Fender American Special Telecaster 2010 Model Club

[lwaun]

I brought one home yesterday. It is a sunburst. I actuallly traded in a Natural Ash american standard on it as I hated the 6 saddle bridge on the american standard and I also am much happier as this on has maple fretboard and the ash one had rosewood. On a tele I want maple not rosewood. Oh and this thing is cheaper too. Also prefer the pickup on this special to the american standard. I never liked the bridge pickup on the american standard but do like the pickups on the special.




I can truely state I don't miss the american standard one bit. This just feels and sounds so much more like a traditional tele. Only thing I would change on this is make the frets jumbo medium but it is okay as it is.

[AjayTele]

OK, I joined this club last week... bought a Sunburst.

I have to say that the Amercian Special IS special! A fantastically made and sounding Tele.

Everything the Highway 1 wasn't....

Highly Recommmended guitar!

[estano]

I am loving mine. My first Tele, and wish I would have got one sooner.

[Mekhem]

Question for the AST players...

Are you still happy with the Guitar?

How does this compare to say a 50's road worn or something in the around the same price point?

I am going to check one out locally tomorrow.

[blindman]

I am still very happy with mine. A Lil 59 fell in my lap today so I threw it in the bridge to try it out. Took some tweaking but I like it. It isnt perfect yet. I left the greasebucket setup alone and just soldered the bridge and soldered the lil 59 in. I reversed the green and black as Seymour Duncan recommends in the wiring diagram.

I love the feel of the guitar and wouldn't trade it for any other.

Oh, I did find one thing that bothers me. When changing the pickup I.found that the height adjustment screws on the brass saddles are loose. So they rattle a bit... that is just poor craftsmenship. I will try using some pipe tape to tighten them up.

[ReIgnition]

Here's mine...

[Mekhem]

Here is my addition to the club next to my Classic Player Thinline... At the store I was thinking about changing the pick guard but I am kinda grooving on the Black/White thing I have going on...

Actually stay tuned for pictures I don't have time to do the picture thing right now... But my AST is white with black...

[sinner716]

I have American Special and my other guitars are getting jealous.She a sunburst.

[jamanon]

Picked mine up a few days ago. Best guitar I've purchased so far. Mine is white, I swapped the pickguard to a black pearl instead of just black for a cool custom look. The sound is great, as much as I don't like the difficult intonation of the 3 bridge saddle, the vintage sound and sustain is definitely worth it!

[cartier]

I am in the club! I just got my axe today. I bought the ash body with Sienna Sunburst finish and it is prettier than the picture. I had a strat this color, but it never did anything for me and it is gone. This guitar is georgous and feels great. I have a 52 re-issue which I got 2 months ago to go with my modified lite ash (SCN's and S-1 Switch) and partscaster with 3 pups. This guitar just feels real comfortable, solid and has some great sustain. Not as loud as I expected, but that is ok. The 4-way switch is a nice change, adding just a little more color. I can't wait to take it to a gig and see what she can do! Photos to follow!

[Mekhem]

Originally Posted by Mekhem

Here is my addition to the club next to my Classic Player Thinline... At the store I was thinking about changing the pick guard but I am kinda grooving on the Black/White thing I have going on...

Actually stay tuned for pictures I don't have time to do the picture thing right now... But my AST is white with black...

Here is mine... Plus the Thinline

[vintageNut]

Got mine yesterday and absolutely love it. I actually went to buy a blonde road worn 50's tele. My mind was already made up before i got to the store but the road worn was not even in the same class as this guitar. I played 3 road worns, a baja, and two AS teles and the AS tele felt better to me than the baja and was head and shoulders above the road worns. One road worn felt and sounded pretty good, the other two, not so much. Both of the AS teles just sounded and played fantastic. I picked the blonde. I swapped my FSR Ash MIM tele (non-noiseless) on it and paid $520 difference. The road worn is MIM, has cheaper pickups, no greasebucket,and cheap saddles yet costs a hundred bucks more than the AS. It was a no brainer. Just wish it had the nitro finish. The neck is a little wide also but this guitar for the money is still the best tele i have found.

[blindman]

Originally Posted by vintageNut

Just wish it had the nitro finish.

Nitro really would be the icing on the cake!!

Congrats on your new AS... I like the white, if I had not found the 2-piece burst first, I would have gone with a white.

I love the wide neck on mine. It just feels right for me. My hands don't cramp up anymore like they did with my 60's RI.

I like the stock pickups, but was not totally in love... never could get the bridge to make the sound I was looking for. I decided to try a Lil' 59 and I LOVE that... but then it made the neck seem wrong.

After many hours (more like months) trying to decide on a new neck pup to try, I pulled the trigger on an SD Antiquity for Tele neck. It was between that, the Alnico II Pro... I had read the Phat Cat is a nice neck pup too but wanted to stick with the traditional tele style if possible.

I picked up the Antiquity I for tele neck today.

I also bought new pots and a capacitor, but ended up just using the stock pots with the greasebucket left as-is. I wasn't sure how it would sound but wanted to do a quick swap and test to make sure I liked the Antiquity.

I LOVE it. It sounds wonderful with the Lil' 59. I am very happy right now.

I am going to play it like this for a while to see if I want to bother putting in a different control circuit or not.

[estano]

Has anyone gigged with their AST yet? I went to a jam session, played mine through my HRdeluxe, and she was the star of the show.I have changed the saddles to compensated, I now have great intonation

[estano]

Couldn't get the action quite where I wanted it. Sent her to the shop got a professional setup.I really miss that guitar. it's been 3 whole days

[radarman]

I've had mine around a month and a half - definitely a great guitar, plays and sounds great. Love the neck and radius.

[estano]

I just got her back from the luthier . Wow what a difference a professional setup makes. he said he had to do some nut filing on it, and adjust the truss rod along with intonation.

[estano]

Anyone mod their american special yet?

[blindman]

Originally Posted by estano

Anyone mod their american special yet?

I ended up replacing the pickups... SD Antiquity in the neck, Lil' 59 in the bridge... loving it!!

[vintageNut]

Originally Posted by estano

Anyone mod their american special yet?

Yep. Mine got CS Nocaster pups about 5 days after i bought it. I liked the neck pickup but the bridge just didnt do it for me. I put both nocasters in there and i cant believe the difference. This thing sounds incredible. Clean, dirty, bluesy, twangy, it does not really matter, it sounds great in all of them. I play in church so i might be playing a nasty rock rhythm on one song, a bluesy solo on the next and then some chicken pickin on the next and it does it all.

Nocaster pups + DRRI + TS9 = sweeeeeettt!!!