I ordered it from AliExpress. It seems to be a copy of the Oktober version. I think Jerry & Doyle originally worked with Rand to build the guitars… then Oktober made a run but Doyle has publicly and often decried their quality. Word on the street is that Dean will be making a production model. Doyle’s have been made from wood, graphite, and metal… with bolt-on sides since he can be a bit rough on them.
I love it. I know its not “real.” I know it’s ridiculous. It’s fun. I’m too punk rock and too old to care what anyone thinks of the look, legitimacy, or irony of it all. Ha ha.
Check out Empire Music if you want to see some really nice high-end Fender, Gibson, Martin, Taylor, & more guitars. Check out some of Aaron’s work on his Instagram, he gets to see some beautiful axes! If you’re in or around Pittsburgh, I highly recommend him for all your guitar repair, revision, and setup needs.
I may eventually set up a website just to catalog/showcase my collection. I have it, I just need to populate it. Would anyone be interested in that, or just me?
If 1999 me had been able to get a hold of this, I may have went down an entirely different path. I would have surely journeyed down some sort of horror punk and goth rabbit hole.
ERiC AiXeLsyD & Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein (Outside Metropol in Pittsburgh PA some time in the late 90’s or early 00’s.)
I have been a fan of the Misfits ever since a buddy of mine played a Collection I CD for me. I think we heard of them through Metallica and backwards from Danzig. When I started to play the guitar, I just gravitated towards the “Well, I could do this!” vibe of the stuff. The melodies. The campy lyrics. It takes itself way too seriously. I love it though. Doyle has been a huge influence on my in style and even stage presence. (Although my friend An-Die once remarked that when I stood next to Jerry Only & sang “I Turned Into a Martian” with my recently broken nose still in a cast… I had stage presence, and Jerry had stage presence, but they did not mix together well. I guess I will never know what that means unless video of that day at the Crowbar in Penn State surfaces!)
I dug the OG stuff, and I was a fan of the Misfits ’95 era stuff too. Those were some of the most memorable and entertaining live shows I have been to, and I saw a lot of them. AiXeLsyD & Gasoline Dion regularly covered “Dig Up Her Bones” and “I Turned Into a Martian” among others. I was even part of 2 different Misfits cover sets, the latter being captured on video in 2004.
An-Die Dyslexic, Jerry Only, & ERiC AiXeLsyD
Doyle has one of the coolest guitars that fits him perfectly. I look like a doofus with it no doubt. It elicits pure joy when I play it though. Doyle’s originals are one-of-a-kind. They have gone through several incarnations over the years. From graphite, wood, to bolt-on metal wings so they aren’t so easily destroyed. One of the original Rand Annihilator guitars was put back together with something that you’d find in a hardware store. There are many legends about the real thing that Jerry & Doyle crafted at Pro Edge. He has a unique rig for sure. BC Rich was going to make one I think? Ed Roman has one listed on their page, but only as a reference to the weird stuff they can make. Oktober Guitars did make some, but Doyle has stated publicly several times that he was not impressed with their quality and craftsmanship so they’re no longer a thing. It’s an open secret these days that Dean is next on the list to make a production model.
I knew I was getting a potential turd. I just wanted the shape. Luckily, I know a guy who has polished many of my proverbial turds (guiturds?) with great success, and he’s now at Empire Music. I feel a visit coming after I get some new pickups and maybe pots & other hardware.
I had issues with ordering in October of 2020, not getting it & cancelling by December. They kept sending photos of an unpainted guitar saying it was almost ready. I asked them to reach out when it was complete so I could reorder. They did in February 2021, and I had it in my hands by mid March,
This is probably the most ridiculous #guitar I own at this point, and I have one made out of a toilet seat.
Initial reactions: About the quality I expected for the price paid, albeit smaller and lighter than expected. The real thing is much more intimidating.
There is something jingling around inside.🤦♂️
The pickups are definitely not Seymour Duncan Invaders (or even imitations) at first scan, and I may want something else in there anyway. I have some quad rails that need to go into something.
I broke the A & D strings trying to tune it (to a half step flat).
The allen wrench that came with does not fit the locking tuners. 🤣
I need to open it up and see what’s inside and try some new strings when I have time to mess with it.
The neck feels great. The guitars hangs perfectly. It could stand to have more heft, but a lot of people out there like light guitars. The action is HIGH.
I can hear it going out of tune as I play, but that may be my own ineptitude at the Floyd Rose system. Played through a Positive Grid Spark on the “Metal” setting with the bass all the way down and the treble cranked.
