; this led to inexpensive imported guitars being sold under the Hamer brand name.

After Kaman Music was sold to Fender, the Hamer factory was moved to New Hartford, Connecticut. Hamer Guitars went out of business in late 2012.