Now here is something you don't see everyday: a vintage Fender guitar with a 1-piece body! This vintage 1979 Telecaster Deluxe features a single slab of beautiful Ash wood, with high contrast grain visible through the original translucent Sunburst finish. Produced at the original Fender factory in Fullerton California, U.S.A. this Telecaster is 100% original and in very fine condition. The finish is glossy and looks really nice. The guitar has been professionally set up and it is ready to go, it needs nothing.
The body is the familiar slab profile that is the same shape of Telecaster since the dawn of time-why mess with success? The previously mentioned Ash wood body is technically known as Southern Swamp Ash-and it does affect the tone on these guitars, providing a noticeable increase in resonance. Swamp Ash generally has an open grain structure, and lively, "airy" sound. It produces a distinct, scooped mid-range with pronounced high-end sparkle and tight lows. The finish is in excellent condition, with only a couple of tiny pecks on the backside and some very light arm-wear on the top edge-see photos. The pickguard is very nice and flat-and fits excellent. There are some pick-lines in the 'guard above the pickups-see photos. The neck joint is an excellent fitment and the neck angle is perfect and also adjustable. The neck slot itself has a few inspection ink stamps as well as the serial number sticker affixed over the paint stick shadow.
The neck itself is straight as an arrow and very smooth. It has a perfect Vintage medium-C shape profile just like a Stratocaster (that's exactly what these necks are-just with a different decal). The neck width measures 1.62" wide at the nut and the neck depth measures .867" at the 1st fret and .957" deep at the 12th fret. The end of the neck has the familiar dark red ink stamp "TEL-DELX '73" as well as an inspect sheet fixed to the backside. The tuners are all in excellent condition and turn smoothly. The headstock and logo display excellent. The maple fingerboard is in excellent condition as well. The frets are the factory Jumbo sized units and the have been leveled, crowned and polished and appear near-new condition-see photos. The action is set low for a fast and easy playing experience. The string height measures .010" at the 1st fret and .055" at the 12th fret. The Tilt neck adjustment allows for a wide range of neck angle setups-if you prefer a higher action. Or you can simply raise the adjustable saddles, everything functions perfectly. As it is the guitar plays lights out! There are no dead spots whatsoever and it plays like butter up and down the fingerboard. This guitar provides the player with amazing bends. It is lots of fun to play, you won't want to put it back down once you pick it up.
The pickups are the highly coveted "Wide Range" humbuckers designed by Seth Lover. Although Fender really wanted a guitar that sounded like a Les Paul (and played like a Stratocaster and looked like a Telecaster) Seth Lover designed these pickups with wide bobbins for a warmth and clarity without the muddy qualities that humbuckers sometimes have. These pickups sound distinctively clear, with a "bell" tone and brilliant, biting highs and a warm, rich bass. The pickups both have an excellent signal and balance. The neck position measures 10.80 ohms and the bridge position measures 10.88 ohms. The wiring harness is in excellent condition and the controls function smoothly and quietly. The potentiometers date to 1st and 22nd week of 1979. The pickup co era and bridge display a slight bit of patina which adds to the vintage vibe perfectly.
The guitar is super-resonant and is a lot of fun to play-even unplugged! It has a weight of 9.91 lbs. There are numerous Fender factory inspection stamps and inspection marks in the neck slot, pickup cavity and neck. It is 100% original. The original neck plate has a small amount of corrosion on it, so it currently has a same-era original Fender neck plate that is really clean because that's the way the former owner liked it. Both neck plates are included, along with the Original Fender moulded Hard Case. Pretty cool, huh?
But wait-there's MORE! This Telecaster Deluxe has the original hang tag booklet with serial number stamp and it is also included because that's what I like.
