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Beano(?)-Maybe?

TM1

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About 1974/75, a long time close friend owned a `59 Burst s/n #9 3177. It's in Robb's book (the 1st one). I have a photo of it when the covers were put back on as my friend likes covers. But in Robb's book the neck pickup is Dbl. White and the bridge pickup Dbl. Black. The guitar has Grovers and is pretty plain. I remember seeing it the first time and thinking to myself, you spent $1,500. for a `58 Flying V and traded it even for the plaintop Les Paul? I was use to seeing originals with some flame.
All these years later I carry around in one of my guitar cases a photo of my #11 Travis Bean Artist-very first Travis Bean with a serial number and the 3rd guitar they made next to my friend Ricky's old Les Paul that he had. Photo was taken by his swimming pool with both leaning up against a palm tree when we lived in Portland, Texas.
The photo has his old LP with covers on, but on page #235 in Robb's book it shows it with the covers off. It's faded, but not badly for 1975. the top inlays seem to match pretty well.
Now..., this is where it gets interesting to me. The guitar was bought from an Overseas Navy Man's local wife who needed to buy groceries. The Navy chap could have been in U.K., bought the guitar and brought it back here. The woman who sold the guitar got $125.00, a pittance. The Navy guy could have bought it for a low price because whomever knicked from Clapton sure didn't have anything into it.
Anyway, sounds plausible to me.. I have no idea who owns this guitar now or where it is. Would be a real hoot if it's actually "Beano". I remember playing it and thinking that the neck was pretty small compared to my Travis Bean and against my `61 Melody Maker. The Melody Maker had a pretty wide neck, but thinner from front to back and my Travis Bean was more like a mid Fifties Les Paul. But the photo on #235 vs. the photo of EC in Decca Studios look pretty similar. I'll see if my friend Ricky has some better shots.
Cheers!
 

duaneflowers

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Hmm... :hmm

26169995_10214257829816242_642931995231117030_n.jpg
 

StSpider

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clapton-bluesbreakers.jpg


Lots of things in the story seem more than coincidences but the inlays or the top don't see to match to me. Maybe there are better pics of 9 3177 around?
 

fakejake

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Sep 3, 2010
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1,274
:dh


This has been suggested several times is the past, but I say it again: Why doesn@t someone in the UK with a bit time on his hands track down the photographer of the Beano sessions, and see whether he or his relatives still have the negatives. The guy was a professional photographer and his name is known (even mentioned somewhere around in the forum). Using the negatives and some modern image processing software it should be easy to enhance the woodgrain and patterns of the inlays, which will make is so much easier to match with currently known bursts.
Just sayin...:salude
 

deytookerjaabs

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0wmP2sUl.jpg


tsJ3rCph.jpg





Hmm, someone call the History Detectives. The barely visible grain lines to the left and above the controls going into the center seem appear to be the same angle.
 

Tom Wittrock

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9-3177 ??
As far as we know [from years of research] a 9-3XXX serial number on a Burst would seem incorrect.
I've never seen an example with a clear, untainted serial number. :hmm
 

58burst

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May 11, 2002
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To my eyes from that famous photo, the distinctive feature of Beano's top is a large, light "eye" in the maple grain centered loosely between the volume knobs. This guitar doesn't seem to have that-
 

asapmaz

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Jun 19, 2003
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Beano has a fairly large gap between the fretboard and the neck pup ring that this guitar doesn't seem to have.
 

TM1

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JJ; was just speculating as the similarities are more than most. That's why I posted. The guitar that my friend Rick had owned I have not seen or played in 40 years. I'm trying to find some shots of it that are clearer.
But I'm pretty certain that it's not it, but... You never know. From what I remember, it wasn't a very remarkable guitar in looks. Of course in that time period I had my head up my arse with my Travis Bean's.... I would imagine that we've all been in a position where we get an instrument and think "this is it". I foolishly did that with PRS in 1990 and sold a great ES-335... Thinking "oh, I'll never need anything else.. That was the last time I was so foolish...
I'd like to know where this guitar is now though...
Thanks!
 

ourmaninthenorth

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You're all way off the mark Fella's...

We've got it in the North of England....and you ain't getting it back....:laugh2::laugh2:

rhrub0G.jpg
 

TM1

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You're all way off the mark Fella's...

We've got it in the North of England....and you ain't getting it back....:laugh2::laugh2:

rhrub0G.jpg
LOL....cool box! I subscribed to the Beano for years.. And years.. and years. Not so much into comics over the last 20-25 years like I was..
Beano and Mad magazine ruled..
 

JJ Blair

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JJ; was just speculating as the similarities are more than most. That's why I posted. The guitar that my friend Rick had owned I have not seen or played in 40 years. I'm trying to find some shots of it that are clearer.
But I'm pretty certain that it's not it, but... You never know. From what I remember, it wasn't a very remarkable guitar in looks. Of course in that time period I had my head up my arse with my Travis Bean's.... I would imagine that we've all been in a position where we get an instrument and think "this is it". I foolishly did that with PRS in 1990 and sold a great ES-335... Thinking "oh, I'll never need anything else.. That was the last time I was so foolish...
I'd like to know where this guitar is now though...
Thanks!

I was just making a joke about the threads with previously unseen Bursts where somebody always posts "It's Beano!"
 

TM1

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9-3177 ??
As far as we know [from years of research] a 9-3XXX serial number on a Burst would seem incorrect.
I've never seen an example with a clear, untainted serial number. :hmm

Isn't the Keith Richards Burst s/n #9 3182 ?
 

Tom Wittrock

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TM1

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Sure looks like a "3" to me Tom. It's never been repaired. If it was it was before Ricky owned it in 1974. Keith's was never repaired either and his number is 9 3182.
 

Tom Wittrock

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Sure looks like a "3" to me Tom. It's never been repaired. If it was it was before Ricky owned it in 1974. Keith's was never repaired either and his number is 9 3182.

Unfortunately, your photo doesn't show on my screen.
Hopefully, you can see mine.

I had this Burst at least a year before I realized it wasn't 9-3012. :ganz

917_p53806.jpg
 

Tom Wittrock

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Unfortunately there are several photos [apparently hosted on photobucket :wah] in this thread that are not showing on my screen. :fc
 
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