RICK NIELSEN’S QUINT-NECK HAMER

THE AXE

This absolute masterstroke of construction is actually five different Hamer guitars fused into one, each rocking a slightly different tech setup. Altogether, though, we’re looking at a whole lot of mahogany on that body and all five necks, each of which adored with rosewood fingerboards and two DiMarzio humbucking pickups. There are two standard six-string necks, a six-string neck with a Vibrola tailpiece, a six-string neck with no frets, and a standard 12-string neck. To hop between them all, Nielsen utilises a five-way rotary control, a three-way selector switch, and two controls for volume and one for tone.

THE STORY

With his band literally named Cheap Trick, you can expect Rick Nielsen to bust out some wacky – unashamedly gimmicky – props onstage. In the band’s early days, Nielsen would strap on five individual guitars, and during a point in their set where his soloing took the spotlight, he would play one section on each guitar, stacking them atop each other after every part. He teamed up with Hamer in 1981 and submitted to them a sketch of his dream guitar – a six-neck shredder that spun like a roulette wheel. Logistics would prove such ambitions to be futile, but the team at Hamer weren’t about to let Nielsen down, and soon the quint-neck we see today was prepared as a consolation, made by laminating together five separate Hamer Specials.

THE REPLICA

No. Do not. Seriously, why would you ever consider buying one of these things!? [ Sigh] If you must get your hands on a quint-neck guitar, your best bet is to reach out to luthiers directly – Nielsen’s axes are rarely recreated, and, quite honestly, for good reason. That’s not to say they don’t exist, of course! Hamer will obviously never issue this piece of art on a mass scale, but DIY builders around the globe have taken it upon themselves to remake it. If you manage to find one, expect it do outright drain your savings account.