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Post subject: Help, is this Telecaster completely fake?
Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 1:33 pm
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I picked this guitar up quite recently and fairly cheaply, i didnt think much about it at the time, im pretty sure now that it is a fake as i have compared the internals with my 83 tele and they are totally different. The logos on the headstock are excellent however and dont look like decals? Any help would be appreciated greatly. Thanks Tony

http://pbckt.com/sB.dXZj


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Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 1:52 pm
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Welcome!

Are both guitars the same models? I'm not sure about how many Tele models were being made by 1983. The electronics in this one look quite cheap indeed.


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Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 2:00 pm
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Hi Thanks for the Welcome, my 83 is a standard usa i believe, i have no idea what this 1 is, I agree on the electronics etc thats what made me suspicious, i think this is possibly 2 seperate guitars, the neck decals etc look very authentic, its just the electrics are rubbish? any more ideas appreciated, many thanks Tony.


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Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 2:19 pm
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I don't know anything about a 83 tele or teles all that much but the saddles look funny(shape) and also the the jack shape. I noticed it has no wood in the truss rod hole and something about the decals. I really don't think it's a MIA but could be some other country.
AjayTele or George(both forum members) with lots of experience would be able to tell you for sure what you have.
I could be all wrong though. Good luck!! :)


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Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 2:26 pm
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Thanks for the info, this is supposedly an 85 tele, i have an 83 which i used to compare and they are a lot different, the date stamps look fake to me too alike and no other markings in the cavities. Be nice if somebody could shed a little more light on this mystery? the electrics are defo non original i just seen the same pot setup on ebay for a few pound so they may have been replaced? the neck seems about the only original bit, similiar to a 62 Ri with the kluson type tuners and spaghetti logo? god my head hurts :D


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Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 2:31 pm
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One of our Tele experts will check in a little while so just be patient and wait for them!!


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Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 3:39 pm
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Well, let's get some of the pictures up here for all to see. I didn't pull them all in so click the link above to see a few more.

These are my opinions. I might be right and I might be wrong.

Image

"Football" jack is incorrect for any MIA Fender Telecaster (that I'm aware of).

See that switch? It's rectangular. Fender switches are curved on the bottom. Most cheap Telecaster copies have these switches. Some MIJ Fenders have them too I think - maybe Ajay can confirm that. Pots look like "mini pots" too. Here's another view:

Image

Wow, is this guitar missing all its screws or what? Heh - I'm guessing the guitar owner removed them for photography but I had to mention it anyway.

These saddles look like the kind that come on cheap copies. See the holes in the front of the saddle, closest to the neck? Those are usually found on Squiers and also on off-brand copies.

Image
Image

That bridge rout doesn't look like any Fender body I've ever seen.

Image

I don't know enough about MIA '80s Fenders to comment with certainty on this serial number, but it looks like there might be a number missing. Also, usually the "Serial Number E5" and the "Made in USA" would be in one font, because that is printed on all decals with an offset printing press and the rest of the numbers would be in another font because those are numbered in a numbering machine that stamps them sequentially. I can't say this isn't authentic but it doesn't inspire any confidence. Tuners are almost certainly not original to this guitar as Fender wasn't using Kluson type tuners in the '80s except on '52 Reissues (as far as I know) and this certainly isn't one of those for all the reasons I've previously listed.

Image

More missing screws?

Image

Headstock -

Decal aside, there are (in my opinion) two indicators here that this is not a real Fender.

Number One: The truss rod hole is just a bare hole in the wood. This is seen on some current and recent MIK (made in Korea) Fenders, such as the Lite Ash Telecaster, the Koa Telecaster, the FMT HH Teles, etc. but all other teles have one of three things where that bare wood hole is:

A. MIA "modern" Teles like the American Standard and American Deluxe have a "liner" in this hole that's made of walnut (I think - it's darker than maple).

