Egan 7 string fanned fret acoustic guitar

July 3, 2015, 8:06 am

≫ Next: 1977 Burns Artist. The very first one made.

≪ Previous: Vintage Framus Strato Deluxe Star Bass from the 1960s

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I feel this will be a very polarizing post. You will either love this Egan 7-String acoustic or you will hate it. I really want to love it, and even though it's an incredible work by a very talented luthier I find myself on the side of hate.

It's just too much. There is a lot going on here with multiple wood choices, pinstriping, binding, and I've never been a fan of back and side woods not matching.

Check out the video at the link to hear the builder play this odd duck. It honestly sounds quite nice. Yet, it's clearly not for me.

Am I alone here?

R.W. Haller

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1977 Burns Artist. The very first one made.

July 5, 2015, 6:44 pm

≫ Next: Burns Custom Elite Series Sonic Deluxe. NAMM prototype. Perhaps the only one of its kind.

≪ Previous: Egan 7 string fanned fret acoustic guitar

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My heart is aflutter. Look at this wonderful Burns Artist from 1977. It has the serial number A1, which apparently means that it was the first one made for sale.

Apparently Jim Burns thought the Artist had a "more conventional style". I agree with the seller that he could not have been more incorrect, or perhaps modest. This stunner screams originality. Awesome curves, carves, and simple elegance makes this one for the top my covet list.

Currently listed at $7995.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
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Burns Custom Elite Series Sonic Deluxe. NAMM prototype. Perhaps the only one of its kind.

July 7, 2015, 6:45 am

≫ Next: Ibanez FR365TFB Sunburst - Tele Monday?

≪ Previous: 1977 Burns Artist. The very first one made.

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This Burns Sonic Deluxe may be the only one to have come with three tri-sonic pickups, and it has a serial number 0001. Another first? The only one?

All in all this is a great take on the tele design, has the Rez-O-Tube bridge, and though I'd normally loathe a 3 + 3 headstock on a tele design this one gets a pass since its equipped with a Burns scroll headstock. Very sweet.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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Ibanez FR365TFB Sunburst - Tele Monday?

July 13, 2015, 12:13 pm

≫ Next: Ibanez Talman Prestige series debuts at NAMM. My dreams come true?

≪ Previous: Burns Custom Elite Series Sonic Deluxe. NAMM prototype. Perhaps the only one of its kind.

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As a fan of both telecasters and early Ibanez Roadstars I always have wished that Ibanez had produced a Telecaster shaped Roadstar. I had a 1972 Ibanez Telecaster that I regret selling, but still I wish for a Telecaster Roadstar.

Has anyone ever seen one?

In the meantime this Ibanez FR365FB will have to sustain me. All in all it's not a bad looking guitar though I'd prefer a maple fretboard and and older style headstock, before the points.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
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Ibanez Talman Prestige series debuts at NAMM. My dreams come true?

July 13, 2015, 12:32 pm

≫ Next: Hand made One of a kind Bovine Infused Guitar - With apologies to PITA? (The guy from Hunger Games?)

≪ Previous: Ibanez FR365TFB Sunburst - Tele Monday?

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So, I posted about my desire for an Ibanez Roadstar Telecaster literally less than 15 minutes ago. Then I scroll through my news feed and see these from NAMM.

I'm not sure what to think. What I do know is that I love the styling of the two that are more T-style. I also know that they are made in Japan and will run around $1100. The Talman resurrected with a maple fretboard and Telecaster vibe?

Why yes, you have my attention.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
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Hand made One of a kind Bovine Infused Guitar - With apologies to PITA? (The guy from Hunger Games?)

July 14, 2015, 3:38 pm

≫ Next: Klira Triumphator Made in Germany 1960s - Possibly the smallest heastock to body ratio out there.

≪ Previous: Ibanez Talman Prestige series debuts at NAMM. My dreams come true?

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Because I have no words, I'll leave you with the sellers own:

"It just screams Billy Gibbons :)

Real horns and real cowhide (sorry PITA)

Sherif star, Scull knobs

Rotary pickup selector switch is mounted to Magnum 22 caliber drum

Spanish Cedar body, spalted maple back

24 fret 25 1/2" scale maple/rosewood neck

Texas Special single coil pickup set

Comes with customized megasturdy flight case."

