Mods for Brad Paisley Esquire

[Witcher]

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with the guitar. Nothing. It is one of the very best I’ve ever owned or played. Having owned no less than 46 guitars over the last 32 years, that’s quite a feat.

but I’m curious: are there any “must have” tele/esquire mods I should be aware of? After so many guitars, this is really my 2nd proper “telecaster”, so I know very little about the model. The only thing I’ve done to it so far, is a professional setup, and a switch of bridge pickup to an SD La Brea (totally perfect for me).

anything worth considering? Tuners, saddles, bridge plates? Etc?

 

[nojazzhere]

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with the guitar. Nothing. It is one of the very best I’ve ever owned or played. Having owned no less than 46 guitars over the last 32 years, that’s quite a feat.

but I’m curious: are there any “must have” tele/esquire mods I should be aware of? After so many guitars, this is really my 2nd proper “telecaster”, so I know very little about the model. The only thing I’ve done to it so far, is a professional setup, and a switch of bridge pickup to an SD La Brea (totally perfect for me).

anything worth considering? Tuners, saddles, bridge plates? Etc?

Sorry......all secrets will be revealed ONLY after the posting of pictures.

 

[ruger9]

I replaced the saddles with Gotoh In-Tune saddles, so the intonation could be set properly. I also replaced the crap string tree, which was all the way down on the headstock on mine, causing difficult string bends, I replaced it with a Gotoh roller tree.

I probably would have replaced the tuners had I kept it, the ones on mine were kinda hard to turn, not very smooth.

That bridge pickup is one of the best tele bridge pickups I've ever heard. I only sold it because in the end, I didn't get on with the neck profile, it made my left hand tired.

 

[Witcher]

Sorry......all secrets will be revealed ONLY after the posting of pictures.

Ah… I uploaded them previously on an NGD post. Didn’t think anyone would want to see duplicate pics. Lol.

 

[Witcher]

I replaced the saddles with Gotoh In-Tune saddles, so the intonation could be set properly. I also replaced the crap string tree, which was all the way down on the headstock on mine, causing difficult string bends, I replaced it with a Gotoh roller tree.

I probably would have replaced the tuners had I kept it, the ones on mine were kinda hard to turn, not very smooth.

That bridge pickup is one of the best tele bridge pickups I've ever heard. I only sold it because in the end, I didn't get on with the neck profile, it made my left hand tired.

Yeah I don’t have a problem with the saddles (at least I haven’t noticed any yet). But I am think about the tuners. There seems to be some slack in the tuning keys, making it not that sensitive. Would the gotoh locking ones be a good idea? Are they too heavy for this light body?

 

[nojazzhere]

Yeah I don’t have a problem with the saddles (at least I haven’t noticed any yet). But I am think about the tuners. There seems to be some slack in the tuning keys, making it not that sensitive. Would the gotoh locking ones be a good idea? Are they too heavy for this light body?

Not really my "cup of tea", but I'm sure it's a great guitar. My #1 Tele-style is one I assembled, using a Paulownia body, so I love the light weight.
Only "mod" I'd consider is a "stealth" neck pickup. I like having the combinations of pickups.
Cool guitar.

 

[Joelski144]

Seymour Duncan makes a "ghost" neck pickup for the Esquire model that gives you some tonal flexibility.



https://www.seymourduncan.com/blog/...et-agent-end-the-telecaster-vs-esquire-debate

https://customshop.seymourduncan.com/brad-paisley-secret-agent-tele-neck/

 

[Cosmic Cowboy]

There is an art to leaving good enough alone.

 

[Witcher]

Not really my "cup of tea", but I'm sure it's a great guitar. My #1 Tele-style is one I assembled, using a Paulownia body, so I love the light weight.
Only "mod" I'd consider is a "stealth" neck pickup. I like having the combinations of pickups.
Cool guitar.

