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)

Hohner-branded models, 1960-1962

c.1960 Hohner Kingsway

Styled like a Dallas Tuxedo, Woodwork looks like early Vox/Stuart Darkins' work. Pickup by Henry Weill

Hohner Kingsway

c.1960 Hohner Metropolitan

Pickup by Henry Weill

Bell Catalogue

c.1960 Hohner Holborn

Woodwork believed to be Stuart Darkins' work, with Weill pickups fitted. Most of the hardware is typical of early sixties Darkins/Vox manufacture. It also has a bolt on neck, unlike F/W guitars of this era.

Melody Maker 13th May 1961

The Amazon, Zambesi and Apache Set-Neck six-strings were introduced in May 1961. These were styled like Hofner’s earlier Holborn, although the Ambasso bass strongly resembled Fenton-Weill’s Deluxe four-string.

The low-priced Apache had a solid slab-sided mahogany body finished in an unusual beige nitro finish. Two Weill bar magnet pickups were fitted onto a dark purple scratchplate. No mini scratchplate. Open backed Van Gent tuners.

Second in line was the Zambesi, which featured a solid slab-sided mahogany body with a "maple" veneer under a clear nitro finish, very much like the Holborn. Two bar magnet Weill pickups fitted onto a black scratchplate. The mini scratchplate was white with "Zambezi" engraved into it. Fixed tailpiece and open backed van gent tuners.

Top of the range was the luxurious "Amazon", featuring a sculpted and sanded solid Sycamore or Mahogany body with a blended in heel-less neck. Finished in a clear nitro finish. Two powerful separate magnet Weill pickups fitted onto a red or sometimes black scratchplate. Mini scratchplate was either black or white (depending on main plate colour) with the "Amazon" legend engraved.

Featuring teardrop shaped van gent tuners.

In Sweden these styles were sold under the Fenton Weill brand as the "Twin Master" or in a short scale as the "Zam Master"

Melody Maker 4th Nov 1961

Melody Maker 3rd Mar 1962

Hohner Amazon 444

An early Sycamore Amazon wihout shaded neck, and featuring symmetrical Vibrato cover-plate

A Mahogany Amazon with red plate:

1961 Hohmer Fenton Weill Amazon Mahogany

Hohner Zambesi 333

1962 catalog listing: "An attractive first quality solid mahogany bodied instrument with veneered sycamore front. Beech fingerboard. Black Perspex plate with tone and volume controls and changeover switch. Ivory plectrum guard. Cash price 37 pounds 16 Shillings."