Reverend Hotshot Jr

This is made out of some kind of plasticky stuff with a mahogany board inside. Mine is red with a black pickguard. Tuners aren't locking, bridge is a through-the-body strat-style, but fixed. P90 in the bridge position and that's it. It's a Rio Grande and a bit hot. The nifty case is black and white and quite striking. Scale is 25.5. Volume and tone control. I am not going to give a rating because it doesn't have a lot of features. Features? Who needs 'em? Just give me a simple guitar that rocks and this is that.

I bought this guitar in my quest for the greatest P90 sound I could find and it has been unsurpassed. Generally I play medium gain punk rock stuff and look for the guitar to get a certain snarl to it more than just buzz and fizz that sometimes passes for "distortion" nowadays. This guitar snarls. It also cleans up well by rolling off the volume knob. I have like 60 guitars, including five Gibsons and three USA Hamers and this will run with anything I have and surpass all but a few.

I bought this guitar off eBay used (slightly) but it was in near-mint shape. Setup was excellent, it came, if I recall correctly, with 10s and that's what I play. Intonation was fine. No known flaws. The volume and tone pots have a certain amount of resistance in their movement which gives them a quality feel. No complaints. All guitars should be as good.

It takes a bit of getting used to if you are used to a mahogany slab. Very lightweight. Which is good if you tend to jump around a lot and strike idiotic poses while playing. Which means it's good for me! I have gigged this guitar maybe 10 times and other than breaking a string once or twice, nothing else has gone wrong. Just last night it was drenched in sweat and took a beating for the better part of an hour - one tuning adjustment mid-set and it was good to go, no other problems.

Never dealt with 'em. Joe Naylor pops up now and again on HC guitar boards - how often do you see that from some big cheese manufacturer? Apparently though Reverend has a rep for announcing new models at NAMM or whatever, then they never actually appear on the market. Also I wish they kept making the USA products, like this guitar!

This guitar is f-ing great. I kind of bought it not knowing what I was going to get, because I had sold my boat and had money burning a hole in my pocket. It's an attention getter, sounds and plays great, and so far has held up wonderfully. Like I said, I have like 60 other guitars, many cheap, some very nice and not at all cheap. This one is my Number One.

As described below.
Single overwound P-90 pickup, at bridge.
Well balanced tone control.
Good dampening (resistance to turning) pots.
Bright Lime Green phenolic top and back. (think '69 Chryslers)
Cool two tone case.
Solid non-locking tuners.

Akin to a tight LP Jr.
Long scale helps.
Quiet for a single coil.
With bass turned down, almost a super tele, with an open chime.
Kills for blues, classis rock, useable for modern country.
Very good with early break-up/distortion.

The set-up was perfect.
From the nut, to frets, neck set and bridge, it was about perfect.
I'm sure it can be adjusted to make anyone happy.
The whole thing is extremely well built.

Only have had it a bit less than a year.
It should last forever, but I wouldn'y plan on abusing it.
Hardware and fit are good.

Joe Naylor and company are super.
They've dealt with my questions promptly and cheerfully.

I read some of the reviews here before I got this instrument and didn't really take them too seriously.
That I have one, they may underestimate how fine these are.

This instrument is everything other reviewers have said and then some.
Ours is used mostly by my son. I can't get it from him.
I tried to buy another on-line, ebay, but it got sniped!!
I'll keep looking for another.
What can I say?


I had LP Jr's and SG Jr, as well as a 69 SG with P90's. (in the 70's- early 80's)
This one slays them!

This instrument has that special vibe of some of the early sixties strats and teles I did repairs on in the 70's.

This individual instrument is better than any of the Fenders, Gibsons or Musicman guitars I've owned, and all of the sub $2000 instruments I looked for as a back-up/second for this guitar. Ended up with two other Reverends.

Unresevered endorsement!

We love the comfortable playablity,the light weight, the reponse.
But great sound is what does it.

About reviewers.

My son has played 2 1/2 years. He likes rock, blues, Jazz, is starting to do surf.

I play bass and electric bass. I triple (is that correct grammer?) on guitar, but have played (guitar, also) in working bands on and off 30+ years.

Patented laminated Reverend Slingshot body construction. Single Rio Grande P-90 pick up. Non-locking tuners. Maple bolt on neck with rosewood fretboard. Strat style fixed bridge. Volume and tone controls. Exactly what is needed for classic/roots rock!!!

I am a huge fan of P-90's. They are noisy but the tone is worth it. I had been looking at Reverend's for some time and at the same time lusting after a L.P. jr. style of guitar and this just happens to have a 25 1/2" scale which tightens things up a bit. The overall sound is spectacular. With the right amp it is easy to go from clean to snarl with a knob tweak. There are no harsh sounds on it. Nor does it ever get muddy. The Rio Grande pickup is quite hot and improved immensely when I lowered the pickup away from the strings slightly. I have only had the guitar a few days and am completely blown away by it.

At first I thought the guitar was chintzy because it is so light in weight. However, on close inspection, I find the guitar to be very well put together with almost perfect action. I changed strings from the stock 9's to 10's and no adjustment was necessary although I did adjust the pickup height slightly. The action at the first fret is probably the best I have ever seen from a "factory" set up. I am very, very impressed.

I believe that this axe will be very rugged. So far it is completely stable.

Bought from a Reverend dealer. I have had no dealings with the company.

