Leo Guitars 2019 Dillinger (Nicotine White)

2019 Leo Guitars Dillinger in aged Nicotine White — Meister Ede's custom order, fat neck and more. The Tele classic, read differently.

As a working musician, Ede is always looking for guitars that inspire, and that bring look, feel and sound together in a way that makes you not want to stop playing. Leo Guitars kept coming up positively in various online forums, and it was only a matter of time before Ede and Darko (Leo Guitars) got together to specify something.

Darko reached for the finest timber — old, comparatively light chestnut for the body, very heavily flamed maple for the neck and a beautiful piece of rosewood for the board. The neck is fat with a light V profile and feels superb, very smooth indeed. The body is beautifully contoured and sits against you properly. It plays without any stress right to the top frets and hangs comfortably on a strap at 3.45 kg — and that's with a tremolo and chestnut.

Darko also made most of the hardware himself, by hand and at some effort. The bridge, for instance, is one of several versions and the clear favourite once it came down to tone. Look at all the details, from the pickup switch to the control cavity and the second pickguard. The tremolo has already proven itself for Ede through years of experience with Duesenberg guitars.

The qualities of that timber reach the amp through Kloppmann pickups. The set was tweaked several times until the sound was right — the balance between the pickups works, and the P-90 doesn't come across too fat against the bridge pickup. The colour chosen was a tastefully aged Nicotine White. This example is Ede's own custom order; from now on, though, we're taking orders too, so be prepared for a longer wait.