(Played a regular axe right after to make sure the amp wasn’t shitting out. 🤣 Also put it into the Orange Micro Terror and the sound did not jive. 🤣)
☠🎸☠
I have a quad-rail bought cheap online that I was itching to have dropped into something… but I feel like I need some real metal-y pickups in here. Do I get real Seymour Duncans? Who besides GFS does quality affordable pickups? Maybe I will just go with GFS. 🤷♂️
Do you have an Annihilator? Do you want one? What’s next on your guitar list? What’s an axe that an influential player to you uses that you would also like to have? Is it crazy, or normal? Share in the comments!
Since the world is a bit strange right now, I decided I wanted to see more guitars on social media. Maybe it’ll start a trend, maybe not.
I like classic guitars, I like modern guitars, I like classy guitars, I like ugly guitars. I like guitars. I like playing them. I like looking at them online. I like looking at them on my wall. I like looking at them in the store. I like hearing them. I like arguing about them on the internet. I also like other assorted stringed instruments.
Maybe this will make the world a little brighter. Maybe people will like these guitars. Maybe people will argue about these guitars. Maybe absolutely no one will notice. Who knows?
Below the collage, here are the ones I have posted so far via Instagram with the #AllMyAxes hashtag, minus today’s. The rest will be in the next post. This is the bulk of my guitar collection. The rest of the stuff in the house are my ukuleles and mandolin, the wife’s ukuleles, and the kids’ guitars and ukuleles.
There is a little bit written about each guitar if you click through to Instagram or follow me on Facebook. I hope to blog more in-depth about each of them, or more than I have in the past anyway… reaching out to some manufacturers and designers, especially for the most interesting ones.
Stratocaster Evolution / Everything Changes but Guitars (I wish I knew the original source.)
At first, it made me laugh and think “humph, yeah…” in agreement. The more I thought about it though… it’s wrong. How is it wrong?
Well as far as concept cars go, it’s a whole different world from everyday-use practical cars. Nothing has gone all that far from 4 wheels, 2 headlights, gasoline powered. (Yes, there are hybrids and flex-fuel all over the market… but arguably people don’t like them unless they look like “normal” cars.) But, this blog isn’t about cars. I’m sure you knew I was going to talk guitars, because that’s what I do.
There are a ridiculous amounts of varying styles of guitars & guitar innovations out there. Some of them may not be “reinventing the wheel” exactly, but there is always some great stuff happening, and there has been since the inception of the stringed instrument. How do you think we got so many varieties?
Krank Amplification | Evolution Of The Electric Guitar
I agree that too many axe-slingers fall into the Stratocaster or Les Paul shape trap. For years I held a disdain for both shapes… but I come back to them. Why? Perhaps they’re good designs. Perhaps they’re iconic. Perhaps they sound incredible. Perhaps they work. There aremany other options out there. If you find yourself chuckling to and agreeing with this graphic, I challenge you to help me to add to my list of innovative guitars.
Let’s talk about how the guitar is ever-evolving… Shape, materials, string count, innovation, & general insanity.
Indy Custom Flycaster (or Tele-V?)
There are lots of shapes out there past the Stratocaster or Les Paul, whether it’s somewhat normal or custom insanity. There’s the SG, the Telecaster, V’s (Flying, Jackson & more), hollowbodies like the Artcore or Gretsch models, the Explorer, the Ravelle, all the crazy B.C. Rich shapes, the Airline, even the Flycaster. Are there really not enough guitar design shapes out there to satisfy you? The Stratocaster doesn’t need to change shape, because there are plenty of other options out there! I’m barely hitting the tip of the iceberg here. I didn’t even touch on my B.B. Stone, FlipOut, or Batman axes. How many distinct guitar shapes can you name in the comments? (Actual produced shapes, not one-offs!) Bonus for posting or linking to photos.
World’s Largest Playable Guitar being set up at the Carnegie Science Center – Pittsburgh, PA (Photo Credit: Kara / @ohidontthinkso)
The traveling guitar exhibit is at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh right now. I can’t wait to check it out. It’s got the world’s largest playable guitar. I was lucky enough to get a preview the other day via Twitter. Tell me that’s not an innovation? It will no doubt inspire many to pick up the guitar, or dust off the one they already have. The entire exhibit displays guitars, how they work, their history, & all kinds of fun interaction.
So, next time you think that the guitar has become stagnant, I ask you to go get your hands one one of the many non Strat options above… or even a non-standard Strat option… like a Fat Strat, hot-rodded wiring, or a backwards one. There are plenty of different, innovative, and goofy guitars out there. Rock out on something original!
I do have to say… I don’t get why the Prince guitar is for repugnant individuals. I guess if you’re not Prince, it is a goofy axe to sling. I am glad that the boring Washburn/Jackson/Ibanez shape is all the way on the left though. I just can’t get behind them. I’m not sure why the oh-so-common Les Paul and Stratocaster shapes convey any level of trustworthiness of the player. Perhaps I’m over-thinking. This is quite amusing nonetheless.
World (and Lunar) Domination 