Burns Weill RP2G Super Streamline bass guitar from 1959

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Here's an intriguing and supposedly quite rare bass guitar from Jim Burns and Henry Weill, the Burns Weill RP2G Super Streamline Bass. I suppose that back in 1959 it looked futuristic and space-age. Today it looks ... I don't know what. It's an ugly bass for sure but probably not as hideous looking as those ghastly singlecut jobbies with the bass-side bout extending half way up the neck which seem to be unfathomably popular these days in bass playing circles. It's quite recognisably a design from the Burns stable, displaying future echoes of the Burns Flyte on the treble side of the body.

Here is what the eBay seller has to say about it:

Burns Weill RP2G bass

This is a very rare bass made in 1959 by Jim Burns and Henry Weill. The body, neck etc., were designed and made by Jim Burns and all the electrics and pickups within the scratchplate were designed and made by Henry Weill.

This particular bass came from the collection of Mark Griffiths - bass player for The Shadows.  It was sold in auction some time ago along with many other guitars and basses owned by Mark Griffiths. I did not manage to buy it then but a while ago I contacted the buyer and managed to purchase it.

It is totally original apart from the fact that it had been refinished in the past - possibly when Mark owned it.

It is a very rare bass regardless of previous owners and its actually the only one I have come across. It has two pickups with volume, tone and blend controls plus a pickup selector switch and two-way switch - all working well, and it is a very nice playing bass with a lovely neck, quite narrow but very playable with twenty-two frets with red dot markers and a scale of thirty inches.

Currently listed on eBay UK with a Buy It Now price of £950.

G L Wilson

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The Piglet guitar build project, part 15

guitarz.blogspot.com:

The Piglet in action on-stage with Red & The Hogweeds at a festival in a field somewhere in Wales.
That's me on the Flying V bass, by the way.

Sorry guys, I've not posted for ages and in the last Piglet post I had said I'd hope to show some video of the Piglet in action. It's actually done quite a few gigs already; alas I don't have any quality video footage worth showing you, so you'll have to make do with a few photographs instead.

For the record, the guitar performs well and is a great stage instrument. Audiences seem to like it as well. It gets pointed at quite a lot, photos taken, etc, and is the cause of a few double-takes! Which is all good promotion for the band.

At The Garage in Swansea

At The Parrot in Carmarthen

Landed Fest, near Llandrindod Wells, Wales

The Piglet, on its stand

Finally, I just thought I'd post my original PhotoShop mock-up of the Piglet guitar. Obviously, there are a number of differences with the final product, e.g. number of pickups, headstock shape, angle of the neck, but hey, I think we got pretty damn close to the original vision.

G L Wilson

© 2018, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - the blog that goes all the way to 11!
Please read our photo and content policy.