Two well-worn Kramer guitars that belonged to Eddie Van Halen have gone up for auction — complete with what are claimed to be cigarette butts the guitarist smoked, still wedged beneath the low strings behind the nut.
The electric guitars are among the headline lots in Backstage Auctions’ latest sale, which runs through August 8. Listed as “Edward Van Halen 1986 Zeke Clark Customized 5150 Kramer Guitar” and “Edward Van Halen 1987 Zeke Clark Customized 5150 Kramer Guitar,” each carries a starting bid of $50,000.
While their exact recording history can’t be verified, Backstage Auctions president Jacques van Gool says there’s little doubt the guitars saw extensive studio use during one of Van Halen’s most successful periods.
“Those two guitars were definitely and extensively used by Eddie in the studio,” van Gool said during an appearance on Final Resonance TV. “They were never taken out on the road. But Zeke doesn’t remember if those guitars were used on recordings. Most likely they were. But again, you cannot just fill in blanks. I mean, you either know or you don’t. And even if you know, then I always say, ‘We have proof.’
“But they have so much wear and tear on them and the usual cigarette burns on the headstock and all that good stuff. It’s fantastic that those pieces survived and that he hung on to them.”
Among the guitars’ more unusual features are the cigarette butts reportedly smoked by Van Halen himself, each left tucked beneath the strings on the headstock — a small but unmistakably personal detail that has become one of the auction’s biggest talking points.
Final Resonance TV host Jeff Goebel added that former Van Halen guitar technician Zeke Clark had shared the story behind the instruments, explaining that Van Halen initially had Clark build them to prove his abilities before keeping them as backup guitars.
“These were ones that Eddie made [Zeke] build to kind of get Ed’s approval of his skills,” Goebel said. “Then he had these as sort of backups, as well.”
Clark’s connection gives the instruments particularly strong provenance. A respected luthier and technician, he worked as Eddie Van Halen’s lead guitar and amp tech from 1985 to 1993, overseeing the guitarist’s gear throughout the 5150, OU812 and For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge eras.
According to the auction listing, Clark’s career also included building, repairing and maintaining equipment for artists including Prince, Sammy Hagar, Journey, Heart and Poison.
The sale features dozens of Van Halen-related artifacts drawn from the collections of Clark and longtime Van Halen associate Nick D’Andrea, offering collectors a rare glimpse inside the guitarist’s inner circle. Few lots, however, are likely to attract as much attention as the two battered Kramer guitars — not least because they still bear traces of Van Halen’s daily habits decades after they left his hands.
Bidding remains open through August 8. For collectors willing to meet the hefty opening price, the sale offers the chance to own not only two studio-used Kramer guitars with impeccable provenance, but also an unusually intimate piece of Eddie Van Halen history.
