A Geek Goes Flying

Another Facebook Marketplace bargain, though this one was in rougher shape than I realized initially. A 2001–2002(ish) ESP Ltd EC-300, in See Thru Black Cherry. Made in Korea. This one had been modified with Seymour Duncan pickups, and was missing the pickup switch top . The EC-300 was the top-of-the-line non-Deluxe Ltd when new, and had an MSRP of $699 (about $1,300 in Spring 2026 dollars). Original specs: EC-300 Set neck, 24.75" scale Mahogany body Maple neck, rosewood fretboard Flag inlays Black hardware Tune-o-Matic bridge with stop tailpiece White binding on the neck 24 XJ frets EMG-HZ H-1 pickup set (passive) 2 volume, 1 tone knob, toggle on upper horn “STBC” color way (See Thru Black Cherry) It came to me mostly stock. The seller represented on Facebook Marketplace that it had been “modded with real verified Seymour Duncan 59 and JB-1” pickups, but when I had everything apart I saw the pickups are the  Seymour Duncan Hot Rodded Humbucker set  with a JB (SH4)¹ at th...

Yesterday I stumbled across a great deal on an ESP LTD Deluxe H-1001 in “Violet Andromeda Satin finish.” ESP LTD H-1001 in Violet Andromeda Satin finish This thing is  sweet :  The first thing you’ll notice about the new LTD Deluxe H-1001 is its Violet Andromeda Satin finish. The Andromeda finish makes the guitar appear various shades of blue, violet, and even green as light is reflected from various angles. The H-1001 is the first LTD version of this outstanding design in a satin finish. It also features a set of direct-mount Seymour Duncan Sentient (neck) and Pegasus (bridge) pickups with push-pull coil splitting, a Hipshot bridge with string-thru-body, and stainless steel frets.   Maybe someday, this will be me?  Anyway. It checked  almost  all of my boxes:  ☐ Made in Japan ☑ Made in Korea ☑ Passive pickups ☑ Non-Floyd Rose (i.e., hard tail, Tune-o-Matic, EverTune [1]) ☑ Set-thru neck ☑ Locking tuners My (at this stage in life) dream g...