I have been playing for 35+ years. I own more than 20 guitars consisting of Gibson, Fender, Guild, Danelectro including teles, strats, les pauls, ES-5, X-700, super 400ces - vintage and new. This Reverend Hotshot jr. holds its' own very well against the best and it's one of the least expensive. I bought it on a lark but it is very, very cool. I couldn't be more pleased with it. If it were lost or stolen I would most likely be out of luck because only 40 of these guitars were produced. I would surely miss it.

Details are already listed in the previous review. This is #24 of 40. Got it for a Christmas gift with a gig bag and adjustment wrench for the neck.

Rating the features for what the guitar is made for doesn't make a lot of sense to me. It has one pickup and does what it's supposed to do, so no, there wre not tons of features, but anybody who doesn't like that is missing the point of this instrument.

I play almost everything. This guitar has a lot of sound in it, but a lot of that has to do with the Dr. Z Carmen Ghia that I play it through.
Since the Dr Z inputs is very sensitive and the Rio Grande P-90 in this guitar is hot, small adjustments of the volume control and a touch with the right hand can drive the amp, keep it clean and twangy, or, with a little use of the very good tone control can give you as good a warm jazz sound you could possibly expect from a guita with one bridge pickup.

This guitar and amp are made for each other.

Given that the P-90 is not a humbucker, the noise level is still very low, owing both to the wiring and the pickup itself.

The semi hollow body with no holes of any kind eliminate any feedback issues.

Nothing not to like about it.

Set is 10! 10! 10! 10! This guitar is set up incredibly well. The action was low with no buzz. I believe that it came from the factory with 9's but the dealer changed the string to 10's. This is one of those guitars where 10's feel like 9's. The intonation couldn't be better. I have an 80's Strat that I had the Buzz Feiten mod done to...this intonation is as good. I have a Taylor PS-12 and a Heritage Sweet 16, both of which I had the PLEK fret dressing done to...this action is as good. It's amazing.

Everything fits as it should...the finish appears to be durable, certainly better durability than wood. Because it's semi hollow it's very light weight.

I see nothing on this guitar that could ever give any problems. Good hardware, solid construction and a great neck. I use other guitars for other sounds, but I see no need for a backup.

The only dealing I had with Reverend was to order some accessories over their website.

I had them delivered in 24 hours, so my guess is that if they take that much care of an $80 order for stuff they don't make, they'd do really well with their own stuff. I've read interviews with Joe Naylor and his work ethic and customer service ideas come across as being among the best.

Playing for 50 years. Have the above mentioned guitars, and the Dr Z amp, a few pedals. I would replace this and am going to buy another Reverend with a few more features. Haven't made up my mind yet which one, but I have no doubt thatit will become mymain guitar. They're that good

This a 2004 Hotshot Jr Reverend, limited edition (only 40)in jet black. 22 frets, semi-hollow body, one volume and one tone. There is one pickup a P90 (Rio Grande Bluesbar). The neck is maple with a rosewood fretboard. Hardtail strat type of bridge. Gover tuners. The workmanship on the guitar is amazing! When you first grab the neck it feels like an old strat from the early 60's and the setup was the best I've ever had on a new guitar. I will give this guitar a "7" because it is very basic but the quality is a "10" I was looking for a Les Paul Jr when I came across this guitar and at first thought it wasn't a real pro level instrument because of the body construction, but when I picked it up and plugged into a Super Reverb everyone in the music store began to migrate toward where I was playing and soon I fell in love with this guitar!

I have always loved the sound of a Les Paul Jr with a single P90 but have found that they were generally a guitar that you brought along for a couple of songs at most. I plug the Hotshot Jr into a fulltone fat boost and then into a Super Reverb Reissue and the tone is to die for! You get the sweet breakup of a P90 but the by adjusting the vol & tone controls was actually getting a great clean warm sound. In fact, I rolled the tone control all the way down and was getting a pretty decent jazz tone! The sustain is wonderful and the dynamics and touch sensitivity is the best I've ever played. (I own several Gibson and Fender Custom shop guitars and this instrument is every bit as good!)

The action was the best I've ever had in a new instrument, it actually put my $4000+ Gibson Custom Shop CS 336 to shame in this catagory. The fret work is superior to either my fenders or my gibsons. Don't get me wrong I love my Custom shop instruments but the workmanship and setup on the this relatively inexpensive guitar is quite amazing.

Just got the guitar, if cared for properly should last a lifetime. But I can't rate this catagory because I've only had it a week. The finish is a satin phenolic so it should last and yes I could use it without a backup but no professional would ever arrive at a gig without a backup or two!

I called the company to find out who they were and get a little information on the guitar and they were very helpful. The word on the internet is that Joe Naylor is very good with his customers and tries to treat people like he would want to be treated, that's good enough for me.

I have been playing for 30+ years and have had one of everything out there, so it is unusual for me to get to excited about something new but this instrument has a sound that is the sound that I've always tried to get but couldn't quite find the right combination. I plan on looking at the other models that Reverend makes. Other gear: 5 Victoria's (Twin, bassman,double deluxe,vibrolux, deluxe...love the tweed sound.) Also a Super Reverb Reissue - a great amp!, 57 GT Les Paul, CS 336, Eric Clapton Strat, 54 reissue strat) I would recommend this guitar (Hotshot JR) to any working musician as the "best" bang for the buck of any instrument currently made.