Scratching the Telecaster itch

timmypix

Good to know, thank you. Itching to find out for myself now but won't get to PMT until Sunday, probably.

merlin

How about this? 

http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/114929/trussart-deluxe-steelcaster-cream-on-steel-gator-with-piezo#latest

timmypix

merlin said:

How about this? 

http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/114929/trussart-deluxe-steelcaster-cream-on-steel-gator-with-piezo#latest

About £2k over budget but full marks for effort!

SteveF

PhilW1 said:

Has anyone got any experience of The Nashville Tele?
seems to cover all bases for about £700.

I do, it's a really nice guitar.  The maple neck is a nice shape, not too thin but not a huge baseball bat either.  It has a very thin satin finish on the neck and it has a lovely 12" radius and locking tuners too.  

It has 3 fender noiseless pickups, wired in standard Strat wiring, but it is a simple mod to chuck a superswitch in and wire it so that the middle position gives you the outer two pickups a la a standard tele.  You could also just swap the scratch plate and get rid of the middle pickup. It has modern saddles, but I'm sure a bridge swap would also be simples if you wanted to. 

I have one for sale in the classifieds in this price range (with the aforementioned switch mod)  A great guitar, but I have just bought a new CS Strat (see NGD thread) and need to recoup funds.  Tokai ES-120, Fender Nashville Tele, Fender Classic Player Strat, Tokai LS-150

timmypix

Bumping this as I've come across a bit of a left-field suggestion: Chapman ML3 Pro Traditional.

Decent spec for the money, gorgeous thin finish - I'll admit this is really what's pulling me in -, comfy enough neck (I've played other Chapmans and it's pretty similar to the Fender modern C, not quite as thin as my Strat), but still potentially cheap enough used to allow for modification to taste.
This review from Guitar mag certainly seems to sing praises, too.
https://guitar.com/review/electric-guitar/chapman-guitars/

Has anyone had any experience of these compared to a Fender Tele? If we could avoid going down the Chapman opinion tangent that would be much appreciated, I'm just asking about this specific guitar.

Also still open to other Tele suggestions as well. Only thing I've decided against is G&L, simply because the proportions are wrong to my eye - if I want a Tele, it has to look right as well as feel/sound right.

BeardyAndy

I'd have thought once you buy a decent Tele and a LPJ you can go ahead and sell the rest!

timmypix

BeardyAndy said:

I'd have thought once you buy a decent Tele and a LPJ you can go ahead and sell the rest!

I completely get the mindset, but I love my Les Paul/singlecut humbuckers too much. And my V. And my seven string....

BeardyAndy

timmypix said:

BeardyAndy said:

I'd have thought once you buy a decent Tele and a LPJ you can go ahead and sell the rest!

I completely get the mindset, but I love my Les Paul/singlecut humbuckers too much. And my V. And my seven string....

Given your love of the humbucker, a more sensible suggestion would be something like this 
https://shop.fender.com/en-GB/electric-guitars/telecaster/american-performer-telecaster-hum/0115122341.html
I've modded my mex Tele to something very similar, you get the lovely classic Telecaster bridge tones but with (IMHO) a more usable neck pickup. I've also just bought a Seymour Duncan 59 so i can split the neck to get me somewhere back to the original single Tele neck sound should i ever want it.

The only guitar I'll ever need? Probably not but pretty close!

timmypix

BeardyAndy said:

timmypix said:

BeardyAndy said:

I'd have thought once you buy a decent Tele and a LPJ you can go ahead and sell the rest!

I completely get the mindset, but I love my Les Paul/singlecut humbuckers too much. And my V. And my seven string....

Given your love of the humbucker, a more sensible suggestion would be something like this 
https://shop.fender.com/en-GB/electric-guitars/telecaster/american-performer-telecaster-hum/0115122341.html
I've modded my mex Tele to something very similar, you get the lovely classic Telecaster bridge tones but with (IMHO) a more usable neck pickup. I've also just bought a Seymour Duncan 59 so i can split the neck to get me somewhere back to the original single Tele neck sound should i ever want it.

The only guitar I'll ever need? Probably not but pretty close!

Would be pretty cool as an all-rounder, but I have enough humbuckers (and yet I still want a second Les Paul....). I want a "traditional" Tele as I've never had one - down the line if I decide the neck pickup's not for me, then I'll cross that bridge when I get there. 

Gomers

JezWynd said:

Fender Classic Tele is very good value. They do two versions, one with poly finish, one with nitro. Mexican built but quality of the couple i’ve had has been uniformly good. I much prefer it to the Baja, which had a thick poly finish and felt plasticy. This was a few years ago so they may have improved. The Classic lives up to its name with 7.25 radius and vintage frets.

I have one of these, a blonde '50's with Ash body and nitro finish, real featherweight too.  I traded a Baja 60's for it.  The Baja's are great guitars but did fancy a nitro finish so did a deal.  My Classic '50 has a slightly chunkier neck profile too and the nitro version comes with a natty vintage style tweed case.  To be honest, I believe the nitro finish is a bit of a con, I'm sure I've read that they do put a thin nitro finish on but it's over a clear poly finish base, I could be wrong though.  My guitar was used and came with SD Quarter Pounder pickups which is the only thing I want to change as they rob it of that unmistakeable Tele sound IMO.

I've only ever had Mexican Teles, never felt the need to 'upgrade' to US, I would agree with others that they can vary in weight, so a good light one can take longer to discover but they are out there.  My first proper electric when I was in my covers band was a regular MIM sunburst 50's Tele and it was superb, bulletproof. 

Don't discount the Classic 72 Tele Custom either with the HB in the neck position, just swap out the pickups and you've got a very cool guitar.

danishbacon

I've not got anything to add other than your are on your way to teleporting yourself into the right frame of mind!!

SteveF

danishbacon said:

I've not got anything to add other than your are on your way to teleporting yourself into the right frame of mind!!

That’s nice. Is that the American original in Penny? 

danishbacon

SteveF said

That’s nice. Is that the American original in Penny? 

Old AVRI in copper

SteveF

Gorgeous finish either way!  Very nice. 

robgilmo

rivercider said:

Yes, S1 functions the same on both Baja models, but I just thought it sounded significantly more useable on the 60s for some reason.  Way less hollowed out, as I remember. 

Are they different pickups? I would have thought the switching would be the same.

brojangles

They are different pickups. Broadcaster/Twisted Tele on the original Baja, AV sixtysomethings on the 60s I think.

Nikc

I just spent a quality hour or so with my MIM standard, Blues jr amp, tube screamer and a looper pedal - just the best. Buy pretty much any tele and get on with playing you won't regret it