Ruminations of a Rock-n-Roll Accountant

Back 9 or 10 years ago, I bought a '78 Fender Telecaster & started to noodle around & play. When my daughter was born, money and time got tight so I stopped my lessons and put the guitar in the closet. A couple of years ago I got inspired & got it back out. What I hadn't remembered is that the reason I could afford a '78 was because this particular one had been repainted a disgusting color I called "Yellow Snow". Having always loved the butterscotch blonde Teles of the '50's that's what I wanted to recreate.

Undaunted by what I didn't know, I ripped it down to just the body & stripped off that ugly yellow color. What I found was most distressing. First off, someone had, at some point, made room for a humbucker in the neck position but instead of using a router or a chisel or anything dignified like that, they used a drill and drilled many many holes side by side to eventually create a crazy uneven humbucker route. Second, I found two cracks in the body - they had been repaired but they were still there and would show through the translucent butterscotch blonde. I decided that rather than try and make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, I'd replace the body - it wasn't collectible or anything as it had been a) refinished, b) attacked by a crazy man with a drill and c) weighed as much as a boat anchor.

I kept all the other parts and began the process ... boy what an ignorant optimistic fool I was back then. I figured I'd take a few weekends and get something pretty good. What I forgot was that I'm one perfectionistic guy (some might say OCD but that's another discussion for another day). Now, much much later, here we are.

For the gearhead freaks, here are the specifics:

1) 3 piece swamp ash body from USA Custom Guitars finished in Butterscotch Blonde with too many coats of nitrocellulose glossy clear to count. The color & clear (as well as some other specialty finishing things) all came from Bill Lester at Guitar Reranch.
2) Original 4 bolt all maple neck from the '78 Tele that I started with including the original 70's Script "F" tuners.
3) New Lindy Fralin 1/2 & 1/2 vintage wind hybrid stagger pickups.
4) New control harness (with all new pots, input jack & 3 way switch).
5) Electrosocket jack cup.
6) Single-ply black 5 hole pickguard as well as the previously displayed (over at BADA-NAKA in the "Not just listening, but playing area) Beerguard for special occasions.
7) Original bridge, saddles, control plate, & neck plate.

This is what it started like:

And this is what it looks like now:

Here's the beerguard -

Like I said, it came out so much better than I could have ever imagined. I guess that's what following the instructions can do for you. It's a good thing I don't do this for a living and get paid by the job - I'd be living in a van down by the river - it took me the better part of a year and half with real life & other procedural mistakes getting in the way all the time.

When I finally plugged it in, it was sweet, sweet redemption. Twang and snap sang forth from the amplifier in spades. For those considering a pickup upgrade, I can't give Fralins high enough praise.

It wouldn't be a big project and a happy outcome without some special thanks (liner notes style) so here goes.

Special thanks go out to: David Abeyta for your interest, encouragement & guidance, reh, Andy at Guitar-Mod.com Dan McCarthy at Dallas Guitar Repair, Mass Street Music, Bill Lester at Guitar Reranch, Tommy at USA Custom Guitars and last but not least, Tracy for her support, encouragement & patience in this long process. I couldn't have done it without any of y'all.

Now that I'm sitting around in the evenings instead of spending them in the garage sweating in the summer heat, I'm strangely missing that time. I'm probably just crazy/stupid/brave enough to try another one. Anyone got a suggestion for what color it shoud be?

If you need me for anything, I'll be the fool sitting in his house playing his new guitar 'till his fingers bleed. See ya down the line.

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