Home / Instruments /Accessories / Ordering / Tips / Friends
archtop.com
1960 Fender Custom Telecaster
Price and Status: For pricing and hold status of this instrument, please check here. If this instrument does not appear on the Instruments page it has been sold. To be notified of examples of this or any other model in the future, please email your specific requests to info@archtop.com.
Serial #: 50711, four bolt neckplate. Neck pencil dated: 4/60
Finish: Original sunburst finish, nitrocellulose lacquer type.
Materials: Solid alder body; solid one-piece maple neck with 1 5/8" "B" width; 'spaghetti' logo peghead; solid slab rosewood fingerboard with clay dot inlays.
Hardware: All original hardware includes eight-screw three-ply white pickguard; black staggered pole single coil bridge pickup on string-anchor bridgeplate; single coil neck pickup; original knurled volume and tone knobs; three-way pickup selector switch with top-hat knob; original single line nickel Kluson Deluxe tuners; single butterfly string retainer in peghead; adjustable three-piece threaded bridge saddles; nickel 'ashtray' bridge cover; adjustable truss rod; CTS volume and tone pots with 1960 code stamp.
Notes: Leo Fender had a good kind of problem. By the end of the 1950's, Fender's solid body guitars dominated the industry, led by his innovative Stratocaster model. By the end of the decade Strat sales had eclipsed the pioneering Telecaster, and customers had been starting to clamor for custom finish colors. Enter the Custom Telecaster, the first deluxe version of Fender's breakthrough model. This new model would have something no Fender guitar ever had: a bound body. But production head Forest White found himself stumped on the new technique, so he went to the best in the business, Fred Martin of CF Martin himself. Fred generously showed Forrest how the big boys did it. Country stars Buck Owens and Don Rich got the first Custom Teles in mid-1959, and the rest is history.
This outstanding example is from the first full year of production, and has been in a private California collection for the past 17 years. Immaculately maintained, the guitar has all original hardware and finish, as well as a superb brown Tolex case with leather ends and burnt orange lining. Neckplate, neck date and pots all date to 1960, and the guitar has both the string-through body as well as the string-anchor bridge, which was discontinued later that year. Its lightweight alder body shows original factory routing only, and at barely 7 pounds the guitar is notably well balanced and easy to hold. The slab fingerboard "B" style maple neck is nicely smooth on its back, and a factory correct set of recent pro frets makes playing easy and fast with excellent snap and headroom.
The guitar is supplied with all its original hardware including the rare original 'ashtray' bridge pickup cover, miraculously never misplaced over the years. An extra top-hat switchtip is installed, and one of the capacitors has been removed to configure the tone control to post -'67 specs, (both original parts preserved in the case). The sunburst finish is all original, and well cared for, with only scattered normal checking and light typical playwear mostly confined to the edges of the body. Binding is all original and tight to the body, and the original brown Tolex case is in outstanding condition, including the original Tolex hang tag.
Lightweight and fun to play, the guitar has the icepick punch of the classic Tele bridge pickup, with a pleasingly warm neck pickup that goes all the way from James Burton to Ed Bickert. An outstanding example of a groundbreaking model in top playing condition.
Setup: This instrument is strung with light gauge nickel strings (.011). The guitar will accommodate lighter or heavier gauge strings, according to preference. String action is set at 5/64" to 6/64" at the 12th fret, with moderate relief. The action may be lowered or raised to your requirements with the adjustable bridge.
Case: Original Fender brown tolex hardshell case with orange plush lining and tag.
