James Hetfield Guitars

james-hetfield-guitarJust about every James Hetfield guitar is iconic and has been used to create some of the most influential metal music ever recorded.

One cannot talk about influential metal guitarists and not talk about James Hetfield. Often overlooked, as he doesn’t blaze away with blistering solos or shredding multiple notes per second. Hetfield has such a complex palm muting technique, which he incorporates in his rhythmic playing that very few guitar players can best him in this department. Hetfield was born in Downey, California in 1963. Hetfield started with piano lessons when he was nine years old but would eventually start playing guitar when he was fourteen. Some of the bands he joined as teenager were called Leather Charm and Obsession.

Hetfield has stated on many occasions that Aerosmith was the reason he started to play guitar. Hetfield would eventually go on to form Metallica with Lars Ulrich during 1981. The band would become one the most influential metal bands ever and sell more than 125 million albums worldwide. You cannot talk about metal bands and not bring Metallica to the conversation. Let’s take a look at the most popular guitars used by James Hetfield from his teenage years up to the present day.

What Guitars Does James Hetfield Play?

Do you want your guitar to sound like James Hetfield and have that classic Metallica sound? Well, you’re in luck. There are a couple iconic James Hetfield signature guitars. Here’s what you need to get that heavy tone.

James Hetfield Signature Guitars

James Hetfield Guitars Guitar Rating Features Price Check
ESP LTD Snakebyte
Rating: 4.5/5 ★★★☆☆ 		Rhythm Monster - Ebony fretboard, Mahogany body, & 3-piece Mahogany Neck Check Price!
ESP LTD Iron Cross
Rating: 4.1/5 ★★★☆☆ 		Classic Les Paul Iron Cross Design with Mahogany Body & Neck Check Price!
ESP LTD Vulture
Rating: 4.3/5 ★★★★★ 		Classic Flying V Design with Neck Thru Mahogany Body & 1 piece Mahogany Neck Check Price!

Chronological List of James Hetfield’s Guitars & Gear

Here’s the complete list of James Hetfield’s guitars that he used on every Metallica record, tour, recordings, and on guitar magazine cover.

James Hetfield’s Electric Guitars

Electra Flying V

This is the first guitar owned by Hetfield. It is reported that the guitar was bought from a school friend who played in the high school jazz band with James. Due the price being $200 his mother helped him with the financial aspect of the purchase. This guitar remained with all of its stock parts and was never modified. Unfortunately the whereabouts of this guitar is unknown because by the time James started Metallica he was already playing on a flying V shape guitar. This is unfortunate as this guitar must hold a certain amount of sentimental value as his mother passed away a year after she bought him the guitar. It would be quite interesting to know where this guitar ended up.

The Electra flying V, which was made in Japan as a copy of the Gibson flying V, is the second guitar Hetfield owned and it was also purchased for $200. This guitar is quite important as it was used during the recording process of “Kill ‘em All” which was Metallica’s first album and was released during 1983. Hetfield kept using this guitar through the next year until he broke the neck of the guitar twice and would start to go out of tune quite quickly. He would eventually restore the guitar during 2008 before the recording off “Death Magnetic” with the help of ESP. They would however change the pickups to the EMG 81/60 set as well as the headstock, which was also broken multiple times.

1984 Gibson Explorer “So What”

The third guitar we will look at is the Gibson 1984 Gibson explorer otherwise known as “so what” because of the sticker that Hetfield put on the body of the guitar. This guitar was purchased after the Electra flying V broke in 1984. The 84 Gibson flying V originally came out with a set of Gibson Dirty Finger pickups (496R/500T). Around 1987 Hetfield would replace these pickups with a set of EMG 81/60 when Kirk Hammett also switched to EMG pickups. This was also an important guitar in a recording sense as it was used during the recording sessions of “Ride the lightning” which was released in 1984. The first recording featuring the update pickup system was “And justice for all” which was released in 1988.

1984 Gibson Explorer “More Beer”

The next guitar that will be discussed wasn’t as important as the Gibson Explorer “So What” as it was only used as a backup guitar. The guitar was mainly used during 1984 to 1988 and most importantly before Hetfield switched over to ESP Guitars. Instead of having “So What” written on the guitar it featured the words “More Beer.” Hetfield eventually went on to cover the Gibson logos on the guitar with Jagermeister stickers. After 1988 the guitar wasn’t used that much again. The guitar featured the same EMG pickup set as the Gibson Explorer “So What.”

