Hagstrom II 12 String

Purchased used in 1969.
1966 Hagstrom Electric 12 string (this model is listed in the 1966 Hagstrom retail catalog as a F12S...list price was $229.50). Black w/a maple neck and Rosewood fingerboard with 22 frets. 2,959 of these guitars were manufactured in 3 production runs during 1966-67. It also came in red, white and sunburst.
Made in Sweden, this S/B electric is pretty much a Hagstrom II with 12 strings. 2 single coil PU's, 1 volume knob, 1 pickup on-off switch, 4 pickup selector/tone switches by the volume knob and a fixed hard tailpiece, which gives the guitar a very nice, natural sustain. 6 tuners per side on the headstock. Overall, the features are pretty basic.

This guitar is a treasure. I bought it when I was in High School as a third guitar (along with a 1969 LP and a 1963 Strat) to use live. I had wanted a Ric, but spent too much on the brand new Les Paul a month earlier (I thought $250 was a lot of money in 1969). I play it through a late 1960's Fender Bandmaster, a custom built pre - amp (to overdrive), with everything from a Maestro Phase Shifter and/or Fender Leslie in the 1970's, to a Boss Stereo Chorus and/or a Line 6 Pod 2.0 present day. This guitar is as versatile a 12 string as I have ever played. It has so many different tones on its own...the high end is bright without sounding thin, the guitar can also sound rich and full with just a flick of the PU switches...add an EQ and/or a Chorus, and the possibilities are limitless. The electronics are flawless, and the PU's are quiet and seem to have gotten better with age.

The action is phenomenal. Wide, but very shallow neck. Extremely easy to play. Strings are very close to the frets, no buzzing, perfect intonation. Nice hardware, stays in tune. Very solid build. My only criticism is the finish on the neck. I have done a little research over the years and it seems the finish on the back of the neck is problematic on many of these guitars...it certainly is on mine...but presents no problem playing. It is strictly a cosmetic issue. The finish on the body of the guitar is unremarlable but durable, and the fingerboard has held up beautifully since 1966, as have the frets.

In this regard, the guitar is nothing short of remarkable. Too bad there isn't a higher number than 10. I played it full time (5 & 6 nights a week) from 1969 to 1984...smokey night clubs, spilled beer, and clumsy trombone players who knocked it over...it has survived it all without the slightest problem. In the 36 years I have owned it, I have never had to do anything but change the strings...you can't get any more reliable or durable than that.

N/A

This is one of the best investments I've ever made. For years, Hagstrom has enjoyed a cult following of players and collectors from all over the world...and with good reason. There were a limited number of these rare 12 string guitars made by Hagstrom in 1966 and 1967, so finding one is difficult...and is further complicated by owners who, like me just refuse to part with them. While I don't think I will ever find one again for $75, if I ran across another one, I would snap it up fast. You can occasionally find one for anywhere between $800 and $1,500 depending on the condition (sadly, some former owners completely desecrated many of these instruments with an array of ridiculous modifications). I've never had to look, but I would imagine parts are hard to find, but if you look around, especially in Europe, you can find them. If you have the opportunity to buy one, GRAB IT!!!....you won't be sorry. A strong argument can be made that this is perhaps one of the finest electric 12 strings ever built.

Dual PU's Tons of mystery switches, 6 saddle bridge(bummer!), the best goddam neck I have ever played. Original finish has been stripped by some ass (thankfully not me!).

Don't expect a Ric. Think more like fender. With compression (to which I am addicted), this thing has sustain to spare. with a little EQ it is quite capable of peeling the skin off of your face and sonically castrating bulls. The PU's are a little weak, but they do have a good sound. Compress them, dammit! Those switches are more confusing than the blend knob on a Ric!

I would really love to tell you about the finish, if I could find the ASS that stripped it! It is in a natural state now, although it was not an original option, the wood used to make them (maple?) lends to a nude finish quite well. The action on this guitar (as is with EVERY Hag I have ever played) is the best. A lot of US manufacturers (Fender!) could learn a lot from Hag.

I gigged with this guitar for about 10 years and it never let me down. THe only reason I don't use it anymore is I got a Ric 360/12, a goddam work of art. I would still like to find one in vint condition, but it seems I'll be paying off the Ric for a while.

