NGD Case Queen of the decade

beaubrummels

beaubrummels

Well-known member
Brian May Super. Took 6-7 years to get on the waiting list and another 3 years to get the guitar. Came with a nice hard-shall Hiscox case. I have it's cheaper mate I bought 10 years ago as a second. The 'Super' is a beautiful instrument. Well worth the wait for me. One of a kind and instantly worth more than double what I paid.

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Oh my, sooo nice! :bigeyes: :bigeyes: Not to mention being patient all this time. For those wondering, the Super is made in limited quantities every year, and meant to be a bridge between the regular BMG and the Guyton. It has an ebony fretboard and an all mahogany (chambered, of course) body, and set neck. These are the main differences from the original and Guytons.

I see now they've gone to the original style bridge too; initially it was a Wilkinson, as also per the K'z version of the guitar.

I also hope to get on the RS train one day. I have a set of Adeson pups I bought years ago waiting for the right occasion; they're not BM spec, just regular ones he called the 'Classic British' set, broadly calibrated for their respective positions.
 
By the time I got around to hearing Queen it was their Radio Ga-Ga era..can't say I was a fan.

Years later my late wife (then gf) showed me some of their older 70's rockier stuff and it was pretty cool. Brian May's solo's are f'n Epic!

As for that guitar like i said I'm not very knowledgeable but congrats...that's a long wait for a guitar! My patience usually wears out after about a week :laugh2: I think it looks pretty cool/funky...they both do but yeah the red one's even cooler :bigthumb:
 
I've read the original used block board for the body with mahogany top and back, a fireplace mantelpiece for the neck, painted block board for the fretboard, motorcycle valve springs for the vibrato, and a knitting needle for the vibrato arm, and the neck is held on with a single bolt. The description sounds awful, but such amazing music was made with it. I'd dare say these replicas are technically finer instruments, with all mahogany body and set neck, real ebony fretboard, locking tuners. The original is inimitable of course, but the replicas using that same guitar design are unique and in general the design is its own thing.

I have to say the color is the richest ruby blood red I've ever seen. In person it has a depth like looking into a quarter inch deep pool of fresh blood. The wood grain has a sheen to it that makes it look deeper than it is. It's kind of the Gibson cherry and black guard aesthetic on steroids. It's kind of like an ES-330, SG Special, Tele and 24-fret super Strat all rolled into one. The headstock design is among the best (strings straight to the tuners) and zero fret, the intonation is excellent, better than any Gibson I have. I can play above the 12th with some open strings and it's all in tune.

The obvious thing is to play Queen riffs as soon as you pick it up, but I love these guitars because they make A LOT of different sounds, and simply changing string gauge and type (nickel, steel, coated, etc.) gives you another level of different sounds. Using different amps takes it even further. Perfect for when you want to be original and sound good, but not copy or sound like anyone else. The pickups are further apart on the Super, so the out of phase positions scream a bit more than the regular Special. This is one guitar that harmonics do 'leap' out of it, which was surprising - I always thought that phrase was just B.S. hyperbole, but I was actually having to adjust my hand position and work to avoid getting stray harmonics from certain pickup settings.

You have to be patient to get one because there's no where else you can get one (unless you want to pay 5+ figures for it). Normally it's a 1-year wait. Covid dragged it out to 3 years. But getting on the list is the challenge. It's only open to the first 300 per year and it fills up faster than the queue to get Taylor Swift tickets.
 
That's awesome!! Congratulations. I'd love to have one just for the sake of having one, but I don't think it would work with my playing style.
 
beaubrummels said:
I've read the original used block board for the body with mahogany top and back, a fireplace mantelpiece for the neck, painted block board for the fretboard, motorcycle valve springs for the vibrato, and a knitting needle for the vibrato arm, and the neck is held on with a single bolt. The description sounds awful, but such amazing music was made with it. I'd dare say these replicas are technically finer instruments, with all mahogany body and set neck, real ebony fretboard, locking tuners. The original is inimitable of course, but the replicas using that same guitar design are unique and in general the design is its own thing.

