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Fender Highway 1 Telecaster
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Reviews
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Views
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Date of last review
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15
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42871
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Thu April 12, 2012
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Recommended By
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Average Price
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Average Rating
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93% of reviewers
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$570.00
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7.9
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Description:
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Cool Tele w/matte finish, 3 barrel, more modern radius
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Keywords:
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Tele 3 saddle |
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Find the lowest price for the :
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Posts: 10,047
Registered: March 2003
Location: Colorado Springs
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dpote
Registered: June 2006
Location: Alamogordo, NM
Posts: 115
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Review Date: Wed August 16, 2006
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 5
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Pros:
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Value, playability
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Cons:
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Not overly "spanky"
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This is a very good guitar for the money. I understand they have been changed. I bought a new 2003 model that my dealer had not been able to sell for some reason.
It has a great neck with a very playable 9.5" radius. The tone is not as spanky as I like it, I may be changing pickups soon.
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Myspace
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telecaster69
Registered: August 2006
Location: Chico, CA
Posts: 280
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Review Date: Thu September 21, 2006
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 3
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Pros:
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American made, inexpensive
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Cons:
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Noisey pickups..no case..crappy finish
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I bought this guitar about 2 months ago and sold it....like how it looked..but it had cheap hardware....cheap finish..and cheap pickups...your definetely paying for the name and the fact it's american made...I would have bought a 72 custom reissue made in japan and saved $200....which is a way better guitar....Plus the Hot pickups...are....HOT..and noisey...I even tried grounding and sheilding....no luck....
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Taylor 310 Acoustic with LR Baggs ibeam. Gold Tuners with Ebony buttons
2004 Telecaster w/hotrails, lckng tuners
Fender Powerchorus Amp 2x12"
Aphex Aural Exciter pedal
HBE Big D distortion pedal.
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rocksteady Max
Registered: November 2006
Location: Montréal
Posts: 1337
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Review Date: Sat January 13, 2007
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: $800.00
| Rating: 8
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Pros:
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Satin finish- price- American made-vintage style bridge
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Cons:
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jumbo frets- not compensed saddles (...) :)
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I just love my HW1 tele - it's a Z6 midnight wine with a maple neck.
When I bought it I thought I'd like the jumbo frets but I think I'd rather have thinner vintage frets 'cause the big ones make you bend strings (especially in chords) you didn't mean to bend and it makes them out of tune. Also, wouldn't it be great if it came fitted with compensated saddles. Think I'll get a set of the ones you guy are always talking about (Glendale ?) but these little pieces of metal are expensive but i'M sure it's worth the price. Also I love this FAT neck 
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Objects in rear view mirror will soon disappear
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moparmutt
Registered: June 2005
Location: honolulu
Posts: 789
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Review Date: Thu April 5, 2007
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 8
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Pros:
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finish, USA made
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Cons:
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I have been giging my HWY1 since I got it in 2003. It was 550.00 new. It changed some over the years, Barden pickups, callaham bridge. It's a great guitar. About a year ago the truss rod striped or something. Fender replaced the neck under warranty but it ain't the same. Over all it's been a excellent Tele.
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Guido
Registered: November 2005
Location: Eugene Or
Posts: 73
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Review Date: Sun October 7, 2007
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 8
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Pros:
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Nice Telecaster
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Cons:
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Frets are way too BIG
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I have a 2004 Hwy 1....I bought it used in 2006 for $350.00. It was the Blond color, It looked like my first new Tele (a 1989 MIJ) for the price I bought it being a USA guitar.
I don't really care for the satin finish but it's ok, my main complaint is the frets. I'm used to the smaller frets, I was playing my 89 MIJ Tele and my 94 MIM Tele's.
I played the HWY 1 Tele for about 2 weeks then put it away. The fretwork wasn't that great on the sides either..sharp edges, guess that's why it sold. Right now it's getting the frets shaved down and dressed on the sides, if I don't like the outcome I will give it to my roomates brother. I bought a 2007 BAJA Tele that absolutely ROCKS, very much like my 89 MIJ
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boris bubbanov
Registered: February 2007
Location: New Orleans, LA + in the past
Posts: 30186
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Review Date: Sun December 16, 2007
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Would you recommend the product? No |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 4
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Pros:
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Attractive high quality body and general workmanship
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Cons:
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On post 2005 guitars, frets are enormous and Alnico 3s are crazy overwound
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Colo Springs E's review is very accurate, except that for the 2005 NAMM show FMIC 'upgraded' (ruined) this guitar. As Guido says, the frets were already large, but they went much larger still. Also, the vintage alnico 3 pickups were piled with wire to make the guitar attractive to those who play heavy distortion only. The clean sound is lousy on the upgrades, not bad at all on the pre-upgrade Highway Ones.