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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Klira Triumphator Made in Germany 1960s - Possibly the smallest heastock to body ratio out there.

July 17, 2015, 12:03 pm

≫ Next: 1920s Epiphone Inspiration round tenor guitar.

≪ Previous: Hand made One of a kind Bovine Infused Guitar - With apologies to PITA? (The guy from Hunger Games?)

guitarz.blogspot.com:

This Klira Triumphator is a great little guitar. I love the simplicity of the layout and colours. It's hard to tell if the headstock is extra big, or the body is extra small. Perhaps a combination of both.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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1920s Epiphone Inspiration round tenor guitar.

July 19, 2015, 8:54 pm

≫ Next: Playstation One guitar that was " built with a buddy".

≪ Previous: Klira Triumphator Made in Germany 1960s - Possibly the smallest heastock to body ratio out there.

guitarz.blogspot.com:

This seems like a rare bird. When the guitar started to overtake the banjo in jazz some companies took to installing tenor necks on their guitars. This gave us the common tenor guitars by Martin, Gibson, and others. But this Epiphone Inspiration took a different approach, essentially replacing tone ring and head with wood. Maybe they thought that it would be an easier sell to banjo players if the instrument still resembled what they were accustom to.

Maybe they just liked how it looked.

I know I do.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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Playstation One guitar that was " built with a buddy".

July 22, 2015, 9:13 pm

≫ Next: This Seven String 36 fret Yellow Gary Kramer R36 is a beast in yellow.

≪ Previous: 1920s Epiphone Inspiration round tenor guitar.

guitarz.blogspot.com:

I'm not sure where to begin on this PS1 guitar. Perhaps a joke about it being a PoS1? Naw, too lowbrow. I could point out the obvious faults. Look at that strap pin location, look at the angle of strings from "tailpiece" to bridge. The gobs of glue are a nice touch as well. I generally have a place in my heart for such novelty items, and if this one were better built I'd want to buy it just to play this song, in my band Life-Size Men.

But alas, it's not meant to be.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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This Seven String 36 fret Yellow Gary Kramer R36 is a beast in yellow.

July 26, 2015, 4:45 pm

≫ Next: Guitarz helps me solve my own mystery. The Goya Rangemaster Album Cover

≪ Previous: Playstation One guitar that was " built with a buddy".

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Though this Gary Kramer R36 seven string guitar goes against a lot of what I believe in, I really kind of like it.

To me it looks like something that would have been made by Teuffel in his teen years, before he settled into a more mature style.

This particular one has had some modifications including the removal of frets 28, 30, 32, and 34 to make access easier for human-sized hands. This yellow beast was clearly designed for an alien so in it's intended hands it there would be no need for such a modification.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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Guitarz helps me solve my own mystery. The Goya Rangemaster Album Cover

July 29, 2015, 7:16 am

≫ Next: When a Burns isn't a Burns. Japanese made violin-bodied 12 string Burns "copy".

≪ Previous: This Seven String 36 fret Yellow Gary Kramer R36 is a beast in yellow.

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In my continuing pursuit to become the world's fattest hipster I can be found hovering around discount record bins quite often. Last night I found this Guitars Unlimited record and the main guitar on the cover caught my eye more than the pretty country gal holding it.

I'd never seen the Goya Rangemaster before, and I was going to post here and ask for your help. But alas my quick search for Goya on Guitarz brought me to this post. I must have missed it the first time around as I would certainly have remembered those crazily located f-holes and those incredible pickups.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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When a Burns isn't a Burns. Japanese made violin-bodied 12 string Burns "copy".

August 6, 2015, 8:21 pm

≫ Next: Japanese made Heit Deluxe from the 1960s

≪ Previous: Guitarz helps me solve my own mystery. The Goya Rangemaster Album Cover

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I found this Japan made Burns guitar while doing one of my regular "Burns Guitar" searches the other day. I'm hesitant to call this a copy as I'm not aware of any Burns guitar that is similar to this model. Has anyone seen one before?