B. MIM and some MIJ Teles have black plastic in this hole.

C. Vintage reissues have a walnut "plug" here to completely fill the hole, since the truss rod is adjusted at the other end with these necks. The plug covers and seals the hole where the rod is inserted during manufacturing.

Number Two: The string trees. First, there are two of them. Some Fender Teles came with two trees instead of one but they didn't look quite like those and they had spacers over the screws - they didn't lie flat on the headstock.

The decal doesn't look too bad but most Teles with the old-style "spaghetti" logo have the decal closer to the nut and angled down. They also usually have one round string tree under (or nearly under) the G string tuner.

Image

I could be wrong, but I think this Telecaster is not a Fender product. Fender made some strange stuff in the mid-'80s so it's possible, but I wouldn't bet on it.


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Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 3:51 pm
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I think you've confirmed some of my suspicions George!!


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Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 4:16 pm
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Well the 83' U.S Std.Tele pick guard has 5 screws and top loading bridge.

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Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 4:35 pm
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I own several, and have worked on them all to know that the control plate looks like its from a SX...or perhaps an Squier or a Douglas Telecaster...

I am almost willing to bet the Bridge is from an SX (STL) Tele, as the saddles look exactly like the stock ones I have replaced on mine...as the screw hole pattern on the bridge plate is pretty much exactly like either an SX or Squier...

Also, the output jack plate is suspicious...I am pretty sure its not the stock plate, and not the typical output jack cup you find on Fender Teles...In fact, its what is used as the stock jackplate on SX Teles...and to me eliminates it from being a Squier because Squiers use an output jack cup similar to what is found on Fender Teles (unless it was a mod or repair, but so far its not looking good...).

I would feel 99% confident in betting that this is an SX with either a replacement neck, or the stock SX neck with a reshaped headstock, that had the stain removed, Fender waterslide decals put in place, then a helluva lot of coats of clear coat...with some import vintage style tuners slapped on...Or if you're in anywhere but North America, the SX guitars sell with a Fender Tele styled headstock since the copyright or patent is not applicable overseas in regard to the headstock shape...so it may not be re-shaped, but definitely altered with Fender-style logos/serial numbers

I hope I am wrong...but I feel that I am not.... :?

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Posted: Mon Apr 05, 2010 6:47 pm
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That body, hardware and electronics (not the PUs) are from a squire california tele.


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Posted: Tue Apr 06, 2010 8:22 pm
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I don't think there is a Fender or Squire part on it. There's a Company in China selling cheap knockoffs of virtually every Fender or Gibson. I've seen a few on ebay and this looks just like them.


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Posted: Tue Apr 06, 2010 11:44 pm
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idahored wrote:
I don't think there is a Fender or Squire part on it. There's a Company in China selling cheap knockoffs of virtually every Fender or Gibson. I've seen a few on ebay and this looks just like them.


it definitely has Squire California hardware on it.


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Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 7:06 am
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Schtang wrote:
idahored wrote:
I don't think there is a Fender or Squire part on it. There's a Company in China selling cheap knockoffs of virtually every Fender or Gibson. I've seen a few on ebay and this looks just like them.


it definitely has Squire California hardware on it.


Whether its a S-Q-U-I-E-R guitar or an SX or whatever, it doesn't matter because the OP wanted to know if it was a Fender, which we can all agree on it isn't, regardless of which brand it actually is...

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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2010 8:30 pm
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bowlfreshener wrote:
Schtang wrote:
idahored wrote:
I don't think there is a Fender or Squire part on it. There's a Company in China selling cheap knockoffs of virtually every Fender or Gibson. I've seen a few on ebay and this looks just like them.


it definitely has Squire California hardware on it.


Whether its a S-Q-U-I-E-R guitar or an SX or whatever, it doesn't matter because the OP wanted to know if it was a Fender, which we can all agree on it isn't, regardless of which brand it actually is...


I am just stating facts dude, chill


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