Schecter C-1 Hydro-dip: Finishes, Specs and Who It's For

Q: Does the C-1 Hydro-dip have a Floyd Rose?

No. It uses a TonePros T3BT Tune-O-Matic bridge with string-through-body anchoring and Schecter locking tuners.

Schecter's new C-1 Hydro-dip is the first production C-1 with a true water-transfer finish. Instead of paint or a printed veneer, each mahogany body is dipped by hand through a floating film of metallic ink, so the swirl that wraps the arched top, sides, back and headstock is different on every single guitar. Three finishes launch on August 31, 2026 — Purple Obsidian, Midnight Tide and Golden Eclipse — plus a left-handed Midnight Tide. At $899 ($949 left-handed) they sit right in the heart of the C-1 range.

Shop the C-1 Hydro-dip in Purple Obsidian · Midnight Tide · Golden Eclipse · Left-handed Midnight Tide

What hydro-dip actually is

Hydrographic printing floats a thin printed film on water, activates it, and lowers the body through it so the pattern wraps every contour — the same process used on high-end motorsport parts. Because the film stretches and drifts as the body goes in, no two dips land the same way. Schecter finishes the neck in satin black and leaves the headstock face dipped to match, then clears the whole thing. The result is a metallic swirl with real depth under stage light, and a guitar that is genuinely one of one.

The three finishes

Purple Obsidian — metallic purple over black; the most dramatic of the three under lights. View
Midnight Tide — metallic blue, from deep navy to bright cobalt streaks. Also offered left-handed. View
Golden Eclipse — metallic gold and bronze over black; the warmest and, in our shop, the one people reach for first. View

Under the finish: a full-spec C-1

This is not a cosmetic-only special. The Hydro-dip runs the current C-1 spec sheet:

Mahogany body, 47 mm, arched top
Bolt-on rock maple neck, Thin “C” (20 mm at the 1st fret, 22 mm at the 12th), tilt-back headstock with volute, 2-way truss rod
Richlite fingerboard, 25.5” scale, 14” radius, 24 jumbo frets, black binding, aluminum offset/reverse-circle inlays with a hydro-dip inlay at the 12th fret
Graph Tech Black Tusq XL nut, 42 mm
Schecter Hellfire HB105SC humbuckers (neck and bridge), volume / tone / 3-way toggle, Switchcraft jack
TonePros T3BT Tune-O-Matic bridge with string-through-body, Schecter locking tuners, satin black hardware

Richlite is worth a word: it is a dense paper-composite fingerboard material that plays and looks like ebony, stays stable through humidity swings, and lets Schecter skip tropical hardwoods on a $899 guitar. The Hellfire set is Schecter's hot ceramic-magnet humbucker — tight low end for drop tunings, plenty of output for modern high-gain, but with a usable clean on the neck pickup.

Who it is for

Players who want a stage guitar that looks like nothing else in the band, on a platform they already know. If you have played any modern C-1 — SLS, Platinum, Hellraiser — the neck and layout will be instantly familiar; the Hydro-dip adds a finish you cannot get anywhere else and a fixed TOM/string-thru bridge that stays in tune all night. Left-handed players get the same guitar in Midnight Tide with no upcharge beyond the standard $50 lefty premium.

Availability

All four — the three right-handed finishes and the left-handed Midnight Tide — are in stock at Studio Gears from August 31, 2026 and ship the same or next business day. Every guitar is new in the box with the full Schecter warranty and free shipping in the continental US, and it qualifies for Gear Bucks (3% back). Want a specific swirl? Email us a note with your order and we will photograph the exact guitar we pull for you before it ships.

FAQ

Is every Schecter C-1 Hydro-dip finish unique?

Yes. Hydro-dipping is a hand water-transfer process, so the pattern placement differs on every body. Your guitar will match the finish family (Purple Obsidian, Midnight Tide or Golden Eclipse) but not the exact swirl in the photos.