It sold for $127 and I kind of wish it were I who bought it. I'm sure though that it would require quite a bit of work to get playable, so I probably did myself a favour not adding to my list of projects. But I'd sure love to have a 12 string with a tremolo. Imagine the possibilities, the constant tuning would be paramount to heavy lifting finger exercises.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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Japanese made Heit Deluxe from the 1960s

August 9, 2015, 3:02 pm

≫ Next: Highly "customized" Martin D-16GT makes me feel more than a little blue.

≪ Previous: When a Burns isn't a Burns. Japanese made violin-bodied 12 string Burns "copy".

guitarz.blogspot.com:

I see a lot of different influences in this 1960s Heit Deluxe. There are definite similarities the the Epiphone Wilshire, and Tiesco. There are even hints of a solid body Ovation. And, I cannot for the life of me remember which guitar has a scoop-cut body behind the bridge. I know I've seen it before, but where?

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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Highly "customized" Martin D-16GT makes me feel more than a little blue.

August 10, 2015, 7:27 pm

≫ Next: Takamine EA-360 electro-acoustic guitar, a.k.a. the Takamine Flying A

≪ Previous: Japanese made Heit Deluxe from the 1960s

guitarz.blogspot.com:

I'm just going to leave this here, along with a few quotes from the seller.

"I'm just the type of person that always has to customize things and this production came out of that"

" Most stock guitars I've found have thicker than necessary soundboards that don't resonate as well as if it were thinner, so I thinned the top so that the guitar could respond and resonate better with a lighter softer touch"

" The neck was also thinned down a bit to make it more easier to play, and the fretboard slightly scalloped ( not yngwie malmsteen type scallop as you can tell) giving every note more air/openness and better control over bending and vibrato"

"So if you are crazy left brained perfectionistic about things please go buy yourself a stock whatever"

This custom Martin was listed at $1999 U.S. but see now that the listing has ended.

Did it sell?

The link is still active if you want a complete description from the seller.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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Takamine EA-360 electro-acoustic guitar, a.k.a. the Takamine Flying A

August 19, 2015, 8:54 am

≫ Next: Briilliant made in Japan St George MP3 from the 1960s

≪ Previous: Highly "customized" Martin D-16GT makes me feel more than a little blue.

guitarz.blogspot.com:

I've written before on this blog about the curiosity that is the Takamine Flying A. It's basically an acoustic Flying V that looks af if it has been over-inflated with an air-pump. Of course you can get more V-like acoustic Flying Vs these days from Dean Guitars, but these Takamines remain rare and sought after in certain circles.

So, it's interesting to see one come up for sale on eBay this week with a Buy It Now price of US $2,350 (with a starting bid of US $1,799).

It's also interesting to note that the eBay listing uses the very same photo montage that I personally Photoshopped together from a previous eBay listing from four years ago and blogged about here when another of these guitars was offered for sale. I wonder if it is actually the very same guitar again, or just another very similar example? It's a shame I hadn't made a note of the asking price back then in 2011, just for sake of comparison for those of us who are interested in such things.

G L Wilson

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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Briilliant made in Japan St George MP3 from the 1960s

August 20, 2015, 9:24 pm

≫ Next: Rare Carved Shiraki Acoustic made in Japan 1981

≪ Previous: Takamine EA-360 electro-acoustic guitar, a.k.a. the Takamine Flying A

guitarz.blogspot.com:

Here we have yet another example of Japanese awesomeness from the past. This 1960s St George MP3 hits a lot of perfect notes for me. The body shape is familiar but unique, there is a healthy dose of chrome but not so much as to take away from the overall elegance, and a wacky headstock that really isn't so wacky after all. It just looks like the right headstock for this guitar. The Burns-esque pickups and faux shell pick guard are just icing.

I wish I'd had one of these 30 years ago so I could be all hipster-like and say that I had an MP3 way before you could put them on your ipod.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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Rare Carved Shiraki Acoustic made in Japan 1981

August 24, 2015, 7:13 am

≫ Next: 1985 Tokai Paisley Telecaster copy.