Non-existant

An excellent axe, slices through on leads, plays great, I guess it would have looked great before the ASS! Still can't figure out why they folded. Great value.

someone ripped the electronics out of the one i found. TWO HUMBUCKERS!!!! OH THE HUMANITY!!!!! i am currently researching suitable replacement electronics.

like i said......TWO HUMBUCKERS!!!! (and cheap ones at that!!)

i've tried 'em all,...and the old Hagstrom 12 has THE MOST PLAYABLE NECK on the planet....nice and wide...easy on the fingertips. SURE, i love the sound of a Ricky,..but those necks are SKINNY!!!!!!!!!!

seems solid as a rock. the neck is straight and true. i love the feel of this guitar. I NEED NEW PICKUPS!!!!!!! aggggghhhhh!!!!!

what kinda trick question is this???!??!!??? heh heh.

if i lost it,...if it fell out the window,...if some wizard appeared from a "time/space porta" and stole it,..I WOULD GO ON A HUNGER STRIKE IMMEDIATELY UNTIL I FOUND ANOTHER. this is the best (feeling) 12-stringer i have ever held. LOVE IT!!!!!!

Patrick Widner's review tells most of what needs to be said. However, I bought mine from the 2nd owner and he stated that Hagstrom only made 2959 of these in three runs from 66-67, and they were made in Sweden.
Mine is a dark brown sunburst.
The neck is fantastic- nice and thin (ie not thick), and the width is very comfortable.
The head is not overly heavy, as with some 12-strings.
The body has a nice comfortable feel.

My style is totally varied, and this thing has a lot of variety due to the tone switches. I've tried it on several amps and it pulls through well on all of them.

For a 35-year-old guitar, this thing still sets up well, and came that way when I bought it used.

I've traveled some with it already. Even when it's leaning against something, it's stable and balanced and doesn't want to fall over on its own or anything.
This thing has already lasted 35 years and is in remarkable condition, so I have no doubts about it whatsoever.
If I were only playing a 12-string at a gig, I'd have no problems using it without a backup.

I've been playing 38 years (3 longer than this guitar's been around). I have over 30 guitars, including a Rickenbacker 330-12 which of course is a 12-string. Every time I pick up the Rick I have to do some adjusting and take some time to get used to the neck. Not on this Hagstrom 12! The Rick has a slightly nicer, more rich tone but overall I reach for the Hag first.

I belive this is a 1966 Hagstrom II 12 string. I have a book on guitars and it says nothing about Hagstrom ever making a 12 string. Anyway, this guitar is set up exactly like the Hagstrom II, made in Sweden, SG-meets-Stratocaster body, two single coil pickups, 1 volume knob, 1 pickup cut-off switch on the bass cutaway, 4 pickup selector/tone switches by the volume knob and a stop-bar tailpeice with a rosewood(?) bridge. The pickguard is plastic two-ply. The headstock (unlike the other Hagstroms) is a 6 per side Gibson style headstock. It's in beutiful condition, needed a little cleaning when I bought it, but otherwise is a great guitar. The neck is giant, it's super-wide so you can get every string easily. The guys I bought it from threw in a case and a set of strings when I bought it.

I play all kinds of music, Rock, alternative, modern rock, blues, surf, classical, etc. and this guitar is perfect for it all! Clean through an amp it sounds like it has chorus on it, because of the 12 strings. Still haven't figured out what all the switches do, but if you mess with them, you can get some preatty cool sounds. Everything from a jangely Rickenbacker sound to a deep, thick Gibson sound.

The guitar was set up great. I bought it used. Everything on it was great. The finish on the body is chipped and scrached in a few places, but what can you expect from a like 30 year old guitar thats been played? The neck is HUGE, big and wide. Makes it easy to get all of your chords and to get all the strings. Could be hard to play for people with small hands.

Well, according to the guys I bought it from, it HAS survived live playing. The hardware seems quite stable, I think it could go with me on gigs with out a backup. The strap buttons seem very solid, all the switches and the volume pot seem in good shape. I think I could depend on this guitar.

The company is out of business, unfortunatly.

I think this is a great guitar. If you find a Hagstrom, be sure it has all it's parts and is in good shape and sounds good, then buy it. I'm not sure how many 12's there are out there (If you have any information on the Hagstrom II 12 String, feel free to e-mail me, I'd like to know!!), it almost seems to me like this guitar may have been custom made, mebby hand made for someone, 'cause my book says that all Hagstrom guitars say what model they are on the headstock, and all this one says is "Made By A.B. Albin Hagstrom". If you have anything you can share about the Hagstroms, let me know!