I got 3 in a big closeout, luckily one had the older pups. There are certain songs that can be played, with 9-42s, and with new pickups, on this giant fretted guitar. These could be the 6000 Dunlop frets 'bigger than jumbo' I've heard of. I'll either have them ground down or buy some Warmoth or USACG necks to put on here. If you are building a partscaster this is actually not a bad platform, all the internals are fine, US made guitar. If it gets new tuners, a new jack cup, all this stuff anyway why not start with a pedigreed loaded body?
So, not recommended to be used as is, especially if you can't find it blown out. Yes to a 'pre-upgrade' Highway One, if you can find one.
Bubbanov
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hwy1teleplayer
Registered: April 2008
Location: british columbia
Posts: 52
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Review Date: Fri May 2, 2008
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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finish, tone
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Cons:
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steel barrel saddles
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i got the highway one based solely on tone, and it was the right call. the vibe coming from the big frets, nitro finish, and overwound pickups is great. i get huge srv tones, while still being able to produce tele twang. the finish is great, because the more you play it, the better it looks. I have arm wear, and random dings and scratches, and it looks great. the only thing i changed was the pickguard from w/b/w to a single ply black one. I plan on also getting some brass saddles also, to increase vintage vibe. oh, and also, big frets make bending and vibrato really solid. i play 11's, or 12's on mine, and i get big tone. buy one! its the cheapest nitro body guitar you will find out there.
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crazycurtis
Registered: May 2008
Location: sacramento
Posts: 2
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Review Date: Thu May 8, 2008
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 9
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Pros:
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american made
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Cons:
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pickups
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2007 honey blonde with rosewood fret board. i changed the pickups with EMG's active T's, now this is my main guitar. got a good case for it. tele's are like a fine wine, but this one's like wine in a box from safeway (if u get my drift). u can fight your way out of a bar with it. (i know i have)--get 1 you'll luv it, it'll last forever. you can keep your expensive stuff @ home..
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Colt W. Knight
Registered: January 2007
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 18923
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Review Date: Sun November 9, 2008
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 8
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Pros:
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Neck, playabillity, and great modding platform.
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Cons:
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cheapo finish, upgraded models have huge frets. Probably want to replace pups.
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I slapped some OC Duff special stocks pups in mine, and added some glendale saddles and this guitar is a tone monster.
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the now mandatory =====> 
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rattus77
Registered: April 2008
Location: Grays Essex (ENGLAND)
Posts: 367
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Review Date: Wed April 15, 2009
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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GREAT NECK AND TONE AND NEVER GOES OUT OF TUNE
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Cons:
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BRASS SADDLES WOULD HAVE BEEN NICE
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I BOUGHT THE UPGRADE MODEL IN JAN 2007. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS GUITAR IT IS BLACK WITH MAPLE FINGERBOARD. I CHANGED THE SCRATCHPLATE TO A B/W/B ONE AND PUT WILKINSON COMPENSATED SADDLES ON IT I ALSO PUT FENDER STAGGERED TUNERS ON IT FOR TUNING STABILITY FINAL CHANGE WAS SHALLER STRAP LOCKS. I HAVE TO SAY THIS IS AN AWESOME GUITAR I MUCH PREFER IT TO MY FRIENDS AMERICAN STANDARD. OH BY THE WAY THE MATT FINISH BUFFS UP NICELY TO A LOVELY SHINE. I ALSO PAID £419 FOR IT WHAT A BARGAIN.
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MN Punk
Registered: February 2010
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 928
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Review Date: Wed September 8, 2010
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: $400.00
| Rating: 9
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Pros:
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Satin finish, extremely versatile tone circuit, very comfortable-playing neck, extremely well-built, great value
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Cons:
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Unorthodox sound and feel may not appeal to all tastes, especially traditionalists
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I've got the 2007 model, and I'm basing my review off that.
If what you are looking for is the traditional Telecaster sound and feel, look elsewhere. The 3-barrel ashtray and 70s headstock may make it LOOK like they are taking a stab at reproducing the classic Telecaster, but when you pick it up and play it, the differences are notable.