≪ Previous: Briilliant made in Japan St George MP3 from the 1960s

guitarz.blogspot.com:

I'd never heard of Shiraki Guitars. They were apparently part of the Matsumoku fold in the early 1980s, so you know that it is likely a quality instrument. It also seems that they did some level of collaboration with Alvarez as well.

Though it's really not my taste with the intricate carving and lack of a sound hole ( I wonder if projection through the carved area is any good ), I'd gamble that this cedar top dreadnought from 1981 plays and sounds quite nice. Note the neck joint. Is it glued in, bolted on the inside, or a different kind of joint?

I'm reminded of Blueberry Guitars and wonder if there was some influence from these Japanese rarities.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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1985 Tokai Paisley Telecaster copy.

August 25, 2015, 7:09 am

≫ Next: G&L Interceptor fretless bass from 1984

≪ Previous: Rare Carved Shiraki Acoustic made in Japan 1981

guitarz.blogspot.com:

I almost bought a 1980s MIJ Fender paisley telecaster once. It was in a pawn shop in the early 1990s for $400 Canadian. It was a time before anyone could easily find out that the MIJ Fenders of that era were so incredible, and the price reflected that. I knew, but I was a student and had no money and all my credit was used up. I still regret it though. I think that was when I really started to covet the paisley Telecasters, with that missed opportunity.

What I did not know was that Tokai had done a copy of the paisley Telecaster. This 1985 Paisley Telecaster clearly shows it's age. But i think that makes it all the better.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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G&L Interceptor fretless bass from 1984

August 26, 2015, 1:26 pm

≫ Next: Raven short scale violin shaped bass made in Japan with scroll headstock.

≪ Previous: 1985 Tokai Paisley Telecaster copy.

guitarz.blogspot.com:

These days I feel more at home playing bass than guitar, and thus find myself more drawn to basses when perusing the racks in guitar shops, browsing the web, etc. I'm especially drawn to fretless basses; my first ever bass was a fretless (a Westone Thunder I-A) and I've owned several others over the years, most recently I've been playing a Hohner B2A fretless conversion. But I'm always looking out for that special ONE, so regularly check the eBay listings.

Recently this 30-year old G&L Interceptor fretless bass caught my eye. It's not a model that I've been aware of previously, and I'd imagine that most guitar and bass enthusiasts would have to agree that it is one of Leo Fender's more obscure bass designs. The body shape, I guess, belies its 1980s origins. It's rather blocky-looking with sharp, straight edges. A little bit like a Status bass maybe, but without the bevelled edges. I really like the headstock shape too, which is unusual for a G&L but still manages to incorporate their trademark "sting" (for want of a better word).

The bass is equipped with narrow field full range humbucking pickups and active electronics; the eBay seller insists that it has "an amazing bass boost which takes your breath away with its dub-level bottom end ... It would make a killer reggae or dub/indie PIL type bass, or any kind of contemporary rock or jazz, PERFECT for knocking the wind out of any audience." Sure sounds good to me, but then I do love dub reggae bass.

Currently listed on eBay UK with a Buy It Now price of GBP £895.

G L Wilson

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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Raven short scale violin shaped bass made in Japan with scroll headstock.

August 28, 2015, 7:34 am

≫ Next: 1967-68 Messenger hollow body fretless electric bass with aluminum neck

≪ Previous: G&L Interceptor fretless bass from 1984

guitarz.blogspot.com:

This is a tough one for me.
I really want this bass, and the seller is quite literally only a few streets away from where I am as I type this. But I currently own 3 basses ( a Westone Thunder, an Ibanez Roadster, and a Vantage V900B - 2 of which i should be selling ) and I really do not play bass. I can play but I only play for demo purposes and I never gig as a bassist ( all drummers heave a collective sigh of relief ).

This Matsumoku made Raven violin bass is, according to the seller, in near mint condition. The pictures seem support his claim, and everything about this bass says "buy me".

My resolve is weak, but my wallet is empty.

R.W. Haller

© 2015, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.

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