1985 Jackson King V Custom “Kill Bon Jovi”

The Jackson King V custom is the first guitar we will look at when James broke away from his tradition of using Gibson guitars. The guitar was mainly used during 1985 for the recording of “Master of Puppets” and the subsequent tour Metallica Damage Inc. between 1986/1987. What was interesting about the Jackson King is that Hetfield requested Seymour Duncan Invader pickups but would eventually replace them with his preferred EMG 81/60 set of pickups. The neck of the guitar would eventually break and Hetfield simply didn’t bother to repair it as he made the switch over to ESP. Another interesting fact about this guitar is that Hetfield actually owned it before the guitar brand was made popular by Dave Mustaine who played guitar for Metallica at some point as well.

1987 ESP MX220 “Eet Fuk”

The next guitar owned by Hetfield is the 1987 ESP MX220 other wisely known as “Eet fuck.” This was the first in a long relationship with ESP guitars and was used as the main guitar during the “And justice for all” period. The body and neck of the guitar consisted of Mahogany with a Rosewood fingerboard. The fret inlays had more of a personal touch and featured middle finger inlays. It further had a Tune-O-Matic bridge, Gotoh tuners and the preferred pickup set of EMG 81/60 actives.

1987 ESP MX220 “So Fucking What”

The 1987 ESP MX220 “So fucking what” was basically the same as the 87 ESP MX220 “Eet fuck” and was used as a backup guitar and kept in the studio most of time to record during the era of the Black album and Load. The only really big difference is that the body of the guitar became covered with stickers over the years featuring a logo of the LA Raiders, a mudflap woman and a sticker saying “So fucking what.” The rest of the technical specifications were the same.

1988 ESP MX220 “Fuk Em Up”

This is the classic 1988 ESP MX220 “Fuk Em Up” guitar James used. Not much is different between the first three ESP guitars owned by Hetfield besides the fact that the 1988 model was all black. Everything from the hardware to the paint of the guitar was black. The guitar first started to appear after the release of “And justice for all” during 1988. It is thought that this guitar was some prototype crossover between the MX220 and MX250 models partly because of the shorter headstock.

ESP Explorer Double Neck

The ESP Explorer Double Neck isn’t that much different compared to the normal ESP Explorers. It features the normal Mahogany body with the rosewood fret board. The one neck features six strings while the other neck has twelve strings. The EMG 81/60 pickup set makes an appearance again because at this point this set of pickups was a firm favorite of Hetfield. There are a few videos in circulation of where Hetfield would use this guitar during performances of “Fade to black.”

Gretsch White Falcon

The Gretsch White Falcon only made a quick appearance during Hetfield’s long career, as this guitar was not actually owned by Hetfield. The guitar was owned by Bob Rock who was a music producer during the recording of “Nothing Else Matters.” In the official music video of nothing else matters one can see Hetfield playing on the guitar. Some parts of the song were also recorded using the Gretsch White Flacon.

Gibson EDS-1275 Double Neck

The next guitar sees James Hetfield return to Gibson after quite a few years. The guitar is the Gibson EDS-1275 Double neck electric guitar. The guitar features mostly stock parts and the typical one neck with six strings and another neck with twelve strings. The guitars’ twelve-string side can be heard during the chorus section of “Nothing else matters.”

It was probably used due to making the sound much fuller than what a six string could achieve. The guitar can briefly be seen in the music video for “Nothing else matters.”

Danelectro Coral Electric Sitar

The Danelectro Coral Electric Sitar was only used to record during the intro of “Wherever I may roam” on the Black album. The idea of the instrument was to obtain the Sitar sound that was made popular by Ravi Shankar and George Harrison of The Beatles. The instrument features six normal guitar strings plus thirteen drone strings on the bass side of the guitar body. It also featured two pickups for the normal six strings and then another pickup under the drone strings.

1996 ESP MX250 “Elk Skull”

Now we return back to the use of Hetfield’s’ ESP Guitars. The next one is the 1996 ESP MX250 “Elk Skull.” James started using this guitar around the release of “Load” in 1996 and was most probably used during the recording session as well. It seemed that Hetfield continued with the tradition of the Mahogany body as well as using the 81 EMG pickups. It still had the Gotoh tuners as well as the Tune-O-Matic bridge. What was different from this guitar and the stock release was that Hetfield had Dino Muradian paint an Elk skull surrounded with barbed wire on the guitar body. The guitar was used from 1996 onwards but not a lot of information is available on which specific songs the guitar was used in studio.