That said, if what you are looking for is simply a GREAT guitar, then look no further. The neck profile is a bit thinner than most Telecasters I've picked up, almost like an old Peavey. The jumbo frets are also a deviation which I think is a flat-out great choice. Finally, the pickups are HOT (though well-balanced with each other) and sound different from any other Telecaster I've ever heard, but not in a bad way at all.
In fact, my personal preference is for the Highway One over it's more expensive sister (the USA Standard) or cheaper second-cousin (the Mexico Standard) in every appreciable way. Will that be everyone's preference? No. But it's definitely mine.
It also makes a terrific platform for mods, as everything is USA Fender sized, so it will take pretty much any parts a US Standard will take, and they are really easy to work on as long as you're careful not to scratch that delicate satin finish. I put a Seymour Duncan Little 59 humbucker in the bridge of mine, and I'm considering the addition of a hidden middle pickup under the guard.
Oh, and this is a biggie: You're probably not going to find a new guitar with a nitro finish for less, from Fender or anybody else. That alone makes the Highway One a stunningly good value.
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Seminole90
Registered: October 2004
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Posts: 1275
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Review Date: Tue December 7, 2010
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: $600.00
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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Finish, Tone
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Cons:
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Large Frets are not for everybody
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I have the 2005 pre-upgrade model and it is an awesome guitar. While it has large frets they are not the railroad tracks found on the upgrade version.
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jtourangeau
Registered: January 2011
Location: up mich
Posts: 23
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Review Date: Mon February 7, 2011
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: $500.00
| Rating: 8
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Pros:
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bulletproof
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Cons:
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heavy
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The only thing I wore out afer 6 yrs was the input jack.Replaced it with a switchcraft,hopefully get 7-8 yrs out of that.Mine gets a little heavy on the shoulder after a night,I like it.Also got a free 60$ strap and a gig bag w/it.
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SIT DOWN FRANCIS @fb
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TeleCooCoo
Registered: January 2012
Location: Midwest
Posts: 165
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Review Date: Tue January 17, 2012
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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Neck, body, pickups, finish, fit, playablity, etc.
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Cons:
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None
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I have noticed a lot of people dog the frets, the nitro finish, the string distance, etc. I feel that this guitar will make a player a more attentive & creative. The notes can go sharp if you death grip the neck, but I never had a problem. These are a steal, they are basically American Standards with vintage bridges, big frets, nitro finish. If you say "yeah right' well, I own American Standards from different years. I did measurements, I was stunned. Yes the highway one uses lesser pickups, but other than that, especially on the early models, neck is identical to US Standards. Thats why Fender changed (upgraded) in 2006, the neck on my 2005 is the Same as my 2009! Same decal, nut, roller string guide, rolled finger board, frets med-jumbo, satin finish! Fender then said "whoa these look too much like standards, then they changed them.
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brians356
Registered: April 2011
Location: Reno, NV
Posts: 124
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Review Date: Thu April 12, 2012
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: $550.00
| Rating: 8
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Pros:
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Grease Bucket tone circuit, neck, tuners, body weight
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Cons:
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Relic-prone finish, saddles
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I bought this honey blonde used from my neighborhood one-off guitar parlor. I didn't walk in looking to buy anything, and walked out with this one. I have a '75 Thinline I bought brand new, with humbuckers of course, and this Highway 1 became my first single-coil guitar! I had played other Teles and never bonded with one, but this one grabbed me in ten seconds. You just know. I swapped out the saddles for bronze compensated (intonation fanatic here), and leveled the frets down to .045 as they were way too tall at .052 for me to play in tune. It took a lot of work to remove .007, believe me, but now it's sweet and level with plenty of meat left. The fairly light body has a good acoustic sound on the couch. The G.B. tone circuit is a great idea, rolling off the treble without fattening up the bottom. I play mostly on the bridge PU but also like the jangly middle position. I can use the neck for clean jazz stuff, it's not bad actually. I like the medium neck profile and the satin finish, and the tuners are really smooth, solid, and repeatable. This has become my grab-and-go player, and as it had some dings when I bought it and was cheap, I wouldn't mind being in a bar fight with it, and I might hold my own. A used one of these would be a great value for anyone looking for an honest USA Tele at a very good price.
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Telecaster Guitar Forum
