Burl Drop Tops - Premium Figured Burl Wood Guitar Drop Tops
What Are Burl Drop Tops?
Burl Drop Tops are thin, bookmatched slices of highly figured burl wood bonded over a solid electric guitar body to create a visually spectacular two-tone instrument surface. Unlike standard figured maple drop tops, Burls produce swirling, organic grain patterns with natural depth and color variation that transforms any guitar body into a true collector-grade showpiece. No two Burl Drop Tops are ever visually identical.
Why Burl Wood Drop Tops Elevate Custom Guitar Builds
Burl Drop Tops are the premium choice for custom electric guitar builders for three key reasons. First, the extraordinary swirling Burl's figure creates visual drama impossible to achieve with straight-grained or standard figured tonewoods. Second, the natural color variation within burl wood from deep reds and ambers to rich browns produces a depth and warmth that intensifies dramatically under burst and natural transparent finishes. Third, each piece is one-of-a-kind giving every guitar build a completely unique visual identity no production instrument can replicate.
At Exotic Wood Zone, shipping from St. Louis, Missouri, every Burl Drop Top is hand-selected for figure intensity, bookmatched for visual symmetry, and dimensioned for direct application over standard electric guitar body profiles.
Available Burl Drop Top Species at Exotic Wood Zone
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Australian Red Gum Burl - deep red heartwood with extraordinary swirling Burls figure; the most visually dramatic species in our Burl Drop Tops collection
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Australian Red Mallee Burl - rich red-amber tones with dense eye and swirl patterns; a premium burl wood drop top for collectors and boutique builders
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Brown Mallee Burl - warm orange-brown coloring with complex interlocked Burls grain movement; ideal for natural and honey-burst finish applications
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Sydney Red Gum Burl - warm reddish-brown tones with fine, consistent burl wood figure; a versatile drop top species suited to both dark and light body wood pairings
All burl drop tops have been dried in accordance with standard industry practices and are cut to specific dimensions consisting of 20" or 22" long by 7 1/8" to 14" wide and 3/4", 1/2", and 1/32" thick. The burl drop tops have been completely processed prior to shipping - they can be glued together immediately onto your guitar body.
Frequently Asked Questions
Standard figured drop tops use straight-grained species like Flame or Quilted Maple. Burl Drop Tops use burl wood harvested from rare Burls growths producing swirling, organic grain patterns with natural color depth and figure intensity that straight-grained figured tonewoods simply cannot replicate.
Yes, all Burl Drop Tops at Exotic Wood Zone are dimensioned for direct application over standard Stratocaster, Telecaster, Les Paul, and custom body profiles. Available lengths of 20" and 22" cover all standard electric guitar body dimensions.
Explore our full Burl Drop Tops collection at Exotic Wood Zone and give your next custom guitar build the extraordinary burl wood visual impact it deserves.
