Electra X-420 Custom Pro

1984 Electra X420 Custom Pro. made in Japan.
I purchased this guitar new in late '84. I still have the original hard case. The guitar looks like a Gibson 335 without f-holes. The finish is black with ivory colored binding on the body and fretboard. The ivory colored pick guard looks like it would fit my Les Paul perfectly. My X420 has countless minor dings and scratches from years of hard use and rough handeling. There is one small spot on the front where the finish was chipped-off to the wood; the finish here is very thick.
Other reviewers have given lots of good info on this guitar but I would like to add a few details:
It has a brass nut.
The bridge, while similar to a Gibson unit, is much heavier and offers more adjustment. Oddly the bridge had a gold finish that eventually begain to peel off. I removed the finish and polished the brass.
The strap buttons have a natural brass finish and are shaped like a trumpet bell. They do not work very well.
The other hardware is chrome plated and this has held up very well over the years.
The tuners are very good. The guitar stays in tune.
The electrics are top quality, the pots are huge sealed jobs connected by heavy wires with a braided stainless jacket.
The guitar is quiet and even after 24 years the pots are not scratchy.
The toggle switch is just starting to act up a little.

This guitar is the most versatile guitar I have ever owned. Blues, Jazz, Hard Rock, you name it. My oldest son (23) wants this guitar. He thinks it's butt ugly, too large and too lame looking for anyone as cool as he, but he loves the way it plays and sounds. The neck pick-up has a powerfull, full bodied tone, great for blues. The bridge pickup really works great with effects and distortion, where it can reproduce every Van Halen squeel and harmonic with ease.

The action is set up very low. The neck has never needed adjustment. The frets are about medium jumbo, measuring a hair under .10" and very tough as they show surprisingly little wear. The neck is thin and plays very fast. The finish is durable and the guitar seems to be of very sturdy construction.

This guitar has lasted for 24 years with a minimum of TLC and it is still going strong. Replace the strap buttons, but change nothing else. This guitar is as dependable as they get.

Never needed it.

I also have a '05 Fender Stratocaster (standard single coils), an '04 Fender Showmaster(quilted bubinga top and Seymore Duncan single coils)and a '99 Gibson Les Paul standard (ebony w/ factory pickups). I have played many others including Gibson Nighthawk, Gibson SG, Fender Jaguar and an Ibenez to name a few. This has always been one of my favorites and the one I have owned the longest.
I would rate the Electra a close second to the Showmaster for speed and ease of play. The frets are the same size and rounded shape. The Electra has more sustain than the Fenders. It stays in tune as well as the Gibson. The pickups on the Electra are powerful and have more bottom end than any of the others and are only slightly less dynamic than those of the Gibson. The Gibson neck pickup is somewhat brighter sounding. Overall I think this is an outstanding guitar and I would probably miss it more than any of the others if it were stolen.

I got this guitar just recently from my dad, who was the original owner. Believe this is a 1980 or 1981 model, as the serial number starts 010, made in Japan. He couldn't remember the year he bought it. It has a Sheraton-style body, no f-holes, H/H config, with two tone and two volume knobs, plus three toggle switches. Not sure what the body wood is, but the 22-fret fretboard is rosewood with mother-of-pearl dot inlays (the logo on the headstock is done in the same beautiful pearl). The finish is glossy black with ivory binding, and it has no pickguard. Nut and Tune-O-Matic bridge are brass, and the neck is set. It has non-locking Electra tuners, very sturdy, and a nice thin neck (good for me, as I have small hands!). I don't have the original case for it, but wish I did.

I play a lot of different styles, ranging from 70s funk to classic rock to metal to goth-punk, and this guitar handles them all equally well. But it really shines for the classic rock. The dual humbuckers just really BITE, and the sound is deep and rich. I'm currently using it with an older Line 6 Spider 210, and normally like some distortion, chorus and just a touch of flanger and reverb. The guitar sounds great with all of the effects I have tried on it, and also sounds great clean. I thought I would never love a guitar as much as I loved my Double Fat Strats, but I love, love, LOVE this guitar!!! It truly holds its own with the bigger names.

It's put together well, everything nicely fitted, though the black finish seems a bit on the thin side. Not so thin that it easily wears off, but it just does not feel heavy-duty. It doesn't have a deep gloss to it, but it's still pretty attractive. It has ivory binding that is in excellent condition, and the rest of the finish only shows the minor wear of normal use, no major dings or chips. I don't care for the placement of the strap button at the back of the neck, but that's not really a flaw. Just a nitpicky thing, for me. The action is nice and low and it plays fast and easy. This is definitely quality work.

This is a dependable guitar, well made. Everything seems very sturdy, and the finish has lasted some 25 years with no signs of fading or rubbing off, so I imagine it is not the sort to easily wear off. It has only one visible flaw, where it appears someone hit a painted door jamb or something with the upper "horn" on the body. Also has some dents in the finish on the back, in the area where a guy's belt buckle or jeans button would be, none of which break the finish, only dent it. Would I use it as my only guitar on a gig? Yes. Without hesitation.

