Telecaster

[paleo_joe]

This is a cheap Squire Tele that I was given. I took it completely apart and 'aged' it back to look like a late 50's model Tele. The vibe I was going for was a country hippy guitar that was a veteran of drunken bars in Bakersfield and acid trips in San Fran. Kind of a Byrds feel.

The body spent summer days on the ledge outside my office, bleaching and baking in the sun to crackle the finish. I studied pics of vintage guitars to learn how they wear and then I must have spent a month off and on sanding with emory paper to replicate 50 years of use. If you go too deep into the wood, or don't leave the lower layers of paint on the edges, it's ruined. There are dings where someone missed the jack hole, scratches from belt buckles, marks from it being dropped bunches of times. The lady who gave it to me had an email address that said "folk monk" so I added that with sharpie and studs, then pulled the studs out and sanded it almost all away to where it can't even be read now. The neck was sanded between the frets for playing wear and then slightly stained yellow.

All the metal parts were suspended over vinegar to get that rust that comes with 50 year old screws and parts. I replaced the pickups with ones out of a real American standard tele off of ebay. I started out with a white pickguard but after a lot of experimenting to get it to look aged, like baking it in a solution of coffee and shoe polish, I gave up and went with a black one that I wore down.

My only regret is that I didn't replace the tuners while I was at it. But the original ones were a real hassle to age - they must coat them with some super-duper rust preventer - and by the time I thought about getting new ones I had sunk too much time into the old ones.

So the end result is a cheap guitar that has become my favorite player. I enjoy it more than my real Strat.

Just want to add this is NOT like faking an arrowhead. You can buy "relic" guitars where the factory does all this for you. I left the Made in China on the back of the headstock. On close inspection, you can see it's not a real 50's tele, but it does attract its share of guitar players going wow, check it out. My family, on the other hand, thinks I'm insane.

The finish appears shiny in some of the pics but it's not. What it is, is this stupid camera that won't focus properly unless the flash is on.

[paleo_joe]

This was some of the inspiration, a 57 Fender Deluxe amp I got when I was 16. I was playing drums as a "singing cowboy" at an amusement park called Dogpatch USA , six shows a day, six days a week, and the fiddle player sold it to me for $100.

It was covered with this black tuck-and-roll upholstery and I never paid much attention until years later when I took it off and saw the tweed underneath. I had an amp builder in Austin, Gerald Kendricks, re-cap and tube it and tweak it. The speaker looks to be a replacement Jensen from the 60s.

It will just sing. You can turn it up to 10 and it's not too loud but the overdrive is just this amazing killer tone and sustain. 10X better than any pedal. Makes me want to jump up and play it right now. Neil Young uses this exact same model. Check out the microphone input, in case the entire band had to play through it.

[paleo_joe]

Oh, 1 10" speaker and I think it's about 10 watts.

[cgode]

I see you have quite a few guitars in the back ground there.....nice!.....I only have one which I mess around with....here it is....

1965 Gibson ES120-T all original, I've had it for over 20 years.

[kliff]

Cgode, it looks like you know a lot about guitars. I came across a Gibson Howard Roberts Fusion guitar in the original case, would you have any idea what it may be worth. I would appriciate the help. Thanks, Kliff

[kliff]

Sorry I should have included Paleo Joe since you are the one with all of the guitars.

[paleo_joe]

Well guitars are like arrowheads in that a lot depends on the condition, age and how desirable the type is. I looked on ebay and there are several with buy-it-nows between $1300 and $2000. It is a high quality guitar that cost a lot more than that new, but it's a jazz guitar so the market is smaller and it make take a while to sell. If I were going to buy one with the idea of reselling it I'd try to get it for $500 or so. It would be a deal at that price. Just my $0.02 not having seen the guitar.

[kliff]

Sorry its taken awhile to reply. Thanks for the information. I own the guitar, i recieved from an old band director. I don't know how to judge condition but it looks to be in good shape. I have played it, there is one little knob on the back where the strings attach that is missing. If you here of someone that might be interested let me know. Thanks, Kliff

[TEXAS DIGGER]

hot damn! you know the more beat up it is the more them cats are paying for them.. they remake them damn fenders already beat to hell... i seen that dobro in the back grould.. its it a square neck or round? i play mud slide.. old time blues on the guitar.. i got a national tattooed on my arm!

AND THATS A GIBSON ES-120!!..i believe.. sweet guitar right there cgode!!

i got quite a few baby's.. heres my honey.. re built her, and put that pick up in.. she was all screwed up.. its a 1951 Kay... i love her..

next to it is a 71 stella 3/4.. put the pickup in that from a old fender.. the electronics is off a old CB. Radio.. i play slide on both..

[DesertWalker]

Cool old Stella. I learned to play on one.