If you're familiar with Music Gear Review, I'm sure you're aware that we have had the pleasure of reviewing several Kramer guitars in the past. And I have to say… we've been pretty blown away with each and every one from a "bang for your buck" perspective. For a company that was considered to be "down and out" just a few years ago, the Kramer brand has rebounded in a big way and has introduced some truly terrific quality, value driven guitars to market. A perfect example of this is the Kramer Striker Custom FR-422CM.

The test model I received came with a Heritage Cherry Sunburst finish that was just gorgeous, and lacked any physical flaws as far as I could detect. It was highlighted with black hardware and pickups, beautiful maple neck and was overall simply a great looking guitar. Most of the finish schemes we've seen from Kramer have been oriented around what your average heavy metal fan would prefer, but the Striker Custom has a real sharp custom look that could be equally at home on stage or in the studio in any type of music genre.

Some people say first impressions mean a lot. After a few minutes of looking this guitar over, my first impression of the Striker Custom was, "This is one hot looking axe… I think I'm going to enjoy this." So you're probably wondering… was I right? Damn straight I was! This guitar sounds and plays just like it looks… HOT! It comes equipped with 2 Dual Rail pickups (one on the neck and one at the middle position) and 1 Quad Rail pick-up at the bridge. If you're not familiar with these pickups, the Dual Rails, although at first glance may look like single coil pickups, are actually 2 coil humbuckers. The Quad Rail pickup features, yep, you guessed it… 2 humbuckers, or 4 coils. That makes the equivalent of 4 humbuckers or 8 coils on this model that can be controlled by the 5-position toggle switch. The result is a veritable "bottomless pit" of different sound types. While cycling through the many positions you'll find a range of killer tones that will allow you to run through scorching high-end solos one second, then rattle the foundation with crunching lows the next. And in case that's not enough for you, there's yet another special feature that can be found on this Striker model. Just pull up on the tone knob to activate the Coil- Tapping Mode that's built into the Quad Rail system and experience the bite of just 2 of the Quad Rail coils. Nice! This will let your churn through some of those riffs and licks with a nice clean tone, something you absolutely would not expect from such an aggressive looking guitar. This truly opens up a lot of other possibilities with this guitar that you won't find on other guitars in this price range.

Two other great features are the licensed Floyd Rose double locking tremolo system combined with Gotoh SG machine heads! Although Floyd Rose systems can sometimes be a pain in the butt to get set up correctly, once they are they stay in tune even when you're seriously abusing the whammy bar. The Gotoh's help with the tuning stability as well. This is another great advantage for those of you that gig regularly and incorporate some serious acrobatics with the bar in the music you play. There is no bigger source of annoyance when playing out than when you're struggling to keep your axe in tune between songs or sets. We wailed on the Striker Custom and were pleasantly surprised to see it stay in tune song after song. The only problem we encountered was the need for a spring adjustment under the belly when it first arrived – the guitar must have taken a bump at the old UPS distribution center. This is something that's actually quite common when you get guitars shipped to you and we're old hands at adjusting floating systems such as this.

But there's more to the Striker Custom than just great sound and custom add-ons. The thing plays fantastic! I insist on close action on any guitar I play, and right off the bat was thrilled to find the set up on this guitar was almost perfectly to my liking. With a slim taper neck and maple fingerboard, I found my way around the 24-fret neck easily. And if you're like me and are unfortunate enough to be a guitar player with "undersized" hands, a thin neck like this is a true blessing. I also like how the cut outs on this body style made it simple and comfortable to attack even the highest frets. Overall the guitar is well balanced and feels great slung over the shoulder, something that will definitely be to your advantage on those late night gigs when your band doesn't go on until 11pm and you're playing till close.

BOTTOM LINE:

Make no bones about it, this a true rock and roll, hard rock, heavy metal assault weapon. For $249.99 it's an almost unbelievable deal. I'd truly expect to pay a lot more for a guitar that offers as much as this bad boy does, but hey… who am I to argue?!?! The customer wins again.

Editors Note: To bring it back down to earth and into a little perspective, though, the Striker Custom is not in the same league as those coveted $1000 and up guitars you all drool over. That's not what we're saying. However, if you're looking for a beautiful, versatile axe that can play like guitars costing twice as much and won't empty your wallet, this guitar is for you.