Another guy bragging about his new budget tele…(pics added)

[47adelynn47]

mine is a harley benton te 62db...$122 plus $67 shipping from germany...i sold a sq cv tele and a mim tele within a month of it's arrival

HB has piqued my curiosity with several of their models, especially that black paisley tele.

i like the te 62 so much i bought another HB local for $100...it's a ja

62...i've had them both for about a year now and have done nothing to them except oil the fretboards and fresh strings when needed...the roswell pickups are quite nice too and the p90's especially like my amp

 

[AndrewG]

These 'Jet' models seem to be getting a lot of love on the web; ok, they're double the price of what the Indio goes for, but at £159 who's arguing? Basswood body, roasted maple rolled edge fretboard and neck, bone nut and decent ceramic pickups. I just picked up the S-type JS-300 at the same price and can attest to the good quality overall. The frets were a bit rough but a little time taken with some 0000-grade steel wool took care of that.

 

[GeorgiaHonk]

Frustration sets in as issues arise. I should’ve known when the aftermarket Wilkinson bridge didn’t fit the pickup rout. Now I find that the rout isn’t large enough to accommodate a GFS bridge pickup. Not an insurmountable issue to be sure, but their ad copy definitely purports that “industry standard” accessories fit without mods. That’s undoubtedly BS.

 

[One-Oh-Four]

These 'Jet' models seem to be getting a lot of love on the web; ok, they're double the price of what the Indio goes for, but at £159 who's arguing? Basswood body, roasted maple rolled edge fretboard and neck, bone nut and decent ceramic pickups. I just picked up the S-type JS-300 at the same price and can attest to the good quality overall. The frets were a bit rough but a little time taken with some 0000-grade steel wool took care of that.

I’ve bought the Jet JT-300 Teleclone and am very happy with it. Only issue I’ve identified at the moment is that the tone control doesn’t do anything/much. I’ve ordered some full-size logarithmic CTS pots to replace the stock pots. Full size because I believe the carbon track inside is longer because of the larger circumference. I reason that it’ll give me more precise adjustment of tone and volume. I bought it on sale from Bax in the Netherlands for €144 ($157, £127), quite nice, I think!

 

[GeorgiaHonk]

Frustration sets in as issues arise. I should’ve known when the aftermarket Wilkinson bridge didn’t fit the pickup rout. Now I find that the rout isn’t large enough to accommodate a GFS bridge pickup. Not an insurmountable issue to be sure, but their ad copy definitely purports that “industry standard” accessories fit without mods. That’s undoubtedly BS.

Finally got around to routing out for the bridge pickup. Didn’t need to remove too much material thankfully. The rout for the controls also turned out to be too slim for the CTS pots I selected as an upgrade. At this point I believe I’m going to settle for the pickup change (Tonerider neck and GFS bridge) and upgraded tuners before I change anything else. Jack, switch and pots will be replaced as needed. I’ve also got a Bootstrap “Lake Surfer” to put in the neck position eventually, once I’ve played it for a while.

 

[preactor]

4/21 I saw the Sunburst on sale for $65.99 at Target, Walmart, and Amazon. Upon your recommendation, I had to buy one.

 

[GeorgiaHonk]

4/21 I saw the Sunburst on sale for $65.99 at Target, Walmart, and Amazon. Upon your recommendation, I had to buy one.

I’m curious how you like it. At that price, it’s almost a no-brainer.

Hell, if you hate it I’ll buy it from you for what you paid. No risk guarantee!

 

[Monoprice99]

I ended up getting 2 of the previous spec version in 2021. The Buttercream blonde blackguard & a 3TSB whiteguard. They were string thru body with the modern block 6 individual saddles. Both were a little different for the neck pocket & heel height. 1 had to be shimmedwith a flat shim to get them closer to where they should be. The 3TSB had a neck cover issue with a chunk of wax misming so it rocked back & forth. I bought a cake of surfboard wax and gently disassembled the cover from the pickup. The chrome cover isn't soldered, so it's really easy. Anyway the surfboard wax smears inside the cover to the proper thickness and all is well with both Indio TL's. I also did the DCR measurement with a multimeter and mine were actually overwound somewhere specing between a Telecaster's DCR for both pickups and an Epiphone LP Special I P90 neck & bridge that I have. I took that as a bonus as I like the P90's better than a Telecaster pickup. But I also wanted the Telecaster to be closer to what the classic Fender Tele sound is. My alternatives were Squier Bullet & Affinity Teles (I have both for Squier Strats). I'd have to find either on sale to get either at the same price the 2 Monoprice TL's arrived at. Couldn't be happier with the Monoprice TL's, bodies are full thickness and Bullet/Affinity are thinner. I think the necks have better frets on the Squier, but the Monoprice Frets seem to be holding up and it's been almost 2 years (June & Oct 2021) since I bought them. No issues with the pots, the output jack or the pickups. Tuners are no worse than what my Epiphone or even Affinity Strat came with. The Bullet Strat was a preowned that has the same Fender laser etched tuners that the Player Series MiM Strats have on them. If those are the best tuners I have, they are easily acquired for $ 69.95 thru Fender. The Affinity Strat is a 2016 rarely to never played guitar & it has all original parts until I updated the trem block & pickguard plastics. The Squier Strats, the Bullet was $ 25, the Affinity $ 55, so as preowned they are bargains, but also bought in 2019. The Bullet was a mess, but I learned glue & toothpicks, neck shim that I would apply to the Monoprice 3TSB. all of these guitars are keepers, a little work and I can't imagine playing anything else.

 

[preactor]

The Monoprice Indio came today. Perfect finish. Fret ends needed a little work. Nut was cut Ok. Bridge pickup sounds great; neck pickup not so good. Sanded the neck lightly. Ready to play now for only $65.99 from Target

 

[GeorgiaHonk]

The Monoprice Indio came today. Perfect finish. Fret ends needed a little work. Nut was cut Ok. Bridge pickup sounds great; neck pickup not so good. Sanded the neck lightly. Ready to play now for only $65.99 from Target

Glad you like it. Since finding these at the occasional ridiculously bargain prices, I think it’s almost a crime to NOT buy one.

 

[jtcnj]

I got mine almost 2 years ago $90.

The only complaint is the slim neck profile, which is purely subjective.
The fretwork was really pretty good but I did a fret level with another I was doing anyway. Added bone nut. I like it enough I put a Bootstrap Palo Duro set in it, and brass saddles.

I have a chunky SX Furrian neck that has some issues. I plan to see if it will work out.

 

[badscrew_projects]

“industry standard” accessories fit without mods. That’s undoubtedly BS.

They mean "Straps"

 

[MelodicBend]

Wow at these prices for what are reportedly pretty good budget guitars.

I'll never forget paying $125 of my hard earned allowance money well over 30 years ago for a retail store electric. I got suckered. I could have bought a nice major brand at a real music shop for a reasonable amount more.

It was the early 90's. What can I say? There was nowhere near the supply and selection of today. That's about $275 adjusted for today money for a garbage unplayable guitar. It frustrated me into quitting multiple times.

I'm glad there is some nice affordable stuff now. There's opportunity that wasn't available even just a few years ago.

 

[jtcnj]

Whoa, not getting enough sleep lately - I have an Extra Crispy set in that Indio Tele...