What tele do you recommend from my current choices?

[Smileypete7]

Hi everyone, new here today, first post!

Can you give me some guidence? I want to buy a Fender American Telecaster and the choices i have are:

Fender American telecaster deluxe ash - maple neck
" " " 60th Anniversay
Pat's guitar Voodoo lounge supreme

Or anything you would recommend????

I basically want a top notch Tele that plays and sounds great and is pleasing to look at.. I like bright warm, fat tones, enjoy playing country, Knopfler, Blues and some bluegrass type stuff, still learning but would like to buy the best i can with my budget,which is £1000 or $1800 (rough exchange rate i think?).

I'd rather try and buy right the first time than have to swap guitars time and time again... so please your recommendations would be brilliant!

Can you all help me?

Thanks in advance...

Pete

[TheOx]

Hi Pete

Just thought I'd say hello, seeing as I'm just up the road from you in rainy Wotton-Under-Edge!

Can't really help you on the Tele front, as after much deliberation I've gone for a Japanese 62' re-issue (being picked up in Tokyo for me today hopefully).

Cheers

Ox

[Chris Leger]

Get a regular "deluxe ash." No point in Paying $USD 1000 extra for a "Pat's" guitar, when you can install your own humbucker for next to nothing. I likewise wouldn't fork over extra cash for the anniversary medallion.

No great feat, but if you look at the guitar in my "gallery," my guitar is set up about the same as "Pat's," but my wiring is rather more sophisiticated, and I'm in for a small fraction of what he charges for his.

Never pay a lot of money for one of these guitars.

[Smileypete7]

Hey Ox, good old british weather hey! Guys in America it really does rain too much here you know!

Chris, thanks for the advise and nice guitar.. anyone else add anything here??

[Chris Leger]

Pete, if it's any consolation, it rains here too. Sunny today, though.

What do you folks pay for a new American Telecaster in a shop?

Your remarks have left me scheming... if the average Englishman will part with £1000 (!!!) for a Telecaster, there has to be a opportunity in there somewhere whereby everyone wins.

#EDIT#

OK, I just looked. GBP 750 about right? If so, that's reasonable, I suppose. I'd just buy one of those.

Took a close look at one of Pat's Teles... particluarly here:

http://www.patsguitars.com/images/au...sale/route.jpg

Note that he routs his neck pickup holes the same way I do... by hand. And here I was thinking mine was a bit crude, but he has the same rough, asymmetrical oblong holes for the humbucker legs as I do.

It's outrageous what he charges. Buy an American standard Tele in your choice of color, buy a router, a humbucker, and the same $5-worth of caps and resistors, and you're there.

[Smileypete7]

Hi Chris, a new Fender Telecaster Deluxe Ash in the UK is £999.00!

What opportunities did you have in mind? Can you send me one from the states?

[Chris Leger]

I had a brief flash of "hey, I'll export hand-picked American guitars for 10% service fee." The shops here are polluted with pretty nice ones.

I'm assuming UK import duty + VAT coming in under 10%...

I mean, $2 grand is a lot of money for a Tele. A deluxe costs $1300 here, or £660 or so.

Personally, I wouldn't buy a guitar without playing it first... anyway, if you want to talk with me about buying one here in the states, I'll be happy to help, no charge of course. I'm in the stores often enough. My "scheming" was contemplated outside the context of TDPRI.

[KevinB]

Pete,

If you like the Voodoo Lounge vibe, why not look at a Hot Rod '52? And with what's left over from your budget you could get a smaller tube amp, like a Blues Junior NOS.

[TheOx]

I think you'll find that UK import duty + VAT is nearer 23%, plus the shipping. Just been looking into this myself, but luckily I have work colleagues based in the US, Japan & Korea......

[nrps]

Fender American Telecaster Deluxe Ash:

[Scott V]

Originally Posted by KevinB

Pete,

If you like the Voodoo Lounge vibe, why not look at a Hot Rod '52? And with what's left over from your budget you could get a smaller tube amp, like a Blues Junior NOS.

I also prefer the Hot Rod '52 to the Deluxe. You might also consider the '52 AVRI.

[nrps]

Originally Posted by Scott V

I also prefer the Hot Rod '52 to the Deluxe. You might also consider the '52 AVRI.

'52 AVRI is a good choice, love mine:



1999 '52 AVRI "Copper Caster"

[Chris Leger]

Originally Posted by TheOx

I think you'll find that UK import duty + VAT is nearer 23%, plus the shipping. Just been looking into this myself, but luckily I have work colleagues based in the US, Japan & Korea......

Holy $#!$!