How many Teles do you need?

[wyclif]

Just one. This one.

 

[beagle]

I managed without needing a Tele for 30 years. Then I had one, but when I gave it away I didn't need one for another 10. Now I have one again. Do I need it? Probably not, but it begged me to bring it home, what could I do?

 

[Seasicksailor]

I managed without needing a Tele for 30 years. Then I had one, but when I gave it away I didn't need one for another 10. Now I have one again. Do I need it? Probably not, but it begged me to bring it home, what could I do?

Yeah, they have those sad puppy eyes... how can anyone resist?

 

[Ydwen Jones]

I guess there's always some rationalization to getting another one.....so why not? GO FOR IT!!!!

See, that's the problem. I'm afraid that if I give in to buying just one more, I won't be able to stop! It's a bit like drinking or smoking...

 

[Doctorx33]

I have three Tele's and I'm not even a Tele guy, my number one is a Strat, go figure.

 

[kookaburra]

My #1 for walking into a musically unknown situation is a 2010 RW with after market pups to my liking, and it also is killer with what I personally prefer to play, so, that's one.

My second Tele, and 93 MIA, is pretty killer too, but I would suffer less without that one one.

So, for me, one.

True Teleholics may see it differently, and I do understand.

 

[Greggorios]

Just like money; I only need enough to cover food and shelter...now, how much do I want...that's another story.

 

[Fenderslinger]

I need two.. My main one for live shows with a back up ready to go if I break a string.

 

[rich815]

I have 4.

One a stock sunburst Fender 50’s Road Worn with absolutely wonderful sounding stock Tex Mex pups.

One a partscaster with a deep red Fender Highway One body with a Cavalier Lion 51/52 (A3) bridge pickup and DiMarzio True Velvet neck pickup - this my classic sounding twangy tele.

Next, a gorgeous MJT body in tangerine metallic and lightly relic’d. Bought on a total impulsive whim it was so beautiful. Added a baseball bat thick Feiten neck. Put a very unique Seymour Duncan “Gilly” Tele stack bridge pickup and a similarly unique Frailin uncovered Blues Special (stratty!) in the neck. Really cool and different sounds from this baby.

Last one a pinecaster I recently built from an unfinished pine body I bought off eBay that I left mostly natural and only sanded and finished the body with some Minwax stain and 35 coats of Tru Oil. Slapped together mostly with parts I had around when “upgrading” other teles and a few cheap parts from a China. Put in McNelly A5 Signature set of pickups. Classic Tele tone. It’s bright and lightweight and really fun to play, even unplugged.

Love all four. And don’t need another...for now.

 

[Telecastoff1]

I have four Teles. Each one has it's own voice and feel. Those are my four reasons for owning four.

 

[teletimetx]

One great tele can certainly be enough. If I might have learned anything (and that's a tenuous claim), it's to look for the patience button when the spending speed wants to go faster.

Five teles later, I learned this. Ok, maybe I learned it along the way, down to four now.

Good luck with your adventure!

 

[Timo]

you only need one. But, I have three (but no other guitars at all) - one to play jazz, one for country music and the third for blues. They're all ash body, however they all have different pickups, and they all sound very different,

 

[Old Tele man]

Just a sampler's list:

• One for each hand
• One for Monday
• One for Tuesday
• One for Wednesdays Child
• One for Thursday
• One for Friday
• One for Saturday Night
• One for Sunday
• One for the Bluz...
• One for the Whiskey...
• One for All the Pretty Women at Midnight
• One for the Honky Tonks
• One for the Bakersfield sound
• One for the Nashville sound
• One for the Tejas Twang
• One for Albert (Collins)
• One for Arlen (Roth)
• One for Bill (Frisell)
• One for Bill (Kerchen)
• One for Brad (Paisley)
• One for Brent (Mason)
• One for Bruce (Springfield)
• One for Danny (Gatton)
• One for Don (Rich)
• One for Ed (Bickert)
• One for Howard (Roberts)
• One for James (Burton)
• One for Jeff (Beck)
• One for Jerry (Donahue)
• One for Jerry (Reed)
• One for Jimmy (Bryant)
• One for Keef (Richards)
• One for Luther (Perkins)
• One for Marty (Stuart)
• One for Merle (Haggard)
• One for Mike (Bloomfield)
• One for the artist once known as Prince
• One for Richie (Kotzen)
• One for Robben (Ford)
• One for Roy (Buchanan)
• One for Roy (Nichols)
• One for Scotty (Anderson)
• One for Steve (Cropper)
• One for Ted (Greene)
• One for Tommy (Tedesco)
• One for Vince (Gill)
• One for Waylon (Jennings)
• ...
• And, one more for "Good Luck"

 

[Red Bread]

All of them

 

[kelnet]

Are all of your monthly bills getting paid without having to squeeze a dollar here and there?
Do you have enough savings put away for any big expenses that might pop up?
Is everything in your home working the way it's supposed to, or do you need to fix or replace some things?
Is your job secure, so that you won't regret spending today what you might not have tomorrow?

If you answer "no" to any of those questions, go ahead and buy another guitar anyway. Being responsible's just not rock and roll.

 

[Ydwen Jones]

Just a sampler's list:

• One for each hand
• One for Monday
• One for Tuesday
• One for Wednesdays Child
• One for Thursday
• One for Friday
• One for Saturday Night
• One for Sunday
• One for the Bluz...
• One for the Whiskey...
• One for All the Pretty Women at Midnight
• One for the Honky Tonks
• One for Danny (Gatton)
• One for Don (Rich)
• One for Merle (Haggard)
• One for Roy (Buchanan)
• One for James (Burton)
• One for Steve (Cropper)
• One for Howard (Roberts)
• One for Ed (Bickert)
• One for Ted (Greene)
• One for Scotty (Anderson)
• One for Waylon (Jennings)

And how about one for Robben (Ford), one for Richie (Kotzen), one for Brad (Paisley), one for Mike (Bloomfield), one for Prince, one for Keef....

Oh yeah, I need a lot more Teles!

 

[MilwMark]

The precise answer is “two”. One string through and one Bigsby.

 

[Danjabellza]

A standard, a hotrod 52, HH, SH, 72 deluxe, 72 custom, 72 thinline, 69 thinline, Nashville, P90 neck/Tele bridge, P90 neck/bridge... acoustosonic... ummm...

 

[srvbluezz]

Two for me. The Tele plus is my strat and the opposite of the asat. Rosewood vs maple, alder with ash veneers vs ash, low noise pups vs real single coils, black guard vs white guard.

 

[Tim S]

zero

I think you're asking the wrong question...

"need" isn't the proper word...

Right -- the only answer is Zero.

If you don't know the difference between want and need, you're in for a whole world of hurt.