Conversions
Take Your BMG or Burns Special to the Next Level
Brian May Guitars offers instruments based on Sir Brian's iconic Red Special. The BMG Special is a relatively low-cost guitar, made in Korea. It was previously manufactured by Burns of London. The BMG Super is a high-end replica, made in the Czech Republic.
While both models are very well-made and wonderful to play, RSConversions in partnership with The Cyber Shop produce custom parts to upgrade the BMG and Burns instruments so they look and play more like the original. Kendall Guitar Works is trained and authorized to install those parts in Canada.
If you're fortunate enough to have a BMG Special or Super personally signed by Sir Brian May, we are able to protect the signature by clear coating the top of the guitar. Click here for details.
Images on this page copyright © RSConversions and/or The Cyber Shop. Used with permission.
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BMG or Burns Special Full Conversion
The BMG Special is designed for cost-effective factory production. It employs a Wilkinson WVP 2-point, knife edge tremolo bridge, and other off-the-shelf parts, that make it look and play quite differently than the original.
In a full conversion, we route the guitar body and install an authentic Cyber Shop combination knife edge/bolt block tremolo and roller bridge, and install an accurate RSConversions pickguard and other trim.
We further upgrade the guitar as outlined below.
| Pickguard | RSConversions replica pickguard, with optional MayStar or badger inlay; half-moon tremolo tail plate, and matching truss rod cover |
|---|---|
| Bridge | Cyber Shop replica roller bridge with enhanced snap-in, two-piece rollers |
| Tremolo | Cyber Shop replica combination knife edge/bolt block with replica tremolo arm and 'knitting needle' tip |
| Strap Buttons | Cyber Shop replica Burns-style nickel-plated brass strap buttons, with red fibre washers and Grolsch style rubber strap locks |
| Knobs | Cyber Shop replica aluminium volume and tone knobs with red painted locator dimple |
| Components | RSConversions custom 220K volume/tone pots or optional KAT SuperPot, and a .033uF Sprague paper-in-oil capacitor |
| Tuners | RSConversions pearloid buttons for Grover® locking tuners, or Gotoh® pearloid buttons for 2023 and later BMG locking tuners |
| Pickups | We can optionally replace the stock pickups with three single coil Tri-Sonic style pickups provided by you, or by us at extra cost. |
| Headstock | We can optionally add a BMG Super-style MayStar decal to the headstock at extra cost. |
| Switches | We relocate the six BMG slider switches from the pickguard to a Cyber Shop switchplate, or optionally install white Switchcraft® slider switches (available from RSConversions) |
| Shielding | Conductive black paint in the pickup and switch cavities, and copper tape on the back of the pickguard |
| Strings | D'Addario XL nickel wound 9-42, or strings provided by you |
| Setup | Complimentary setup with every conversion |
BMG or Burns Special Upgrade
RSConversions and The Cyber Shop offer a more simple pickguard plus tremolo arm upgrade that improves the appearance of a BMG or Burns Special, without having to significantly modify the guitar.
We attach a switch plate to the guitar and attach the switches to it, rather than to the pick guard. The more accurate replacement pickguard includes pickup surrounds that hide the pickup screws. The more authentic tremolo arm simply replaces the Wilkinson arm.
We can further upgrade the guitar as outlined below.
| Pickguard | RSConversions Special Upgrade pickguard, with optional Maystar or badger inlay; half-moon tremolo tail plate, and matching truss rod cover |
|---|---|
| Tremolo Arm | Cyber Shop replica tremolo arm and 'knitting needle' tip |
| Strap Buttons | Cyber Shop replica Burns-style nickel-plated brass strap buttons, with red fibre washers and Grolsch style rubber strap locks |
| Knobs | Cyber Shop replica aluminium volume and tone knobs with red painted locator dimple |
| Components | RSConversions custom 220K volume/tone pots or optional KAT SuperPot, and a .033uF Sprague paper-in-oil capacitor |
| Tuners | RSConversions pearloid buttons for Grover® locking tuners, or Gotoh® pearloid buttons for 2023 and later BMG locking tuners |
| Switches | We relocate the six BMG slider switches from the pickguard to a Cyber Shop switchplate, or optionally install white Switchcraft® slider switches (available from RSConversions) |
| Shielding | Conductive black paint in the pickup and switch cavities, and copper tape on the back of the pickguard |
| Strings | D'Addario XL nickel wound 9-42, or strings provided by you |
| Setup | Complimentary setup with every conversion |
BMG Super Upgrade
The BMG Super is a high-end replica which, as of 2022, incorporates a roller bridge, strap buttons, and knobs from The Cyber Shop.
For prior year BMG Super models, RSConversions and The Cyber Shop offer a pickguard and roller bridge upgrade that improves the appearance of the instrument. The Cyber Shop roller bridge replaces the stock Wilkinson bridge, and requires no body routing
We can further upgrade pre-2022 BMG Super guitars as outlined below.
| Pickguard | RSConversions Super Upgrade pickguard, with optional Maystar or badger inlay; half-moon tremolo tail plate, and matching truss rod cover |
|---|---|
| Bridge | Cyber Shop replica roller bridge with enhanced snap-in, two-piece rollers |
| Components | Optional KAT SuperPot upgrade |
| Strings | D'Addario XL nickel wound 9-42, or strings provided by you |
| Setup | Complimentary setup with every conversion |
How to Order
Contact RSConversions for current pricing and parts availability, and to discuss your requirements. You can obtain both RSConversions and Cyber Shop parts directly from RSConversions. They are based in the USA, and Canadian import fees may be payable.
Contact Kendall Guitar Works to disuss scheduling and pricing, which vary depending on what you would like to have done. Send us a deposit to reserve your spot in the schedule.
Once you've received your parts from RSConversions, ship or deliver them, along with your choice of pickups and strings if you wish to provide them, and the guitar to us in Toronto. We'll do the work and let you know when it's ready for collection or return shipping.
Please see our Payments, Shipping, and Returns Policies and the RSConversions Warranty page for important details.