Tele deluxe 72?

lovestrat74

 Thoughts on these? I am looking for a fender alternative to a Strat or Tele (standard).

Winny_Pooh

If you replace the pickups with correct repros and 1meg pots then yes. Tele feel but with sounds between a 335 and a tele

lovestrat74

Winny_Pooh said:

If you replace the pickups with correct repros and 1meg pots then yes. Tele feel but with sounds between a 335 and a tele

Yeah I've heard mixed reaction about the pups with some saying just replace the pots with 500 meg.  Also heard that nothing out there replicates that original sound because the magnets are just not available anymore..

stickyfiddle

There is at least one maker doing WRHBs with the proposer CuNiFe magnets, though I recall they’re not threaded and adjustable like the originals because they’re very fragile to machine, and it’s also of marginal benefit. I think it’s @theguitarweasel at Oil City, but I’m not 100% certain. 

Even so, the modern stock Fender ones are basically just bar-magnet PAFs, so even having aftermarket WRHBs with Alnico polepieces will still get you 90% of the way there and be much better than the stock pickups

TheBigDipper

Do you want one that sounds like the '70s originals?

2-3 years ago, I went through a process of trying to find a 1970's Tele Deluxe that was genuine (all the original bits that matter) and played well or not-so-genuine (a new neck, for example - yet the dealer telling me it was a '70s neck, and then telling me he was selling on behalf of the owner so I couldn't take it off to check after purchase and get a refund) but not at "genuine" prices. A players grade would have been fine.

So I bought this MIM Tele FSR...

https://www.dropbox.com/s/429v923ceg5evii/IMG_2287.JPG?raw=1   


It played really well, but didn't sound like a Tele Deluxe - very dark and generic - it could have been a dull-sounding Gibson. So I replaced the wiring loom with a pre-assembled kit from Mojotone (same values as the '70s guitars) and bought two lovely WRHB pickups from The Creamery. Not CuNiFe magnets, but voiced to the point where I can't tell the difference and get all the grin factor I was looking for.

I didn't try the wiring change or the pickup change by themselves, I just went for it in one go. In for a penny... 

5redlights

Fender released a P90 version called 'Black Dove' a while ago which was very good. They rarely pop up used though, so you can jist make your own. I fitted my 72 with P90s and it sounds great. A good option if you want something close soundwise to a tele/strat but a bit beefier. 

lovestrat74

Yes some good ideas I do like a p90 and the option to upgrade wiring and even pups has crossed my mind.. I am keen on the deluxe because if the 12" radius and I do like a belly cut. 

The other alternative is to build from scratch 

Whitecat

You could just swap em out for Lollar Regals and be done with it...chasing vintage and/or rare might be a crapshoot...

poopot

lovestrat74 said:

The other alternative is to build from scratch 

this

lovestrat74

poopot said:

lovestrat74 said:

The other alternative is to build from scratch 

this

Wouldn't expect any less from you sir

Winny_Pooh

lovestrat74 said:

Winny_Pooh said:

If you replace the pickups with correct repros and 1meg pots then yes. Tele feel but with sounds between a 335 and a tele

Yeah I've heard mixed reaction about the pups with some saying just replace the pots with 500 meg.  Also heard that nothing out there replicates that original sound because the magnets are just not available anymore..

Ignore the specific magnet thing. It's really about the larger bobbins(tele size), 42 gauge wire and polepiece magnets(wide range) vs bar magnets(paf style).

You can get decent copies with alnico 5 magets from a few sources.

ArchtopDave

Telenator used to make CuNiFe WRHB's, but closed down at the end of 2017. I bought a pair a couple of years ago, and know that "Mr.Telenator" was in poor health at the time, and told me, in one e-mail, that he wasn't going to be able to carry on much longer.

Caffeine_Vampire

The original WR pups are known to deteriorate over time. Your best bet is Jaime from the Creamery. 

chris78

I’ve had an original tele deluxe and I wasn’t blown away by the pickups. The bridge was beyond ice pick and this is from a guy who lives on his tele bridge with the tone at 10 most of the time.
Ive had Jamie wind me a set and they were very good, but I’ve also had a set from catswhiskers and they were excellent. I think the only reason I sold my last one was the 7.25 radius and vintage frets.

Caffeine_Vampire

I had my ‘75 refretted but could never get the neck right. Put me off CBS Fender big time. 

NelsonP

I bought a Shiflett tele, which is basically a hot rodded tele deluxe 2md hand from andertons. I a/b'd it vs whatever the american tele deluxe was at the time (around £1200), from memory.

I preferred the Shiflett. Nothing in it in terms of playability but i preferred the sound of the  humbuckers in the Shiflett. They are great guitars and definitely worth a try... The gold ones look great too!

TheBigDipper

NelsonP said:

I bought a Shiflett tele, which is basically a hot rodded tele deluxe 2md hand from andertons. I a/b'd it vs whatever the american tele deluxe was at the time (around £1200), from memory.

I preferred the Shiflett. Nothing in it in terms of playability but i preferred the sound of the  humbuckers in the Shiflett. They are great guitars and definitely worth a try... The gold ones look great too!

Never tried a Shiflett Tele. I'm guessing that the humbuckers are "Gibson-esque", yes? The reissue WRHB pickups in my MIM Tele FSR were really lifeless and wooly. Nothing like as rich as the ones on a Les Paul and a million miles away from the Creamery WRHBs I replaced them with. 

How does the Shiflett sound in comparison to a Les Paul? 

victorludorum

There's also the John 5 version that has 3 pickups, although you'd have to mod it a bit to tone back the bling factor.

thomasw88

I have one, and am thinking of changing the pickups, they're ok, but just a little bland to my mind.

one thing to do tho, is replace the god awful tuners.

these ones fitted mine exactly and are a lot better

https://www.wdmusic.co.uk/hardware-parts-c1/tuning-machines-c28/vintage-style-tuners-c32/kluson-f-style-diecast-revolution-tuners-for-fender-6-in-line-no-collar-p13455

darthed1981

They are doing a Squier "Classic Vibe" version of these this year!

If the quality is anything like the CV I have already, I might buy two different kinds

lovestrat74

thomasw88 said:

I have one, and am thinking of changing the pickups, they're ok, but just a little bland to my mind.

one thing to do tho, is replace the god awful tuners.

these ones fitted mine exactly and are a lot better

https://www.wdmusic.co.uk/hardware-parts-c1/tuning-machines-c28/vintage-style-tuners-c32/kluson-f-style-diecast-revolution-tuners-for-fender-6-in-line-no-collar-p13455

What's the neck like? I believe they are a good handful...