I have to say the color is the richest ruby blood red I've ever seen. In person it has a depth like looking into a quarter inch deep pool of fresh blood. The wood grain has a sheen to it that makes it look deeper than it is. It's kind of the Gibson cherry and black guard aesthetic on steroids. It's kind of like an ES-330, SG Special, Tele and 24-fret super Strat all rolled into one. The headstock design is among the best (strings straight to the tuners) and zero fret, the intonation is excellent, better than any Gibson I have. I can play above the 12th with some open strings and it's all in tune.

The obvious thing is to play Queen riffs as soon as you pick it up, but I love these guitars because they make A LOT of different sounds, and simply changing string gauge and type (nickel, steel, coated, etc.) gives you another level of different sounds. Using different amps takes it even further. Perfect for when you want to be original and sound good, but not copy or sound like anyone else. The pickups are further apart on the Super, so the out of phase positions scream a bit more than the regular Special. This is one guitar that harmonics do 'leap' out of it, which was surprising - I always thought that phrase was just B.S. hyperbole, but I was actually having to adjust my hand position and work to avoid getting stray harmonics from certain pickup settings.

You have to be patient to get one because there's no where else you can get one (unless you want to pay 5+ figures for it). Normally it's a 1-year wait. Covid dragged it out to 3 years. But getting on the list is the challenge. It's only open to the first 300 per year and it fills up faster than the queue to get Taylor Swift tickets.
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Yes, essentially. Blockboard is basically pine laminate, like stuff kitchen cabinets might be made of; the original guitar has two layers (top and bottom) and an oak centre section to which the neck, bridge and trem are mounted. The fretboard is also oak, stained black and lacquered. I imagine if BM and dad had access to better materials back in the day, they'd have built it not unlike the Super is. Still today various aspects of the design more than stand up, and ahead of their time when the guitar was completed.

The colour is one of the most difficult things to get right! The original kinda goes from dark red to brown/orange depending on the light. Can't remember what the red dye they used was, the main body of the finish is Rustin's Plastic Coating.

Similarly, I'd like one because of its versatility and the less than usual vibe, not because I'm interested in copping Queen licks (I do like Queen, of course). Fully agree with your view.

There are a few other makers who do good replicas with a range of options, like Dansan (France), Carpinteri (Italy), Loxley (UK) etc. The cost depends the options, but typically the blockboard version costs more because of the labour involved in building the body. From what I seen, people charge around 5k for a blockboard spec instrument; and similar to the Super for an all mahogany one. Dansan also makes a version of the Birch guitar, which would be cool to have as too :D.​

Anyway, congrats on the awesome acquisition; play her well and loud :headbang:.
 
Ashurbanipal said:
Yes, essentially. Blockboard is basically pine laminate, like stuff kitchen cabinets might be made of; the original guitar has two layers (top and bottom) and an oak centre section to which the neck, bridge and trem are mounted. The fretboard is also oak, stained black and lacquered. I imagine if BM and dad had access to better materials back in the day, they'd have built it not unlike the Super is. Still today various aspects of the design more than stand up, and ahead of their time when the guitar was completed.

The colour is one of the most difficult things to get right! The original kinda goes from dark red to brown/orange depending on the light. Can't remember what the red dye they used was, the main body of the finish is Rustin's Plastic Coating.

Similarly, I'd like one because of its versatility and the less than usual vibe, not because I'm interested in copping Queen licks (I do like Queen, of course). Fully agree with your view.

There are a few other makers who do good replicas with a range of options, like Dansan (France), Carpinteri (Italy), Loxley (UK) etc. The cost depends the options, but typically the blockboard version costs more because of the labour involved in building the body. From what I seen, people charge around 5k for a blockboard spec instrument; and similar to the Super for an all mahogany one. Dansan also makes a version of the Birch guitar, which would be cool to have as too :D.​

Anyway, congrats on the awesome acquisition; play her well and loud :headbang:.
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That's it! Oak. I had forgotten the specs. I nerded out on it back when I got on the list but haven't read up on it in a while. But now it doesn't matter, I have mine and a KAT treble booster and a Vox, ready to rock. Onward.
 
Amazing guitar. I think the Red Special is one of the greatest electric guitars ever made. The original's materials aren't that bad, by the way, just... different. Blockboard is still heaps and bounds above the MDF and plywood we'd see later, and oak is not a bad tonewood either, even for a fretboard.

I am making something like this myself, but in a format I like better than this shape. Regardless, I'd love to own a real replica one day.
 
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