72RI Tele Deluxe Re-wire/Upgrade project.

[Schlatte]

Are those tele deluxe pickguards easy to get? They seem a bit odd shaped to me....?
oh- and that colour looks snazzy!

[warwick.hoy]

The only thing I don't dig on in the PG is that it doesn't completely cover the lower horn,...but it's such a minor gripe that I'm not opposed to picking up a direct replacement.

As far as ease of replacement,...I don't know as I haven't researched deep enough to find one. Stew Mac and All Parts seem to be nil on Tele Deluxe PGs.

Warmoth has them but they come with this disclamer:

Warning: These pickguards are ONLY meant to fit our Warmoth Tele® Deluxe bodies.
They will NOT retrofit on to your guitar.

I don't know if it's a load of crap,...or if I'll be able to replace it with one of those.

I seem to recall a company,...although I don't remember whom in which you actually send them your existing PG and the send you back and exact duplicate. I'd like to avoid as much cutting on a PG as possible as I really don't have the appropriate tools to undertake any major mods to get a PG to fit.

[Thomas2508]

http://www.terrapinisland.com/

These guys will make you a tele deluxe pickguard with or without a template. I've used them twice and it fit right up both times. They will also match it up to whatever pickup config you want.

[Zounds Perspex]

well, just took my Tele Deluxe in to my tech's. With any luck, I'll have it back kicking ass by Tuesday or so. Yesh!

[warwick.hoy]

http://www.terrapinisland.com/

These guys will make you a tele deluxe pickguard with or without a template. I've used them twice and it fit right up both times. They will also match it up to whatever pickup config you want.

Terrapin came up in a search,...but for some reason,...I deduced (perhaps incorrectly) that they weren't producing Tele Deluxe PGs anymore. Not sure why I deduced that but it cause me to move on in my search. I'll give them a second look for sure.

Zounds,...Cool man,...I look forward to hearing your thoughts on the mods. I'm half tempted to just have a pro do all the work on mine as well and just go ahead and have them install a new bridge and new tuners as well. That way I can have it intonated,...get the relief and action set, maybe even have the neck shimmed. I'm a little intimidated by all that.

[Zounds Perspex]

Just got my girl back from my tech...man, this guitar looks, sounds, and feels great.
I want another one! Think this is the perfect weirdo tuning guitar.
It's been said, but this guitar is the perfect cross between Fender and Gibson traits. So rad.

[blankfield]

Are these MIM Teles? If so, I would take that pickguard off your hands if you want to sell it.

[warwick.hoy]

Just got my girl back from my tech...man, this guitar looks, sounds, and feels great.
I want another one! Think this is the perfect weirdo tuning guitar.
It's been said, but this guitar is the perfect cross between Fender and Gibson traits. So rad.

Oh yeah,....I've been experimenting with this guitar. Last night I smoked a bowl and tuned to DADGAD (for the first time ever). Inspired some drones, but I can definitely tell that I've been playing in standard and drop tunings for a long time. Definitely be researching other tunings though.

At Blankfield. These are the MIMs,....I'll hit you up when a new one comes in,...but I don't think I'm going to move forward on the project until after the new year, when I can justify spending the money on more gear.

[blankfield]

At Blankfield. These are the MIMs,....I'll hit you up when a new one comes in,...but I don't think I'm going to move forward on the project until after the new year, when I can justify spending the money on more gear.

I'm in no hurry myself. Keep me in mind if you look to sell it. Thanks!

[warwick.hoy]

Just a little update.

I decided to leave the electrical and setup work to a more experienced tech. Some decisions changed; namely the amount of money I was will to drop on this guitar.

Also,...I'm getting myself involved in a metal/Pelican with angry vocals type band that tunes to Drop B.

So I contacted Circle K Strings with my requirements and was suggested these string gauges: .070 .045 .033 .025 .019 .014. I didn't want to just slap them on there so I sat on them for a moment till I had a little extra spending money and took a moment to research a tech. I found a guy with really reasonable rates and quick turnaround times.

What I had him do was look into and take care of the humming and buzzing issues. For whatever reason Fender Mexico doesn't do a very good job on wiring these guitars. The tech eliminated multiple ground loops and added a "star ground" as well as ran a ground from the 3 way to the star. The guitar is dramatically quieter now. The buzz when I touch the 3 way is eliminated. It also seems like the pups are lot more open then they previously were. I don't really get the complaints about the muddiness of the guitar. I think it's bright enough and the PUPs sound fine to me. Perhaps I got lucky. That said,...I'd still love to check out those Lollars.

The second thing I had the tech do was widen the nut slots to accommodate the bridge cable string gauges. I also had him set the guitar up for the new string gauge as well. Sounds and plays unbelievably. He couldn't completely eliminate the string buzz,....but I sorta expect that from such a large string gauge. I also had him oil the tuners and while there is still a little bit of backlash,...they operate a lot smoother than then they previously did.

The guy seems passionate about guitars and that's more important to me than Fender Certification and high bench fees and rates (a slag at some of the other setup guys in town who are overpriced and take way too long). $100 + tax sealed the deal. I'll definitely be taking more business to this guy.

Snapped this last night,...not the most detail photo but perhaps you can make out the bridge cables on the guitar.



I'm jazzed and inspired to play this Tele,...sounds awesome,...only took a little bit of work to make a decent guitar and excellent guitar.

[skullservant]

Neat! I'll be curious to hear the new band recordings

[warwick.hoy]

I'll get some iPhone crappy clips up at some point.

[warwick.hoy]

Here we go:

[soundcloud]http://soundcloud.com/effectsjunkie/72ri-telecaster-deluxe-post[/soundcloud]

Just a real quick and sleazey track. I've got a bunch on my plate today. I still need to do clips of JWAR's tourbox before mailing it back to him (sorry it's taking me a while man).

Should be worth noting that the clips in the OP were originally done with a Fender Frontman 15r Solid State amp. I've since moved on to a Pignose G40V,...which is a tube amp. I'm not pushing that amp really hard. Also,...I suck. Really I suck. Was having a hard time connecting with the delay. I also blame 0 consumption of mind altering substances. I get the impression that I'm somehow better when I smoke pot. Or at least I think I'm better.

I think I need to get the guitar shielded,...or I might have some noise issues with my pedalboard. Not enough for me to be dissatisfied,...it was just quieter when I was running my instrument->LS-2->TU-2->Amp.

Probably should also be noted that I'm running an FEALabs OptiFET Compressor first in my chain,....this is a bass compy so probably not ideal,...but I left it on anyway.

[retinal orbita]

That guitar looks great... really like the tele's with the humbuckers in them

[warwick.hoy]

i love this guitar man. Very inspiring now that it's in good working order. Can't wait to start rehearsing with the new band. I've never played guitar in a band setting before so I've got a lot to learn.

Oh yeah,...the tech replaced the missing cap on the 3 way. He really did go above and beyond my expectations.