Harley Benton has expanded its electric guitar range with a pair of high-performance shreddable models that look like they’ve teleported in from 1982.
The ST-80FR Series is all about the golden era of shred, comprising a pair of Radiant Red S-Style electric guitars for under 500 bucks, complete with a Floyd Rose 1000 Series vibrato.
They should come in Spandex-lined gig bag – and, perhaps, a warning, that over-exposure to this Sunset Strip aesthetic could cause involuntary backcombing of the player’s hair, and the liberal application of Aqua Net. In 2025, that is a look that's hard to style out.
But, still, these look big fun. You’ve got a dual-humbucker model, a single-humbucker model, and a distinct Charvel or Kramer vibe, maybe more the former because these Harley Benton guitars have a slightly more sensible six-in-line headstock. No banana hockey sticks here, just a lot of serious specs.
How serious? Stainless steel medium-jumbo frets. The neck is an asymmetric C shape, bolted to the body, with a sculpted heel joint to enhance upper-fret access, and it’s fashioned from roasted Canadian flame maple.
The fingerboard is also flame maple, and has a 12” to 16” compound radius (just like today’s Charvel lineup), and rolled fingerboard edges (again, just like Charvel). Rolled fingerboards are a high-end touch on a budget-friendly electric.
The S-style basswood bodies are contoured but not overly so. The style of guitar that the ST-80FR Series is referencing predates the more aggressively evolved S-style that came out of Jackson and Ibanez’s factories as the decade progressed. That said, just look at the lower cutaway, where there has been extra timber removed. That’s going to help a lot of players.
Both look great, but there’s something about a single-pickup shred guitar that is so hard to beat. It’s got a volume knob and that’s it. What else do you need?
Oh, well locking tuners would be nice, and this – and the dual-humbucker model – has them. What about glow-in-the-dark side markers, another leitmotif you would find on Jackson, Charvel, etc? Yes, we have those here, too. And, utterly non-negotiable, the electric guitar pickups are high-output Tesla Plasma-X1 Alnico V humbuckers.
These will run hot, but Harley Benton says rolling back the volume control will see them cleaning up nicely. The dual-humbucker model has volume and tone pots, plus a three-way pickup selector switch.
All of these design choices betray few compromises despite the price point. We still have the easy access truss rod adjustment wheel at the summit of the fingerboard.
These are practical, go-faster electrics for aspiring hard-rock and metal guitar players but especially those weened on RATT, Van Halen, et al.
Available now, the ST-80FR Series is priced £344/$470 for the single-pickup model, £387/$529 for the dual-humbucker model, and you can see more of them over at Harley Benton, or order one direct from Thomann.
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