Kirk Hammett, who joined Metallica in 1983 with the recording of "Kill 'Em All", is one of the most famous and influential guitarists of the thrash metal movement from the Bay Area and San Francisco. Since 1987 he has belonged to the illustrious circle of ESP endorsers, who tailored the ESP LTD KH-602 Black to him, probably one of the most successful signature models ever. With a full-length maple neck, alder body wings, active EMG Bone Breaker pickups and Floyd Rose
The heart of the ESP LTD KH-602 Black is the full-length maple neck, whose flat "Extra Thin U" profile guarantees comfortable playability at the speed of light. The 24 extra jumbo frets of the Pau Ferro fingerboard offer a full two octave range, while the typical "Skull and Crossbones" inlays mark the positions in the usual place. Also glued to the neck are alder body wings, which, in conjunction with the full-length neck, promise a crisp sound with long sustain.
The electrical tone conversion of the ESP LTD KH-602 Black is handled by the active EMG KH-BB Bone Breaker humbucker set, which was created in close collaboration with the Metallica guitarist. Consisting of the Alnico-V-proven EMG BB-N humbucker on the neck and the EMG BB-B ceramic humbucker on the bridge, it delivers crisp metal tones for searing leads and tight riffing. The pickups are controlled by the usual 3-way circuitry with separate volume controls and a general treble cutoff.
As a real lead guitar, the ESP LTD KH-602 Black has of course the Floyd Rose 1000 Double-Locking Tremolo, with which aggressive dive bombs and squeals can be easily realized. The system convinces with its smooth handling and absolute tuning stability even with frequent use. The features of the electric guitar are rounded off by high-quality LTD Die-Cast tuners on the headstock, which is designed as a reverse headstock.