Top: Meet the Hawk—a mix of LP Junior-inspired electronics and Strat-style body, neck, and hardware.
Middle: On this guitar, I keep the 4th string out of the string tree, allowing it to resonate like the other wound strings.
Bottom: Check out the 3-way switch—its placement is reminiscent of an ES-335 or SG.
Ever since a neighbor turned me on to SX guitars a few years ago, I always keep my eyes open for them on eBay. This particular one caught my eye because it looked so cool. It’s a SX Hawk MN P90 done up in vintage white with a tinted maple fretboard. When I went to the SX/Rondo site to check out the specs, their current versions of antique white just didn’t look quite as rockin’ as the eBay one. So I emailed the eBay seller and asked why there was a color discrepancy. He replied that his was a limited edition “Vintage Custom Series” that was “way better” than the regular ones. Yeah, right. Whatever.
I decided to bid on it, and the auction ended with me having the highest bid of $91. But the seller’s reserve price of $115 was not met, so we had no deal. I politely wrote him back explaining that you can buy these new for $109 online. Then he sent me an eBay Second Chance Offer for my $91 bid plus $25 shipping. I decided to accept it on a whim, and I’m glad I did!
Bottom Feeder Tip #266: Never be afraid to contact the seller and make an offer if an auction ended with no sale. All they can say is no.
When it arrived, I really dug the color. In the catalog these look slightly pinkish white with a much darker, cheesy-looking tinted maple neck and fretboard. Mine looks better— to my eyes, anyway—with more of an aged yellow blonde color to the tint.
So how does it sound? The P-90s make the guitar sound full and very Gibson-ish, while the Strat-style body, neck, and bridge give it more of Fender vibe. This guitar is a blues machine and very fun to play. It oozes tone, baby!
My only criticism is the location of the volume control. My right hand is always accidentally bumping the knob and turning the guitar down in the middle of a solo, so I usually remove the knob before any serious playing and set the shaft to 10.
I never did find out if it’s really part of a limited edition series or not, but who cares? I like it and that’s all that matters. She’s definitely a keeper for now.
Will Ray
is a founding
member of the
Hellecasters guitar-twang
trio. He also does guitar
clinics promoting his
namesake G&L signature
model 6-string, and produces
artists and bands at his studio in
Asheville, North Carolina. You can contact
Will on Facebook and at willray.biz.Okay, I confess: I do a daily
search for SX guitars on
eBay. Why? Because I’ve owned
SX axes before and know they’re
built solid and they’re cheap. I
was first turned on to SX guitars
by my neighbor Martin, who
started buying them four years
ago. Whenever I played one of
his SX electrics, I was always surprised
at their quality relative to
their price. So I bought my first
SX a few years ago just to test
the waters and was quietly blown
away. I currently own four SX
guitars . . . and counting.
This SX model really captured my attention when I saw it floating around on the ’Bay. Obviously inspired by a Les Paul Special, this baby has a set neck (no bolt-on here!), two P-90-style pickups, a rosewood fretboard, jumbo frets, and a “TV yellow” finish. An outfit in California called Rondo Music sold these guitars brand-spanking-new for $135, plus $20 shipping. Say what? How can anyone make a profit on that? Sorry, man—not my problem. I’m a bottom feeder. So I pulled the trigger on one.
The guitar arrived a week later, well boxed. When I unpacked it, I’m sure my face showed some disappointment. The classic “TV yellow” color was actually closer to “crime-scene-tape yellow”—a much brighter yellow than I remembered in the photos. I sighed and chalked it up to the unpredictable ways digital cameras and computer monitors display color.
When I started playing this SX, things got better fast. It seemed to have a comfortable neck very similar to my 1990s Gibson LP Special. The jumbo frets were smooth and rounded, the 12" fretboard radius felt nice to bend strings on, and the pickups sounded very good, with that pronounced midrange P-90 honk I so like. Some players buy these guitars and replace the pickups with authentic Gibson P-90s, but I say, “Why bother?” These sound close enough.
Bottom Feeder Tip # 2387: If the original pickups sound decent, leave well enough alone. Whenever you upgrade pickups on a cheap guitar, you never get your money back when you sell it later. Never.
So what’s the verdict—is it a keeper? Hmm. Not really sure yet. It plays and sounds great, but I still have trouble with the color. I’m hoping the bright yellow will fade over time. For now, this guitar is in my “maybe” pile.
Will Ray
is a founding
member of the
Hellecasters guitar-twang
trio. He also does guitar
clinics promoting his
namesake G&L signature
model 6-string, and produces
artists and bands at his studio in
Asheville, North Carolina. You can contact
Will on Facebook and at willray.biz.