|
|
#1
12-16-2022, 05:50 AM
|
|||
|
|||
Recreating a Memory of a Great Tele!!!
It's funny how many times in the course of lifetime of playing guitars that you'll sell a really good guitar to buy, hopefully, a better guitar. Especially if you're a broke musician
 Well in 1976 I had a killer Fender guitar. It was a 1974 Tele Deluxe that I had a set of DiMarzio pickups installed in, a PAF and a Super Distortion.`DiMarzio was the very first boutique pickup manufacturer in the USA and I wanted to have a Telecaster with enough output to light up my 1964 Fender Princeton Amp, and that's what Dimarzio was advertising! Well the Dimarzios killed in that guitar!!! And this was my first great guitar, which I used in my first professional band. At the time, I was in the US Air Force, and we were 4 G.I.s playing rocking music. Bands like:Savoy Brown, James Gang, Mountain, Chuck Berry, Les Zeppelin, Beatles, Stones, Faces, David Bowie, Steely Dan. So I needed a versatile guitar, and this Tele plugged straight into the Princeton could get those tones. We had these tiny amps (the other guitarist used a Silverface Princeton) and even the bass player used a medium sized Peavey bass head and cab which wasn't very big. But with these amps we made rock and roll noise And people loved us!!! Well I was missing that guitar, as I was thinking about that band from over 47 ago. So I decided to put together a new version of the same guitar. I started with a Mexican Vintera Tele Deluxe 70's reissue. I went with this Vintera because it was very lightweight alder, like custom shop light, and the mocha finish was exactly like my original. I then bought the same pickups as my original Tele, a Dimarzio PAF and Super Distortion in DOUBLE CREAM. I also had to find some oversize gold pickup rings. Why gold?? Because that's what the guy used who mounted my original DiMarzios. The rear ring was too tall so I had to belt sand half the height away. And the original Fender Wide Range pickups are bigger than regular humbuckers, so you need a bigger ring to cover the holes for the old pickup screws (2 on each side). You also need to cut a semi-circle into the pickguard for each DiMarzio pickup height adjusting screw. The install went good, and I used F spaced pickups which are closer to the Wide Range pole piece spacing. The Vintera electronics were fine components, so I just reflowed all the solder joints.  Here it is now...  And it sounds great!!! I think it's a better guitar than my original. It's way lighter, and ridiculously resonant. And the DiMarzios sound great in it! They really are pickup I can play anything with. The neck feels just like my original, which I loved. And this guitar really brings back to the memories of a really fun young band! Last edited by rockabilly69; 12-16-2022 at 06:15 AM. 
|
|
#2
12-16-2022, 07:46 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
What a sharp looking axe that is, Rocky! The selector switch up on the top horn and that full pickguard give it a working guitar vibe. Great color too. The creme double bobbins with the gold trim are so 70’s. I love it.
You didn't show a picture, but im sure that maple neck has the big, beautful CBS era Stratocaster headstock on there? The only way any telecaster should fly, in my book, of course. There was a thread going yesterday about hot rods vs oem guitars. I was so tempted to refer the OP to a few of your threads, because honesty, you have created some of the finest hot rods on the forum. I think the fellow needed to see for himself what they are all about. Best of holidays to you, Cowboy. The new guitar is another feather in your creative cap. frank d.
__________________
I love playing guitar
|
|
#5
12-16-2022, 08:33 AM
|
||||
|
||||
|
Memories! I am very lucky and blessed to still have my main squeeze guitar from '77. Whenever my little family was financially challenged I offered to sell it for cash but my lovely wife refused to let me. She's a great gal!
Bob
__________________
"It is said, 'Go not to the elves for counsel for they will say both no and yes.' " Frodo Baggins to Gildor Inglorion, The Fellowship of the Ring THE MUSICIAN'S ROOM (my website)
|
|
#6
12-16-2022, 09:59 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
What a great story and what terrific photos! And your new Tele came out looking great!
It's like a Les Paul stuck in a Telecaster body -- very cool looking! You make me wish I were doing a project like this myself! Fantastic job on this, Daniel! - Glenn
__________________
My You Tube Channel
|
|
#7
12-16-2022, 01:35 PM
|
|||||
|
|||||
|
Quote:
Funny thing, I had some chrome and aluminum rings here too, but besides being true to my original guitar, the gold looked better with the mocha colored body. And yes, big beautiful CBS headstock, with some nice flame on the neck, which I will take a picture of when I get some good light. I woke up with some ideas for some wiring mods on this one, so stay tuned Frankie Boy.Best of holidays to you too Frank. Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
|
|
#10
12-17-2022, 12:58 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Great story, and great guitar. I'm sort of contemplating the same thing, though a much less spendy Tele. Yamaha made the PAC402 for just a couple of years in the late 90's. I played a whole bunch of gigs with that guitar, but I regrettably sold it around 2006. I now have a line on another one, while I dont really need another electric, and theres a good chance I wont play it as much as guitars I already own... I do have some great memories of that guitar.
 Scan_20201203 (8) by , on Flickr Scan_20201203 (7) by , on Flickr
|
|
#11
12-17-2022, 02:54 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
|
|
#12
12-17-2022, 04:05 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Just wondering where you go those rings to take up the extra space around the regular sized humbuckers, and if they are that hard to find?
|
|
#13
12-18-2022, 01:08 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Quote:
And as I said earlier, I had to belt sand quite a bit off of the height of the bridge pickup ring. They are slightly bigger than other rings, made by Allparts, and I got them on Reverb...https://reverb.com/item/47411354-met...at-bottom-gold I also ordered another pickguard with regular sized holes for when I wire up my new harness next week https://www.guitarfetish.com/Tele-De...-_p_39870.html
|
|
#15
12-19-2022, 10:58 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Quote:
Thanks, fortunately I knew what these pickups would sound like as that was what was in my original, so at least there was no guesswork
|
