Leo Guitars Dillinger Ray Gun Olive Drab Burst Aluminium Top (2025, Private Stock)

'25 Leo Guitars Dillinger Ray Gun Olive Drab Burst, aluminium top, 4A curly maple neck, Mojo P90 + Gold Foil pickups, only 3.35 kg – a one-off built for Ede, from Ede's Private Stock, tour-proven on the Höhner Zirkus Tour 2025 and more

A real aluminium top on a T-style – and with a look like this? You don't see that every day! This Ray Gun exists exactly once: Darko Milojevic of Leo Guitars built it as a one-off for Meister Ede.

Leo Guitars instruments keep standing out in online forums, and Darko is uncompromising with woods, hardware and finish. Here he has outdone himself. The aluminium top is brushed and covered with an Olive Drab burst. The metal shimmers through the lacquer, and depending on the light, reflections dance across the whole top. The live photos in the gallery give an idea of what stage lighting does to it: the top comes alive and sparkles with every movement.

The back is finished in a noble olive green, thin aged nitro lacquer with play wear exactly where it belongs. Combined with the aluminium top and stage lighting, it looks unbelievably good and eye-catching. The metal sparkles on the front, while the back stays discreet and elegant – a contrast you won't find anywhere else.

No effort was spared anywhere else on this guitar either. An aluminium top first has to be worked and finished, and then there are the one-piece, very strongly flamed 4A neck, the aged nitro look on top and back, and a bridge made by Leo Guitars themselves. At the 12th fret, a Ray Gun inlay takes the place of a plain dot, and on the top next to the neck pickup there is a fine motif with lightning bolts that does the guitar's name justice. This Ray Gun is not a guitar for the catalogue but a one-off for a player who loves details.

The neck is the second big highlight: one-piece Eastern curly maple in 4A quality, very strongly flamed. The fretboard is made from the same maple and glows in the light. The profile is an aged "worn U" at 24.4 mm at the first fret and 25.4 mm at the 12th, plus a 9.5"–12" compound radius and 21 frets in extra-hard 6105. That means the neck sits snugly in the hand, bends are easy and everything can be played stress-free into the highest positions.

Sound: the body is swamp ash, light and airy, giving an open, resonant foundation. On top sits the aluminium top. A hard, reflective metal like aluminium tends to support attack, clarity and defined sustain: notes speak faster and tighter, the highs stay clear without getting shrill, and the swamp ash adds the warmth. The pickup combination fits perfectly: a Mojo P90 in the neck position and a Mojo Gold Foil at the bridge. The P90 sounds warm, fat and open, with plenty of midrange body and a slight growl when you dig in – ideal for singing leads, solid rhythm work and anything that needs warmth. The Gold Foil at the bridge complements it ideally: open, bell-like and very articulate, with tight lows, plenty of snap and a vintage charm of its own that sets it clearly apart from classic single coils and humbuckers. It sounds clear and lively without getting harsh, and keeps chords transparent even with gain. The two pickups are superbly balanced and complement each other perfectly: round and warm at the neck, sparkling and biting at the bridge, and in the middle both working together beautifully – with no extreme jumps in level when switching. Everything is quickly available via the 3-way switch (neck, both, bridge). Metal tops on Telecaster-style bodies have their fans among players: Joe Bonamassa has played Gigliotti Telecasters with metal tops (including aluminium and brass), which many guitarists consider especially assertive and punchy. If you know and like that character, you will recognise it in the Ray Gun right away – and if you don't, you should definitely hear it.

The bridge is a Leo gtrs MK1, plus Gotoh tuners and nickel hardware. There is no pickguard, which leaves the look of the top undisturbed. At only 3.35 kg the Ray Gun hangs relaxed on the strap, despite the metal top.

Meister Ede played the Ray Gun live on the Höhner Zirkus Tour 2025 – the live photos in the gallery are from that tour and show him with the guitar in action. It comes with a high-quality case and certificate, as pictured.

A guitar you recognise by sound and looks at once. From Ede's Private Stock.

The live photos with logo were taken by Axel Live Pictures.