Harley Benton CST-24T Black Flame

I have ordered this guitar in July 2022. I ordered it to Armenia with standard delivery method, so it took about a month for the shipment to arrive - to me it seemed like an impresive time frame. My only recommendation is to share more realistic approxinmate delivery dates, because it says 2-3 weeks basically, and though I was 100% sure that it can't be delivered within 14 days or even 19 days, it can be critical to someone. I have ordered another guitar recently with expedited delivery service (UPS Express) that promised my shipment to be delivered basically within 3 business days. And again, though I knew it was not possible (and I was right, a whole week passed already, and my shipment is still on its way), someone else can be really disapointed.
So, back to CST-24T Black Flame. All was good. Quality was impressive and I was really happy. The only issue was a tremolo bar - it looked like they accidentally put a wrong one to the bag: the bar easily falls out of the hole in the guitar and its position cannot be fixed in any way. It just hangs and dangles, risking to fall out at any moment, so it's simply impossible to use it at a concert or even at a rehearsal. Nonetheless, it was not a problem for me as I am not a tremolo user, but still spoils the overall impression.
Another problem is more significant. I own this guitar for less than 5 months (I received it in August and am writing this review in December), and my bridge pickup is not working. Actually, first signs of this issues appeared back in September and October already - the sound of the bridge pickup was intermittently disappearing or fading, but I was blaming my old cabel. So, about a month ago I bought a new cabel, but it didn't help. In the middle of November bridge pickup stopped working (well, it is working, but it sounds like gain and volume are at 0). I know that wire oxidation is probably to blame, and it can be easily fixed, but I just didn't have time to do it. But still it is very disapointing to face such issue with the guitar that is less than 5 months old.
So, though I really liked this guitar and was happy to own it, after all it seems like if you buy one for only 250 USD, be aware to fac some quality issues - probably not right away, but ater a few months very possible.

First of all let me say, i still have this guitar and it's a fine guitar indeed and not just for the money. Sadly it did not arrive that way in fact, it was pretty unplayable. Bowed neck, tarnished frets, rusty strings and badly cut nut. My first thought was to send it straight back, but didn't really want to go through all that hassle and decided to go ahead and do the work myself, just to be sure. The guitar is excellent now, but this is the condition Thomaan should have sent it, it's unacceptable for a supplier to sell a product that is not fit for the purpose it was intended. I know the profit margins on budget guitars are low and companies cannot set up every guitar but not every guitar needs it. They should at least separate the worst ones and either do the work or offer them at a reduced rate to anyone who may want to do the work themselves. That said, i've just ordered another one as they do make great guitars,"eventually"

Guitar just arrived. Looked really good, but unfortunately the quality and playability wasn´t quite as good as people been reviewing. The setup was awful, strings too high, 13:th fret was loose and makes a terrible buzzing noise. I´ve heard that Thomann quality checks these guitars before sending them to customers, obviously this wasn´t the case with this particular instrument. I´m not going to send it back though, because if i glue few frets and probably do a thorough fretjob and straighten the neck, this will be a great guitar especially for the price. When you order guitar in this pricerange you have to be prepared to send it back or do some minor repairs yourself. In conclusion: great guitar,shitty quality control. Still, my next guitar will be from Thomann.

Bought this as a back up for my main guitar. Looked amazing for the money, and when it arrived - I was blown away by how it looked. The issues started when I plugged it in.

The Roswell pickups are hot... and a bit mushy. But overall not bad. The coil tap is cool, but the trem system is one way to out-oftunesville.

Fret board felt... sticky? Not sure how best to describe it.

My main gripe, and why I had to send it back is the fret buzz. Too many uneven frets/ dead notes. The Action was super high upon receipt, which hid the problem somewhat - but was still very noticable.

Overall, the guitar (provided it hasn't got issues) is amazing for the money. Feels more like a Fender than a Gibson. Would be a great first guitar/ back up guitar. Not sure i'd use it for a main...

After Youtube Videos I got the Harley Benton CST-24T Black Flame.

The Tremolo dose not come setup to Float which Similar Body Style Guitars usually have theirs floating.

The Rosewell Pickups are OK but not doing it justice.

These need Locking Tuners I replaced mine with locking tuners which was a 100% improvement which should be on this kind of Guitar.

Finish Flaw; while its a Beautiful Looking Guitar the Top Maple 2 Piece top is not Centered its off Center towards the Control Side of the Guitar by about 5mm or 1/8th inch. So quickly looking it gives the illusion the Pickups and Tremolo are off center.

The Fretboard on mine is not nearly as dark as shown. I don't mind this but some may.

Over all I love the Guitar but before I get another Id like to see changes Locking Tuners and the Wilkinson Tremolo to Float. Med Jumbo Frets because it would make playing it much easier and faster.

With those fixed it would be worth paying more and be a perfect Guitar that would rival a lot more expensive Similar Guitars. Hope to see an updated one soon Thanks.

Use
It is mainly used in churches and for recording purposes.


Clarity
The design is neat. So I feel better when I see it.

pros & cons
High and low notes have good balance.
The spacing of flats is adequate.
What I like most of all is that neck is good for my hands.
The tuning is generally satisfactory.

The line was rusty.
When I play the guitar, I get black on my hand.
It looks like it's coming out of the neck.
I want to change my guitar, but I can't because it's far away.
The border color is rustic in terms of design.
I wish the switch was between the volume and the tone.


Further information
You guys seem to be counting the dates except for holidays when you send them.
But Asian countries, especially Korea, include holidays.
I bought it because it is not well-known in Korea.
Actually, my major is vocal music.
So I know a little about Germany.
I trust the products of Germany.
I will look forward to your product in the future.