GEAR REVIEW
VINTAGE V6HMRSB ICON SERIES HSS | Bruce Adolph
Trev Wilkinson (with more guitar centric patents the pick-up configuration… Single, Single,
than you can count) joined forces with Vintage Humbucker. The Humbucker is in the back
• Pickups: Wilkinson® Single, Single,
Humbucker to offer his design concepts and quality parts to (bridge) position. With most Strats the third
the mix. Their goal is to offer accessibly priced, single coil in that bridge position is just too
• Neck: One Piece Hard Maple – Bolt On vintage-looking guitars which now include bright/brittle sounding for most applications.
class-leading Wilkinson®-designed hardware. Leaving it mostly ignored. But when you
An example of that is the way the spring block swap that out for a Humbucker to thicken
holes are staggered in a way that allows the up the tone – well, now you have something
strings to leave the block and pass over the you can utilize. Love it! Often times when you
saddles at a consistent angle that helps keep buy an inexpensive electric guitar you plan
those strings in tune. Then add the EZ-LOK on changing out the pick-ups right away. Not
tuning keys that work like a locking tuner, the case here, I would consider the Wilkinson
but actually don’t require any mechanical pick-ups an upgrade already. They come with
manufacturing. There’s nothing to unwind when a reverse polarity middle pickup for buzz free
you’re slacking the strings using the vibrato, operation in position 2 and 4.
KEY FEATURES
• Tuners: Wilkinson® WJ55D E-Z-LOK™
Distressed
• Modern 10" Fretboard Radius with 22
Frets
Back in the mid-60s, John Skewes formed a
small musical instrument wholesale business
based at his home near Leeds, England.
Over time, his new business steadily began
to take off, and soon included self-branded
lines of musical instruments. That self-branded
merchandise continues to this day, with their
signature Vintage® guitars which were first sold
in 1985. Today, Skewes is the largest family-
owned
independent
musical
merchandise
distributor in the U.K.
and they come back to pitch! Round out the
“Trev” effect with his specially designed pick- What about the whammy bar you say? The
ups and you get the “bigger bang for the buck” V6HMRSB has a press in Vibrato arm (no
that Vintage guitars wants you to have. threads) with tightening screw that keeps the
bar solidly in place or allow it to swing freely.
What I like about this V6HMRSB guitar is the
About ten years ago the legendary designer HSS part of the equation. HSS stands for
138 March 2020
The neck shape is a soft “C” (modern 10"
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