Twisted neck for ergonomics - Leo Burrell

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Morecowbell
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Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2019 10:51 am
Location: Fishers, IN

Twisted neck for ergonomics - Leo Burrell

Post by Morecowbell »

I'm having an old tube amp resuscitated and the guy who is fixing it has this in the corner:
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Of course I ask what the heck is going on and learn that it was built by Leo Burrell, who wanted to create a more ergonomic guitar. Long story short, while the body is what grabs your attention, his primary idea was to twist the next 8-10 degrees in order to reduce strain on the wrist.
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"Facts seldom sway an opinion." - John Hall
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Morecowbell
Posts: 280
Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2019 10:51 am
Location: Fishers, IN

Re: Twisted neck for ergonomics - Leo Burrell

Post by Morecowbell »

Apparently not a new idea but new to me - thought it was fascinating. Tried to capture it:
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This is a different model but easier to see the twist:
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Strange but the workmanship on the guitars is pretty rough and there are some very odd things going on! But they really grab your attention (especially when you spent the last three years trying to make sure everything was straight :-)) He patented the twisted neck and says he had some discussions with Martin back in the day.

Seems like CNCs would make short work of this concept today, but it makes me wonder about leveling and maintenance - challenging to wrap my head around.

The bodies are supposed to be ergonomic too - and he seems to have had several different acoustic body ideas, along with some electric guitars.

Anyway - thought it was really interesting and wanted to share with the group. Blurb on him here:

https://jedistar.com/burrell-guitars/
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Last edited by Morecowbell on Sun Mar 19, 2023 1:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Facts seldom sway an opinion." - John Hall
"The difference between theory and practice is that in theory there is no difference." - Van de Snepscheut
TEETERFAN
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Location: Kansas City, MO

Re: Twisted neck for ergonomics - Leo Burrell

Post by TEETERFAN »

What a fascinating approach. The blues giant T-Bone Walker liked his fingerboard angle up and tilted the entire instrument to get the same effect.
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Kevin Doty
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Skarsaune
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Re: Twisted neck for ergonomics - Leo Burrell

Post by Skarsaune »

I went to that link you provided and read the rest of the story.
Really interesting.

The twisted body acoustic, though....not my idea of attractive.
Morecowbell
Posts: 280
Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2019 10:51 am
Location: Fishers, IN

Re: Twisted neck for ergonomics - Leo Burrell

Post by Morecowbell »

I thought so too. The guy fixing my amp was apparently trying to help him with some things which is how he got the guitars. But it doesn't seem like he ever played one so he couldn't speak to the sound or playability.
"Facts seldom sway an opinion." - John Hall
"The difference between theory and practice is that in theory there is no difference." - Van de Snepscheut
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