Chinese Burny

gilby

Has any had any experience of these ? Any cop or are they just selling the name that we remember from the 80's on something so so.

GuitarMonkey

You'd have to twist my arm for me to have a Chinese Burn y.

gilby

As soon as I typed the title in I just knew that gag was going to crop up...

stickyfiddle

I had one, and so did @NotTheDJ. It was definitely better than an Epi but I sold it cos I still couldn't shake that it wasn't a real Gibson. Also, the top bout is just very slightly the wrong shape, which annoyed me slightly.

All that said, with a new set of pickups and wiring it'd be a phenomenal guitar in its own right.

gilby

I can find very little in the way of reviews. How was the neck ? Handful or skinny?

GuitarMonkey

gilby said:

As soon as I typed the title in I just knew that gag was going to crop up...

Happy to oblige! 

stonevibe

I had one and it was excellent.

It was solid, really nice finish and thin paint job.

When I got it the pickups had already been changed and a wiring re-done. I only sold mine as I bought it for use in a band and it was surplus once the band split.

Neck was a slightly wider / deeper '60s profile,

Hardware on these guitars is good, in terms of sizing its all metric stuff.

The neck was really nice actually and the fretwork was decent as well.

Rosewood board on the one I had which was based on a Custom. I know '80s ones had 'Ebonised' rosewood boards.

Good guitars for not a lot of money.

RichardsGuitars

They are excellent quality.  The major problem is supply with only 2 deliveries into the UK in 2 years so it makes it hard to really credibly "get into" promoting them - too frustrating!!

However if you want a quality alternative to a Les Paul they really are superb.

I have had several customers who have opted to continue using their Burny instead of their Gibson not just because it is cheaper but they have actually prefered the Burny!!

Whilst I detest Gibson marketing and general culture for very poor quality these days you cannot beat an older Gibson with a bit of history to it.  The whole played in vibe gives a guitar something quite special and Gibson is a great example of how this works.

A new Gibson at £1800?  You must be having  laugh if you buy one new - really - why?  With so many used examples on the market you have to be crazy to buy a lower quality, poorly made modern Gibson when you can buy so many good examples of used ones at a lower price.

£500 however buys you a great work horse Les Paul Alternative in the Burny.

RichardsGuitars

GuitarMonkey said:

You'd have to twist my arm for me to have a Chinese Burn y.

At least you got the name right.  So many customers ask me for the Bunny..... that kind of sounds like something a woman would ask for at an Anne Summers party?

stonevibe

I'd also say Edwards are a very good alternative to Burny..

Similar money and a little higher in spec terms i.e Seymour Duncan pickups and Gotoh hardware also long tenons and ebony boards on Customs.

DeeTee

So does this mean if it's got Burny on the headstock it's a good option?

RichardsGuitars

Edwards by ESP? Interesting?  Rich Tone Music are promoting them but Nevada Music claim to be the sole distributor?

Does anyone know what the score is with these?  They do look interesting!

stonevibe

RichardsGuitars said:

Edwards by ESP? Interesting?  Rich Tone Music are promoting them but Nevada Music claim to be the sole distributor?

Does anyone know what the score is with these?  They do look interesting!

Made in China and finished in Japan by ESP and stocked / imported by both companies you mentioned as far as I know.

Build quality is slightly better than all the Burnys I have tried and owned. I really like Burny guitars and think they are excellent instruments for working musicians.

The Edwards are just a bit better in terms of detail and hardware.

Things like

Long tenon

Bone nut 

Ebony fret boards

Gotoh hardware

SD pickups.

Van_Hayden

I bought an Edwards Es335 in 2006 and it was great. Sold it and later bought another, the second one was made around 2011 and it wasn't as good and cost more. The first one was on a par with my Yamaha SA2000 but the second one just didn't feel as good. Could be luck, could be the early MIJ models were better. And I've only this second found out about the China input into the new ones!

gilby

Thanks for all the comments guys. Santa may be bringing me something interesting.

Knightwalker

gilby said:

Has any had any experience of these ? Any cop or are they just selling the name that we remember from the 80's on something so so.

Knightwalker

I have a fantasic playing 80's Japanese Burny custom and also a 2014 Chinese Burny Goldtop which i bought new for £400. The Goldtop is excellent, the build quality is great. Id did install new p90's and electrics which has improved its sound but it doesn't need bridge or tail piece upgrading because string transfer is there.Obviously Burny Japan has watched the production and keeps standards. Humans are the same the world over it doesnt matter who has made it as long as consistency in craftsmanship is met. Theyre cheaper, yes. Materials differ on the more expensive Burny's made by the more highly paid Japanese Craftsmen, Yes. But for the price i very much recommend the Chinese ones. Lets face it if you play a electric guitar youve heard of the Chibsons coming out of China for many years now, bespoke, copies made to order. The amount of business China has had from guitar manufacture and for many years now. The Chinese luthiers and manufactuers have become as good as any other in the world. Thats a fact

GoldenEraGuitars

.... 5 years later

HarrySeven

lonestar said:

.... 5 years later

Truly the Dawn of the Dead Thread.

gilby

Never did buy one in the end either.

GoldenEraGuitars

@Knightwalker  you’ll need to post some pics of your geetars!