Seymour Duncan makes a "ghost" neck pickup for the Esquire model that gives you some tonal flexibility.



https://www.seymourduncan.com/blog/...et-agent-end-the-telecaster-vs-esquire-debate

https://customshop.seymourduncan.com/brad-paisley-secret-agent-tele-neck/

thanks. That’s a Brad Paisley Esquire. It came with said “stealth” neck pickup. That Seymour Duncan Secret Agent pickup was created specifically for this guitar.

PS. That body IS pawlonia. Hence my lightweight comment. I’m worried the gotohs might give it a neck dive.

 

[Fenderdad1950]

Ah… I uploaded them previously on an NGD post. Didn’t think anyone would want to see duplicate pics. Lol.

Now that is a beautiful paisley guitar

 

[nickmsmith]

Nope. Guitars in that price range ought to sound great, play great, and need absolutely nothing.

 

[ruger9]

Nope. Guitars in that price range ought to sound great, play great, and need absolutely nothing.

I agree. I was disappointed that I had to replace the string tree, saddles, and the neck was sticky... IMHO, the Paisley Esquire, while costing more than the MIM Standards, was not up to that standard. At that price point, it should need nothing.

 

[nojazzhere]

thanks. That’s a Brad Paisley Esquire. It came with said “stealth” neck pickup. That Seymour Duncan Secret Agent pickup was created specifically for this guitar.

PS. That body IS pawlonia. Hence my lightweight comment. I’m worried the gotohs might give it a neck dive.

If I'm not mistaken, yours is Paulownia sandwiched between two layers of Maple, so maybe a tad heavier than my Paulownia only? Paulownia alone is VERY soft....you can dent it just by looking at it too hard. But, I didn't realize yours already had the "stealth" neck pickup. In that case, I doubt I'd do anything to it. (although my #1 has a Gibson-scale Warmoth Fatback neck) And, I'm happy with the accuracy and stability of "standard" Kluson tuners. ENJOY!

 

[2HBStrat]

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with the guitar. Nothing. It is one of the very best I’ve ever owned or played. Having owned no less than 46 guitars over the last 32 years, that’s quite a feat.

but I’m curious: are there any “must have” tele/esquire mods I should be aware of? After so many guitars, this is really my 2nd proper “telecaster”, so I know very little about the model. The only thing I’ve done to it so far, is a professional setup, and a switch of bridge pickup to an SD La Brea (totally perfect for me).

anything worth considering? Tuners, saddles, bridge plates? Etc?

Isn't a Brad Paisley Esquire already essentially a "modded" guitar?

 

[hepular]

Isn't a Brad Paisley Esquire already essentially a "modded" guitar?

yup.

but this'n . . . https://reverb.com/item/48759450-washburn-disney-hannah-montana-secret-star-purple

is a modder's delight. (& i know it's heresy, but that sparkly sparkly finish on the Paisley reminds of nothing so much as the hannah . . .

 

[DavidP]

I would use a no-load tone pot to get a little more oomph when desired.

 

[Phrygian77]

If it's just wired like a modern Telecaster, maybe a 4-way switch? I just rewired one of my Teles with a 4-way switch adding a HOoP position (similar to the Bill Lawrence wiring) instead of series humbucking, and I like it a lot.

 

[Witcher]

If I'm not mistaken, yours is Paulownia sandwiched between two layers of Maple, so maybe a tad heavier than my Paulownia only? Paulownia alone is VERY soft....you can dent it just by looking at it too hard. But, I didn't realize yours already had the "stealth" neck pickup. In that case, I doubt I'd do anything to it. (although my #1 has a Gibson-scale Warmoth Fatback neck) And, I'm happy with the accuracy and stability of "standard" Kluson tuners. ENJOY!

It’s sandwiched between spruce layers. Not sure if spruce dents easily though. But it’s lighter than my strat! Lol

 

[Witcher]

I would use a no-load tone pot to get a little more oomph when desired.

This is a great idea!

 

[Witcher]

Isn't a Brad Paisley Esquire already essentially a "modded" guitar?

It is in terms of the secret agent I guess. But I don’t know about the rest of the hardware. Do they need to be upgraded? Is there a point?