Kirk Hammet’s Famous Ouija Board Guitar Is For Sale
Just a few days after someone paid $112,500 for the guitar Kirk Hammett used in the music video for Metallica’s “One,” another, even more famous on his axes is going up on the auction block: his custom ESP glow in the dark “ouija board” guitar.
The instrument may not be as iconic as, say, Eddie Van Halen’s Frankenstrat or one of Michael Angel Batio’s four-necked guitars, but it’s definitely instantly recognizable, especially for a Metallica fan.
So much so, in fact, that the minimum bid for the guitar is set at $225K — which, for those of you who are bad at math, is double what the “One” guitar went for. And again, that’s the minimum bid. The owner will likely end up getting more (it’s valued at $300,000 – $350,000).
As if owning this instrument wasn’t enough by itself, Hammett signed the back of the guitar and left a nice little inscription. Unfortunately, that description is for some dude named Dan, but hey, people won’t be looking at the back of the guitar all that much anyway. (Of course, if you happened to already be named Dan, well… big whoop for you!).
The inscription, dated June 25, 2001, reads:
“Exit ouija – enter Dan!!
“This guitar has been one of my main touring and recording guitarist of the ’90s. This guitar has been used extensively on the albums Load, Reload, Garage Inc., Black Album and S&M.”
And here’s the product description from Gotta Have Rock and Roll, who are overseeing the auction:
“Kirk Hammett’s number one glow in the dark Oujia Board Guitar.
“It was around 1990 that Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett first approached ESP with the idea of a guitar that made use of graphic elements from Hasbro’s classic Ouija® mystical board game. Back then, before the age of digital cameras and internet communication, creating a guitar like this took some ingenuity. They got a Ouija® board, and used a combination of a copy machine and a pair of scissors to properly position the art elements on the guitar’s body. ESP faxed the result to their ESP Custom Shop in Japan, and the rest is history: the Ouija™ guitar became one of the most well-known and coveted signature models in ESP history.
“This very guitar was Hammett’s number one instrument throughout the 1990s. He played and used this guitar on stage frequently. The guitar was used extensively for the albums: Load, Reload, Garage Inc., The Black Album and S&M. This can be considered one of the most important guitars in the history of metal music.
“This guitar came directly from Kirk Hammett, with photographs of Hammett presenting the guitar to the current owner. Additional photographs of Hammett writing the history of the guitar on the back of the instrument are also included.
“The guitar comes with one of Kirk’s stage used guitar straps that he signed as well as the original touring guitar case.
“The value of this guitar cannot be understated as this is the most important Metallica guitar to ever surface in public auction.
The guitar is in very good condition.
“The guitar comes with the original photographs of Hammett presenting the guitar to the current owner, the signed stage used guitar strap and the original touring case. Also comes with a Gotta Have Rock & Roll Certificate of Authenticity.”
You can learn more and/or place a bid here.
