The Chaparral Series was Hamer's answer to the super-strat boom of the mid 1985s. Hamer followed the lead of their local rival Dean, who had already started to switch from high-end variations on classic Gibson designs to superstrats. Similarly Kramer was moving away from its ’70s aluminum neck heritage and becoming the leading superstrat brand of the 1980s. Hamer entered this marketplace in 1985 with their Strat-style Chaparral and Chaparral Custom. The Chaparrals had strat shaped contoured offset double-cutaway mahogany bodies albeit with a slightly larger upper horn. Maple necks were glued in (or bolted on) and had Hamer’s droopy six-in-line headstock. Fingerboard scale was intially 24.75″, although later Chaparrals had 25.5 inch scale length.
 | HAMER CHAPARRAL CUSTOMHAMER produced the CHAPPARRAL CUSTOM (MODEL GCHC) between 1986 and 1988. The Chaparral Custom had an ebony fingerboard with pearl boomerang inlays. The standard bridge was a double-locking Floyd Rose, but a Kahler was an option. Pickups were three humbuckers: a Slammer at the bridge with two single-coils sized dual-blade OBL humbuckers. A flamed maple top was an option and there was also a carved top version introduced in 1987. Finish options were all of Hamer's custom colors. Hamer described the Chaparral Custom as follows in their 1988 catalog: |
| No image yet | HAMER Chaparral Elite with Sustainiac (Model GCSE)HAMER made the Chaparral Elite with Sustainiac (Model GCSE) between 1989 and 1990 |
| No image yet | HAMER Chaparral with Sustainiac (Model GCSS)HAMER made the Chaparral with Sustainiac (Model GCSS) between 1988 and 1991 |
| No image yet | HAMER CHAPPARRAL (MODEL GCHS)HAMER made the CHAPPARRAL (MODEL GCHS) between 1988 and 1991 |
| No image yet | HAMER CHAPPARRAL ELITE (MODEL GCHE)The CHAPPARRAL ELITE (MODEL GCHE) was made between 1988 and 1990 |
Specifications:
| Model | Image | Finish colors | Made in | Number of strings | Scale length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HAMER CHAPARRAL CUSTOM 1986 to 1988 |  | white finish | USA | 6 strings | 25.5 inches scale-length |
| HAMER Chaparral Elite with Sustainiac (Model GCSE) 1989 to 1990 | No image yet | - | - | - | - |
| HAMER Chaparral with Sustainiac (Model GCSS) 1988 to 1991 | No image yet | - | - | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL (MODEL GCHS) 1988 to 1991 | No image yet | - | - | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL ELITE (MODEL GCHE) 1988 to 1990 | No image yet | - | - | - | - |
| Model | Tone controls | Volume controls | Pickup selector controls |
|---|---|---|---|
| HAMER CHAPARRAL CUSTOM 1986 to 1988 | 1 tone control | 1 volume control | 3 pickup selector switches |
| HAMER Chaparral Elite with Sustainiac (Model GCSE) 1989 to 1990 | - | - | - |
| HAMER Chaparral with Sustainiac (Model GCSS) 1988 to 1991 | - | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL (MODEL GCHS) 1988 to 1991 | - | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL ELITE (MODEL GCHE) 1988 to 1990 | - | - | - |
| Model | Pickups brand and model | Pickups configuration |
|---|---|---|
| HAMER CHAPARRAL CUSTOM 1986 to 1988 | Hamer Slammer pickup(s), OBL pickup(s) | 2 stacked coil/1 humbucker pickups |
| HAMER Chaparral Elite with Sustainiac (Model GCSE) 1989 to 1990 | - | - |
| HAMER Chaparral with Sustainiac (Model GCSS) 1988 to 1991 | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL (MODEL GCHS) 1988 to 1991 | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL ELITE (MODEL GCHE) 1988 to 1990 | - | - |
| Model | Body style |
|---|---|
| HAMER CHAPARRAL CUSTOM 1986 to 1988 | super strat style body |
| HAMER Chaparral Elite with Sustainiac (Model GCSE) 1989 to 1990 | - |
| HAMER Chaparral with Sustainiac (Model GCSS) 1988 to 1991 | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL (MODEL GCHS) 1988 to 1991 | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL ELITE (MODEL GCHE) 1988 to 1990 | - |
| Model | Bridge | Hardware color |
|---|---|---|
| HAMER CHAPARRAL CUSTOM 1986 to 1988 | Floyd Rose tremolo, Kahler tremolo | black hardware |
| HAMER Chaparral Elite with Sustainiac (Model GCSE) 1989 to 1990 | - | - |
| HAMER Chaparral with Sustainiac (Model GCSS) 1988 to 1991 | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL (MODEL GCHS) 1988 to 1991 | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL ELITE (MODEL GCHE) 1988 to 1990 | - | - |
| Model | Fingerboard material | Fingerboard position markers |
|---|---|---|
| HAMER CHAPARRAL CUSTOM 1986 to 1988 | ebony fingerboard | boomerang fingerboard position markers |
| HAMER Chaparral Elite with Sustainiac (Model GCSE) 1989 to 1990 | - | - |
| HAMER Chaparral with Sustainiac (Model GCSS) 1988 to 1991 | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL (MODEL GCHS) 1988 to 1991 | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL ELITE (MODEL GCHE) 1988 to 1990 | - | - |
| Model | Neck joint | Neck material | Neck width |
|---|---|---|---|
| HAMER CHAPARRAL CUSTOM 1986 to 1988 | set neck | maple neck | 1.625 inches wide at nut |
| HAMER Chaparral Elite with Sustainiac (Model GCSE) 1989 to 1990 | - | - | - |
| HAMER Chaparral with Sustainiac (Model GCSS) 1988 to 1991 | - | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL (MODEL GCHS) 1988 to 1991 | - | - | - |
| HAMER CHAPPARRAL ELITE (MODEL GCHE) 1988 to 1990 | - | - | - |