1996 Ken Lawrence Explorer

The next guitar is a 1996 Ken Lawrence Explorer. The guitar was custom made by Ken Lawrence and is made up out of Mahogany in the body and neck. He moved away from the Gotoh tuners and instead used Sperzel Locking Tuners but he still sued the Tune-O-Matic bridge. In the pickup department he kept with his traditional choice of EMG 81/60’s. The guitar has a granadillo fret board and Aztec inspired fret inlays. James also owns a double neck version of this Explorer, but what’s special about it is that the one neck is built according to a baritone scale and the other is a normal six-string neck.

ESP Flying V JH-1

During 1996 Hetfield broke away from his traditional Explorer shaped guitars and started using two flying V guitars. The first one we will look at is the ESP Flying V JH-1. Matt Masciandaro built this guitar. The structural specifications are basically the same as that of the Explorer guitars as it features a mahogany body and neck with a Rosewood fret board. He kept with his traditional pickup selection but again chose to use the Spertzel Locking Tuners. The guitars were mostly seen during the “Load” era but Hetfield still occasionally uses them today.

ESP JH-2

The second custom designed ESP guitar owned by Hetfield we will look at is the ESP JH-2. The guitar is quite similar to all his previous ESP guitars except for the fact that the neck is built out of maple and rosewood being used for the fret board. The most visual aspect of this guitar is probably the biggest difference as it has a black diamond plate, which was fitted, on the body of the guitar.

Just like the previous guitar, the ESP flying V JH-1, the ESP JH-2 was used during the “Load” era and can also be seen in the performance of “Sad but true” on the DVD of “Cunning Stunts.”

1990 Era Fender Telecaster ’52 Reissue with B-Bender

Now we will break away from the tradition of Gibson and ESP guitars and look at a Fender guitar owned by Hetfield. This is a 1990 era Fender Telecaster ’52 Reissue with B-Bender. The guitar was basically a reissue, which was released during the 1990’s and was based on the 1952 Telecaster. What made this guitar really interesting is that it had a B-Bender, which basically means you bend the B string up a whole tone to C sharp. The guitar had an ash body and a maple neck. The guitar was unfortunately not used that much and was only used to record the intro for “The Unforgiven II” from the album “Reload.” The guitar can also be seen in the video for the same song.

1998 ESP Eclipse Custom/JH-3

Now we return to the ESP guitars again. The next guitar was the third signature model built for James by ESP and was called the 1998 ESP Eclipse Custom/JH-3. The guitar was based on the already available Eclipse model but was almost a prototype for the signature model, which would be released the following year. The guitar continues with idea of guitars having a black paintjob but features an alder body and a neck made from maple. The fret board is made from rosewood. James also did the tribal artwork on the body of the guitar himself. The guitar was mostly used during the “Reload” era as well as the double guitars he had for backup and he still uses this model presently.

1963 Gibson SG Les Paul Standard

James also owned a 1963 Gibson SG Les Paul Standard. The body of the guitar consists of mahogany and the fret board of rosewood. The guitar also has a tremolo bridge and still had its stock humbucker pickups. The guitar was actually a gift from music producer Bob Rock who also allowed Hetfield to use his Gretsch guitar during the recording of “Nothing else matters.” The 63 Gibson SG can be seen in the music video for “Turn the page” from the cover album “Garage Inc.” which was released in 1998.

2000s Gibson Explorer “Rusty”

Now we head for the St Anger era. James’ first guitar is a 2000’s Gibson Explorer, which Hetfield referred to as “Rusty.” The guitar was seen as one of Hetfield’s main guitars during St Anger. Not much is actually that different when compared to the ESP guitars. It had the same pickups and even the Tune-O-Matic bridge. The only physical difference is the Matte black finish on the body of the guitar.

1973 Gibson Les Paul Custom

Still staying in the St Anger era, we will be looking at the 1973 Gibson Les Paul Custom. The guitar was built during 73, which was many years before Hetfield actually started to use it. The guitar was eventually fitted with the 81/60 EMG pickups as well as the Sperzel locking tuners. What makes it visually different from other 73 Customs is that there is a Maltese cross behind the bridge of the guitar as well as a gold stripe above the pickups. All these visuals could already be seen during the recording of St Anger.

