what model was this?

[Mike Honey]

Memory is getting worst now but around 1963 I bought a Burns guitar from a mate for a fiver. It had a tiny body; red with a two piece black scratchplate. The headstock was oversized and i quickly sold it (for a profit!) and bought my first strat. Anyone got any ideas what model it may have been. If i saw a pic i would recognise it but i havent seen anything on the web.

mike

[JimN]

It sounds from your description like a Burns Sonic (the first Burns London production electric).

There's a pic at:

http://www.daydreamguitars.com/dbimages/s_Picture_144.jpg

JN

[Mike Honey]

spot on jim! thanks very much. I've obviously been looking at tri- sonics!! It was nice to play but didnt seem to balance right on the strap. wish i still had it though!!

mike

[RayL]

Hi Jim

I can't let your comment "the first Burns London production electric" go unchallenged! The Sonic may be a contemporary of the Vibra-Artist, but both were preceded by the Artist which, although only produced in small quantities, was nevertheless a 'production' guitar in Burns terms. The prototype Artist (P.53 of 'The Burns Book') is dated as 1959 and my very early model (with its 'reversed' colour scheme, seen here in its 'untouched' state in about 1964) is also possibly 1959 (source - letter from Phil Sweet/Storm, Jim Burns' right-hand man). The Artist model continued for a time in 1960 until Jim Burns had designed his first tremolo unit, which was then fited to the new Vibra-Artist and Sonic ranges.

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Ray

(keen-eyed viewers are no doubt saying "why is there what looks like a tremolo on your guitar, Ray?") The answer is that the Bigsby was already fitted when I bought the guitar in 1963. As the standard Artist had no tremolo it was probably fitted as a special order.

[noelford]

At the start of the sixties I paid (with my mother's help!) £52 for my first quality guitar, a Burns Sonic. I've been interested to note that all the Sonics I've seen recently, particularly on eBay, have the tremelo fitted, but mine didn't have a trem. Here's a slightly fuzzy blow-up from an old pic.