KMAG Custom Strat Electric Guitar

by John Kindred
Staff Writer

If you are looking for an axe in the stylings of the great guitarists that ruled the late ’70s and ’80s, then KMAG guitars offers several affordably price choice of instruments. Their latest offering is a Strat-style guitar that features an Alder body, double-locking licensed Floyd Rose tremolo, screaming “hot” pickups, maple neck and a slick, flat black finish on the body.

Out of the box, the guitar appears very stylish and slick. The flat black finish has a dark, menacing appearance and screams “metal.” The black hardware adds to the unity of the overall look. And the maple neck is a reminder of Van Halen and Lynch tearing up the fret-board live. The humbuckers and mounting rings also are black, and the volume pot has a classic Fender Strat-style knob. A three-way selector switch gives you straight-ahead selections to altering your sound.

The neck profile is similar to a Squier Strat. The profile is thin, not Ibanez Wizard thin, but not overly chunky or bulky. The finish allows for smooth traversing up and down the fret board. The frets on this model are leveled and polished, which definitely is an added bonus. Finger tapping is a breeze, and low action helps with those fast riffs. The headstock appearance seems to fall between the classic Fender CBS and traditional Fender headstock.

Overall, the sound of the stock pickups is a shock. They have enough meaty crunch for hard rock and metal. Ultimately, the weak link of this guitar is the hardware. But what first catches your attention is not the tremolo (it’s a licensed Floyd Rose) or nut, but the tuners. They look great, but the feel of them is nothing to write home about.

What would you change on this guitar? For your particular style or sound, you first will probably change the pickups. The tuning keys next are next, and somewhere down the road, a real Floyd Rose would join the party. But the licensed Floyd Rose really isn’t that bad with the added brass block, and if you know how your heroes setup their guitars, you will know how to increase the sustain on this baby.

Features:
• Alder Wood Body. (Far better tonal quality than Basswood)
• Color is flat black with a flat clear coat applied. (Looks like an old hot rod finish).
• Maple Neck / Maple Fret board with Rosewood “Skunk Stripe” on back.
• Frets leveled and polished.
• New Ernie Ball 2221 strings installed.
• 2 High-Output Humbucker Pickups.
• Double-Locking Floyd Rose-Style Tremolo System with a 1 5/8″ nut.
• Black Hardware.

Bonus features on the model reviewed here included:
• Replaced stock tremolo block with oversized Brass Block.
• Replaced stock volume pot and with a 500K Bourns pot.

About KMAG:
KMAG or Kiss My Axe Guitars is small California-based company that sells quality entry-level guitars. Its product line includes finished and unfinished guitars. KMAG also offers customizations that would push the products from entry level to street lethal. Inspired by guitar players of the ’80s, Dave Dyer turned his hobby of painting and customizing into a business that allows the creativity for Dyer to do something he loves.

To purchase a KMAG guitar, visit the company’s website, kissmyaxeguitars.com, or its eBay store, myworld.ebay.com/kissmyaxeguitars. KMAG is quick to answer e-mails and questions. KMAG guitars are packaged ready to play, but a general knowledge of guitar setup helps so that you can make minor adjustments and “tweaks.”

Currently only sold in the U.S., the budget-friendly KMAG guitar line provides an opportunity to purchase an instrument that can played “as-is” or can be built into a “hot rod.” View samples of previously sold guitars painted by Dyer on the KMAG website, kissmyaxeguitars.com.