I'm new to playing guitar but after six months of playing on a hand-me-down Squire Strat that just didn't seem to fit me right I decided I wanted to buy something else.

I spent three weeks haunting Guitar Center and a couple of local shops making horrible sounds out of poorly played scales on at least 2 dozen different guitars and guitar-types. I really was leaning toward a semi-hollow. I liked the sound and style and thought they just looked cool. After doing a ton of research I thought I had it narrowed down to an Epiphone Dot or an Ibanez AS73. The Ibanez had even pulled pretty far ahead. But as good as it was, I just wasn't sure.

This last Monday I had my weekly guitar lesson at a local music store. This is not a guitar store specifically. They cater more towards school band equipment so they only have about a dozen electric guitars on the wall. I'd looked at them before and they never seemed to change. But on Monday, I felt like I should look again. I felt educated after playing so many guitars that maybe I'd see something I'd overlooked before.

And there it was. In striking Emerald Green, hung a 2016 Limited Edition Viking Custom Deluxe. It was gorgeous. The price was right for my budget but I'd never heard of Hagstrom. It's probably why I'd overlooked it before - the lack of name recognition. I asked if I could play it. As soon as I started playing I felt a chill. I literally had goosebumps. It was like the instrument was playing itself. I was playing better than I ever had. It was as if the guitar was custom built for me. I tried to do some quick research on my phone but was getting nowhere. I couldn't even figure out what kind of Hagstrom it was at the time and the employee had no information for me. It said Viking on it but that was all. I thanked the gentleman as he hung it back up on the wall and went home.

Turns out the color gave it away. At home on my PC, I discovered Hagstrom only made a Viking in Emerald Green for a one-off Limited Edition Custom Deluxe in 2016. It retailed at the time for around $900 and Reverb was selling one for $1200. The one I looked at was collecting dust and on clearance for $420. The reviews all seemed positive. All signs were pointing to yes.

I listened to this forums advice. Play a lot of guitars when shopping. When you find the right guitar, you'll know. Yesterday, my wife and I went back to the store and after making sure it wasn't used or damaged and in fact they were just making room for new inventory, I took it home with me.

Here it is