LTD H-307

Now we will quickly take a look at another new brand on this list of guitars owned by Hetfield and it is the LTD H-307. The guitar was used to only record “Some kind of monster” on the album St Anger. The guitar is made up of a mahogany body and a maple top. What makes it different from the other guitars is that it actually has seven strings. The pickups are also a bit different as it has EMG HZ-707 pickups installed.

ESP/LTD Baritone Viper “The Grynch”

Still in the St Anger era we will look at the ESP/LTD Baritone Viper, which was also referred to as “The Grynch.” The main purpose of this guitar was to use it live for songs, which required dropped tunings. The guitar also featured seven strings but still had the same setup as all the other guitars owned by Hetfield. It featured the 81/60 EMG pickups. The body is also made from Mahogany and has a rosewood fingerboard with the Tune-O-Matic bridge and Sperzel Locking tuners.

ESP Truckster

Now we return to the ESP guitars again and the next one was released during 2008 and it was also released as a James Hetfield signature model. The guitar was called the ESP Truckster and features a matte black finish with a roadworn look to the body of the guitar. The body of the guitar is made from mahogany and has a rosewood neck. What does set this guitar apart from all the above listed models is that EMG designed the pickups especially for James Hetfield according to his feedback. EMG called the pickups JH-B and JH- N. The set was also called the JH “Het” set.

ESP Iron Cross

As we approach the end of the electric guitars owned by Hetfield we will look at another signature model, which was called the ESP Iron Cross. The guitar started to appear around 2008. Another model was released during 2011 and had a white paint finish. The guitar was based on the 1973 Gibson Les Paul, which we talked about earlier. The only difference between the two guitars is the headstock which taken from the ESP eclipse model.

ESP/LTD Snakebyte

Next is the ESP/LTD Snakebyte which one of Hetfield’s most recent guitars. The guitar has become one of his mainstay guitars and he has been using it extensively as his main guitar in recent years.

The body features mahogany, but the neck is however made from Ebony. The pickups are also the custom set made EMG called the EMG JH’s.

ESP Vulture

Hetfield’s last electric guitar is the ESP Vulture. This guitar only started to appear around 2016 and is also a signature model. The guitar has featured quite a bit on the bands’ social media sites and features a V-shaped body made up from mahogany with an Ebony fret board just like the ESP/LTD Snakebyte. Hetfield still uses the Gotoh locking tuners, a Tune-O-Matic bridge as well as his signature EMG pickup set.

James Hetfield’s Acoustic Guitars

Gibson Chet Atkins Classical

For the first of the acoustic guitars, we’ll discuss the Gibson Chet Atkins Classical guitar. Finding information on this guitar is quite difficult and not easily accessible like the electric guitars. The guitar can be seen used live during the song “The Unforgiven” on the Live Shit: Binge and Purge DVD.

1966 Martin D-28

The second James Hetfield acoustic guitar is the 1966 Martin D-28. The guitar is quite rare and is made up out of Brazilian Rosewood on the back and sides. The guitar also has a Sitka spruce top and a mahogany neck. The body style is also a dreadnaught. The guitar was most notably used for the recording of “Mama said” and was also used during a few live performances.

National Resolectric

The National Resolectric guitar has gone through quite a few production changes over the years. The guitar makes use of a Highlander preamp to mix the pickups. Each pickup has its own individual volume control and the guitar also has a master volume control to control the overall level. The body is made from African mahogany and the neck Honduras Mahogany neck and the fret board from Ebony. The guitar was most notably used during an unplugged show on MTV during 1998.

Line 6 Variax Acoustic 700

The last and final guitar we will look at is the Line 6 Variax 700 Acoustic guitar. After researching this guitar I found that Hetfield enjoys using this guitar as a live guitar. He owns a model like this called “The Unforgiven.” The guitar is actually a Blacktop with pyrography finish. The body of the guitar features lyrics from the song “The Unforgiven” song.

As one can clearly see from this article James Hetfield owns quite a few guitars to say the least. One thing is that most of these guitars share very similar technical specifications and normally only have one or two small differences. The guitars owned by Hetfield have almost become as iconic as the music released by Metallica.

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