My old '57 Tele after 47 years!

[BoogieManSC]

Once in a hundred lifetimes story. Awesome and made me smile this afternoon while working. Looking forward to the followup

[chipbutty24]

Can't wait to see pics as well. See how stupid kids are? ;)

[johnthatcher]

sounds like that dude should sell it back to you.

[tap4154]

Maybe it was one of Waylon's old guitars? He embossed roses in leather on his Teles.

Very cool story!

[bender66]

Great story Rhom & looking forward to the pics!

[Davo17]

So cool. Teles were bottom feeder guitars?

[esetter]

Looking forward to the rest of the story.

[DC Music]

Great!

[ringodingo]

Great stuff. No points deducted for your spelling of Telecaster as telecater.

[rushcentrale]

great story! good luck!

[unbridled]

Well??

[lckyjcky]

Is it April 1st yet?

[Rhomco Guitars]

Well, where do I start? I found this Tele to be a 1959 rather than a 1957 as I was told by a previous owner of the guitar but that certainly did not diminish the experiance at all. I took my Vistalux Tweed 1955 5C5 Fender Pro amp with me to hear what it sounded like today. I have to say right now, tone wise, this is the best sounding Tele I have ever personally played. Most of my curiosities about the guitar were answered but as usual I left with some new ones. I did not remember that it was a "Top Loader". This was kind of validating to me because I love "Top Loaders" today. I was so excited to play it and was so pleased with the tone that I did not realize it was a top loader until later in the visit as I clipped off the strings to take it apart.
The inlays are nothing like I remembered either. They are really kind of subdued and not so impressive as I imagined them. I was very pleased with the playability and bendability of the frets along with the tone of the pickups. The finish on the neck is clearly the original nitro from Fender. It is well worn and shows a good bit of cracking on the headstock. The finish on the body is not nitrocellulose lacquer but I could not determin what it is without some further testing. I have a good deal of finishing experience and I believe it to be an early furniture or cabinet grade poly of some form. Whatever it is, it has worn thin, and bare in spots and has darkened over time as evidenced by the finish under the pickguard.
The TONE....... I naturally assumed this to be the magic of an old Tele only to discover the frets, pickups and controls had all been replaced/rewound in 2005 by the current owner. The body and neck have remained unaltered over the years except for the removal of the tiny, worn flat frets that were on it when I had it. I am certain this was one of the major reasons I did not bond with it long ago.
The body was originally a blond as evidenced by the finish that remained in the neck pocket and routs. She was sanded bare rather than chemically stripped (thank you Mr Luthier of long ago) and Inlayed when brand new. The current owner has researched the owner history to know a good deal about it. He traced it back to a previous owner that sold or gave it to Waylon Jennings and has a letter of proof from Waylon that he once owned the guitar. The owner traced it back to 1960 and confirmed it had the inlays then but it remains a mystery who did the work and or owned it originally between May, 1959 and 1960.
Most of my curiosities about this guitar other than its owner history now are centered around the pickups. I remember in 1966 it was a microphonic nitemare and woud squeal in a heartbeat. The bridge pickup was supposedly rewound in 2005 but I have my doubts. Both the neck pickup and the bridge pickup have been heavily wax potted which could have cured the microphonic problem without actually rewinding. The owner did not know they were waxed and did not direct the repair shop to do anything to the neck pickup at all. I found a strange wrap of common black electricians tape around the coils of the neck pickup under the wax and it continued up over the metal cover up to where the pickguard lays. The string wrapping of the bridge pickup did not look disturbed under the wax but who knows? Why am I perplexed? It sounds so damn good but it was modern pots, cap, switch and the pickups certainly have been altered.
Let's take a look!
Rob

[Rhomco Guitars]

More pics.

[Rhomco Guitars]

And more.

[Dan German]

Wow--great story. Thanks for sharing it with us, Rhomco. (And thank the current owner for allowing the in-depth photo shoot!)

[jonnyfez]

Fantastic! What a treat to be able to revisit your past like that.
Thanks for sharing!

[ROADMAN]

Originally Posted by Dan German

Wow--great story. Thanks for sharing it with us, Rhomco. (And thank the current owner for allowing the in-depth photo shoot!)

what Dan said....for sure

just for curiosities sake , any guess as to what it might be worth ?

[rolling56]

wow nice one!

I would love to have a 50's tele or strat from my birth year ('56) but i play lefty I would flip a '56 righty over and play it if the price was right

[tap4154]

Aha! I knew it had been in Waylon's hands ;o)

Great looking guitar!