REFERENCE & RESOURCE PAGES:

 

FENTON-WEILL

STREAMLINE - DE LUXE - TUXMASTER - AMERICAN RANGE

TWISTER RANGE - DUALMASTER - SPECTRATONE - FIBRATONE

HOHNER - BELL - DALLAS - ADVERTS

 

BURNS-WEILL (1959) - OTHER BURNS & RELATED (1958-1992)

 

Deluxe, 1960-1961

 

The Deluxe model was initially a continuation of the original 1959 Burns-Weill Fenton model, but with closed-back plastic-buttoned Van Gent tuners. Original retail price was £39-14-6d. Soon the body gained an upper cutaway, and shortly thereafter the pickguard was elongated at the bass horn to suit the new body shape. With the next revision the bass horn became sculpted back into a point, and finally the Jack Socket migrated from the side to the pickguard (red example below was later non-factory relocation to pickguard). Ultimately supplaced by the Hohner models in 1961.

 

Henry Weill says in a 1977 interview with Paul Day that these early guitars were made in small batches: "Originally we made 3 guitars, 2 guitars, perhaps half-a-dozen guitars. But the thing that was important to us (as a company), and which enabled us to develop; not to see mass-production, but larger runs, was... (to get) orders from people lke Hohner. Well, this was something we used to do; We used to make up a sample of something, take it to somebody like Hohner and say: 'How would you like us to make you a hundred of those, and you can have the design exclusive?', you know?

 

 

 

1960 Deluxe Guitar

batwing-shaped Plectrum Guard

 

 

Internally, the body and pickguard of this Deluxe are marked '4'.

Contoured Mahogany Body and 'Blown-in' Black finish on 24 1/2" scale length Set-Neck.

Original Height-adjustable Ebony Bridge and folded metal tailpiece

 

 

 

Uniquely-shaped 'bat-wing' Secondary Pickguard, unlike those on other known Deluxes.

 

 

Teardrop-shaped Van Gent tuners with plastic 'rugby ball' buttons

 

 

 

Another c.1960 Deluxe with the unusal Batwing-shaped secondary pickguard.

(probably partially refinished prior to 1978)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Guy Mackenzie's Example:

 

 

 

 

 

Pat Bryan's example, short bass horn?:

 

Pat Bryan's c.1961? Vibrato-equipped example:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Black example with added Rangemaster vibrato unit

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some other examples:

 

Stripped finish

 

 

 

Another 1960 Deluxe with stripped finish, replacement knobs, pickguard, and added Rangemaster vibrato unit

 

 

A black example, with unusual fittings and tremolo. Maybe a refinished restoration piece judging by the odd knobs, blank headstock badge, black dot inlays, Hofner bridge, and later metal-buttoned Van Ghent tuners

 

 

 

1960 Deluxe Bass

 

An early example with the shorter pickguard bass horn

 

 

 

Another shaded dark red example:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another example with contrasting coloured knobs:

 

 

 

 

 

Besson Advert c.1960