G.Rotten
Friend of Leo's
After messaging the seller he's told me the price is firm at $3250. He had just dropped from $3450 and hadn't removed the obo from the ad.
If all checks out it would seem a very fair price.
1978 Tele. Asking the Pros.
- Thread starter G.Rotten
- Start date
If all checks out it would seem a very fair price.
G.Rotten
Friend of Leo's
Lol. But when did it become "de-uglified". Just wondering since the serial number runs from 78-82. Maybe they fixed the radius before 82. Looking at other pics it looks like they kept the wrong shape for all those years.
I'll check the pot codes.
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2HBStrat
Friend of Leo's
I think so.
Seems like a really clean example of a Tele from that era with a desirable (natural) finish. Maybe not the greatest looking piece of ash but I like it. Base on my '78 the necks are on the thon side.
The bridge on my '78 is a three way.
The pickguard on my '78 is BWB.I wondered about that as well but have found plenty of pics online with the same bridge.
Found this ended sale on Reverb.
Fender Telecaster (1976 - 1979) | Reverb Canada
Reverb is a marketplace bringing together a wide-spanning community to buy, sell, and discuss all things music gear.reverb.com
Same bridge and it does have the dowels. Different pickguard but I would think the 3 ply in my example would be correct.
G.Rotten
Friend of Leo's
I'm actually hoping the neck is on the thin side.
Seems the neck profiles on these vary a bit. Both my Customs, a '75 and a '76, have chunky necks, which is what I prefer myself. Anyway, let's hope the one on this is thinnish!
can't-play
TDPRI Member
Wow. I have a 73 Telecaster Custom cleaner than that in the same colors. I wonder what it would sell for??
G.Rotten
Friend of Leo's
Probably a decent chunk of change.
monkeybanana
Tele-Afflicted
He's only minutes? WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR GO GRAB IT LET'S TALK AND DROOL LATER!
G.Rotten
Friend of Leo's
Going in the morning. Maybe I'll have something for show and tell tomorrow!
The darker headstock, the gasket below the neck plate, that style of saddle, all point to this being legit.
No red flags that I see here. Be interesting to see if there’s a neck code - you’d expect an 8 digit code probably starting 13 03
No red flags that I see here. Be interesting to see if there’s a neck code - you’d expect an 8 digit code probably starting 13 03
Matthias
Friend of Leo's
Looks good to me on the outside. I’m not sure those are dowel holes or just marks in the wood. Of course a shot of the insides would be good to verify the electronics are original.
BTW, my ‘79 Strat is in at least as good condition. Some of these poly guitars stay looking very good if they are well looked-after and not gigged.
BTW, my ‘79 Strat is in at least as good condition. Some of these poly guitars stay looking very good if they are well looked-after and not gigged.
The only thing that caught my eye was it looked like the lower bout on the backside had the contour relief like a Stratocaster, but I think it was just the wood grain, lighting and angle.
I have a 1976 Telecaster and a 1975 Telecaster Custom which is ash like the one you are looking at. I would also think that the guitar came as a natural finish. Otherwise I don't think it would be ash--but maybe I'm wrong there.
Fender had an odd neck code system then, as someone talked about above. It might be worth having the decoder at hand so you can pinpoint the year as it is correct as stated above that Fenders all had "S8" for more than in just 1978.
If you want to see the inside electronics of my 76 which and the way the neck stamp numbering system was in 1976 assuming it was still being used into the early 1980s (I don't know), then let me know.
One other thing that I think helps with age is that at some point in the mid to late 1970s the "F" tuners started to have collars at the base of the shaft which had to be accounted for in the headstock tuner holes routing. This rather than just single thickness shafts coming out of the gears. If you can pinpoint when that change occurred and then check one of the tuners that may also help you date the instrument. And of course there are the pot codes.
I have a 1976 Telecaster and a 1975 Telecaster Custom which is ash like the one you are looking at. I would also think that the guitar came as a natural finish. Otherwise I don't think it would be ash--but maybe I'm wrong there.
Fender had an odd neck code system then, as someone talked about above. It might be worth having the decoder at hand so you can pinpoint the year as it is correct as stated above that Fenders all had "S8" for more than in just 1978.
If you want to see the inside electronics of my 76 which and the way the neck stamp numbering system was in 1976 assuming it was still being used into the early 1980s (I don't know), then let me know.
One other thing that I think helps with age is that at some point in the mid to late 1970s the "F" tuners started to have collars at the base of the shaft which had to be accounted for in the headstock tuner holes routing. This rather than just single thickness shafts coming out of the gears. If you can pinpoint when that change occurred and then check one of the tuners that may also help you date the instrument. And of course there are the pot codes.
I believe that's been answered but not until the first AVRIs in 1982, and even then a "standard" Tele would have had the post 1971-style shape. The 1983 Standard and Elites had the pre-1971-style shape.
ClashCityTele
Friend of Leo's
As far as hardware goes, and body shape, that looks very much like my 1976 Tele.
scotabilly
Tele-Meister
If you can pull the neck, there should be matching stickers with the serial number that's on the headstock. The pickguard should have foil backing, the rhythm pickup should have braided shielding. The neck pocket should have rounded spaces in the corners so the corners of the neck don't touch. There should be a paper sticker in the neck pocket with an inspection date on it. It could be anywhere from 1978 to 1982. Good luck, it looks great!
G.Rotten
Friend of Leo's
Well,
Here we go. First off, the story is that the original owner passed away not too long after purchase and the guitar was willed/given to a family member who didn't play it so it did indeed live under a bed for at least a couple decades. The person I bought the guitar from was a friend of the guy who inherited the guitar and though he is/was a professional musician he played the fiddle. The guitar has been used here and there for studio work (& cavities were shielded for that purpose) but that's about it. Only the original owner knows what happened to the case.
Looks like the input jack and or grounding leads have new solder but all other joins (on the 3 way) are original. Didn't really dig too far into it at the jamspot, will look closer another time. I'm not worried about what I'll find when I remove the neck (at some point in the future).
Nice weight, nice smaller neck and sounds great through the Twin. Some settings almost acoustic like.
No fret wear, $3250 Canadian and met another great person.
Here we go. First off, the story is that the original owner passed away not too long after purchase and the guitar was willed/given to a family member who didn't play it so it did indeed live under a bed for at least a couple decades. The person I bought the guitar from was a friend of the guy who inherited the guitar and though he is/was a professional musician he played the fiddle. The guitar has been used here and there for studio work (& cavities were shielded for that purpose) but that's about it. Only the original owner knows what happened to the case.
Looks like the input jack and or grounding leads have new solder but all other joins (on the 3 way) are original. Didn't really dig too far into it at the jamspot, will look closer another time. I'm not worried about what I'll find when I remove the neck (at some point in the future).
Nice weight, nice smaller neck and sounds great through the Twin. Some settings almost acoustic like.
No fret wear, $3250 Canadian and met another great person.
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Matthias
Friend of Leo's
She’s a beauty! Congrats!
G.Rotten
Friend of Leo's
Thank you to all!!!
Looks really good - enjoy