I've tried to find more info on this model, particularly since it seems to have a slightly different set of toggles on it than others I have seen, but haven't yet found one exactly like it. The manufacturer, St. Louis Music, still exists, but I haven't contacted them about it. Their website has nothing at all about their older products or their company history, which is really a shame.

I have been playing for around 27 years. At the moment, I own three other guitars (one electric, one acoustic/electric, one electric bass), but the Electra is my favorite. I'm not sure it would be if I still had the Double Fat Strats, but I don't have them here to directly compare the two. If it were stolen or lost, I would definitely try to get another like it. The thing I love most about it is the full-bodied sound. It is a real rockin' guitar! If I had to say there was something I disliked, I could only think of the placement of the strap button at the neck end, and maybe the body style. I have been a Strat guy for a long time, and this body style is a huge change for me in an electric guitar. I can't honestly say I dislike it, only that it's different. Overall, I really love this guitar. I hope I never have to part with it!

1980 - made in JAPAN -
22 frets
laminated top - standard Pickup configuration 2 volume 2 tone controls
one 3 way selector switch -open coil humbuckers {japanese}
I think the body and neck is maple - piano black finish
a VERY good 335 copy NO F-holes, set neck
brass tune o matic brige - gibson style stop tailpiece- brass nut
very thin neck - rosewood fretboard - pearl dot inlays tuners are high quality

semi hollow - great for any style of music, blues especially
playing thru a FENDER HOT ROD DELUX REVERB
very rich full, sound the neck pickup is amazing, giving an incredible tone! not muddy at all!
I wish it had a wider neck {my opinion}

the guitar is 25 yrs old and I set up the action LOW
the finish is not as good as american guitars, on the average but it's good enough, I have had many japanese guitars, and many american guitars and they seem to run a close second

It looks as tho this has seen every live gig in history, and other than scraps and a few dings has held up very well, I would not hesitate to hand this guitar to any pro or legend and would be surprised if It didn't get compliments from all.
very dependible

the only support you'll get on this is from collectors, too old and the company is long gone,

I've been fooling around with guitars and basses over 20 yrs, and this is definately something to look out for, they are rare and worth every cent, no it's not a GIBSON but I've owned them too and would rate this as good a playing & sounding guitar
all ELECTRA'S stand on their own, and aren't really just copies, I love the tone and sound, and would get another without thinking twice about it I don't know how they got that neck pickup to sound like that, but it's sheer beauty!

Made in 1981 by Matsumoku of Japan and imported by Saint Louis Music as Electra. This is Electra's copy of an ES-335 (closely resembles BB King's Lucile IMHO). Standard Gibson style controls with two exposed coil humbuckers. Brass nut and brass tune-o-matic bridge give this guitar great tone and sustain. Set neck and Electra tuners (great tuners).

WOW! What a tone machine. This has a really rich bluesy sound on the neck humbucker. This guitar is one of the nicest playing/feeling guitars I've had my hands on.

The action/fit/finish of this guitar puts Gibson guitars costing 5 times as much to shame!

22 years old and it could still almost pass for new, I think it's reliable/durable :-)

Saint Louis Music is still around, but they stopped producing Electras in 1984. Still, they seem more than willing to help where they can. Check out my Electra website at http://www.herons.ca/electra/

for mor info on Electra guitars

At $225.00 I got this guitar for easily less than half of it's current value, so don't expect to pick one of these up in great condition for much less than 500 bucks. That having been said, even at 500-700 bucks this guitar is a great deal and should be considered by anyone who wants and ES335 without the Gibson price tag.

The X420 is also known as the custom pro. The machine heads are heavy-duty die cast with 14 to 1 gear ratio. It has a laminated hard rock maple neck with double reinforced trust truss rods and u channel. It has nickel silver frets. It has a special custom hardwood block, this block runs completely through the length of body of the X420, to rigidly fix the neck and give super pickup sustained without harmonic feedback. It has a custom top with multilayered ivory binding with no F holes in top, which eliminate unwanted overtimes. A solid brass bridge. the custom bridge of the X420 is mounted deep into the hardwood body block. This guitar has genuine mother of Pearl inlay on the head stock and finger boards. Genuine rosewood fingerboard with ivory binding. The pickups are super magnaflux pickups.
The Electra custom pro is result of many discussions with professional players, studio musicians and guitar builders. For a number of years guitar builders have been doing custom work to the traditional types of thin line electrics. The X 420 has incorporated the greatest majority of his custom work as standard equipment. Items such as custom high-gloss jet black finish with ivory binding, a custom top without f holes means no feedback or unwanted harmonics custom Magnaflux pickups and a custom brass bridge for sustain.
The custom pro was also called to a 335 copy. If you own one of these guitars and think it is a 335 copy it is obvious, you really don't know what you have.

The sound of this guitar can be anything you want, and it has very minimal feedback.

ITS BULLET PROOF!

NEVER NEEDED ANY.

This guitar is probably the best guitar that I have ever owned. At this time I own two Yamaha guitars and a Gibson. I have been playing for 25 years. There is no doubt in my mind that this guitar cannot be replaced. The one that I own is as new and pristine as the day that I bought it. Everyone that is ever played this guitar that has put it in their hands have said that is probably one of the best guitars that they've ever played.