Fender Player Telecaster® (Polar White)

Preamble
Now that the made-in-Mexico Standard Series has been phased out, Fender's introduced the "Player Series" (also MIM). For today's post, we'll take a look at a Polar White Fender Player Telecaster with a Pau Ferro fretboard (#0145213515). It's come in for a switch to 10s and setup. Before we take a look at some specs (courtesy of Fender and Swee Lee); do check out this Dawsons Music YouTube Review of a similar Fender Player Series Telecaster PF (albeit in 3-Color-Sunburst).

Body
Body Material: Alder
Body Color: Polar White
Body Finish: Gloss Polyester
Body Shape: Telecaster®

Neck
Neck Material: Maple
Neck Finish: Satin Urethane
Neck Shape: Modern "C"
Scale Length: 25.5" (648 mm)
Fretboard Material: Pau Ferro
Fretboard Radius: 9.5" (241 mm)
Frets: 22 Medium Jumbo
Nut Material: Synthetic Bone
Nut Width: 1.650" (42 mm)
Position Inlays: White Dot
Truss Rod: Standard Truss Rod Nut, 3/16" Hex Adjustment

Electronics
Bridge Pickup: Player Series Alnico 5 Tele® Single-Coil
Neck Pickup: Player Series Alnico 5 Tele Single-Coil
Controls: CTS 250K Master Volume, CTS 250K Master Tone
Tone Capacitor: 0.02uF/Ceramic
Selector Switch: Oak Grigsby Three-Position Blade
Output Jack: Generic Mono Open Frame
Jack Mounting: Metal Retainer Clip/Recessed Metal Cup
Shielding: Conductive Shielding Paint

Hardware
Bridge: Six-Saddle String-Through-Body Tele® with Block Steel Saddles
Hardware Finish: Nickel/Chrome
Tuning Machines: Standard Cast/Sealed
Pickguard: Three-Ply Parchment
Control Knobs: Knurled Flat-Top
Switch Tip: Barrel Style
Neck Plate: Four-Bolt "F" Stamped

Custom Neck-Through Tele Rehab: Part Four

Quick Links:    Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four

This is the fourth and final installment of a series of posts on a lovely custom neck-through Telecaster-style guitar I've been working on since the beginning of this year.

Now that the job is done, I have time to reflect on the many fine features found on this custom instrument. Among these is the use of quality wood and sturdy construction. The body is of dark-stained wood, while the chunky neck (think: baseball bat) is a five-piece sandwich of maple and the same wood used for the body. This neck extends through the center of the body right to the butt end -- definitely a neck-through build.

The body feels solid and is of good weight, somewhere between that of a Strat and Les Paul. The top is capped by a rather thick layer of attractively-grained veneer; stained darker than the rest of the body for good contrast. I just can't get enough of the wood grain pattern -- it's raw yet sophisticated. Initially harboring the thought that this was a quarter-inch solid wood cap as on Les Pauls and the like; I was disappointed upon closer inspection of the sides.

Stringing is through-body, a feature that definitely enhances sustain. The only let down here is the haphazard arrangement of the string ferrules. Surely the person who handled this task could have done some research online, and then practiced on scrap wood beforehand.

I suspect that he or she simply used a hand-held power drill and bludgeoned through the body in one go. In any case, here's a step-by-step video tutorial by Fletcher Handcrafted Guitars on how to get the job done right. Key word: drill press!

The maple fretboard features a bone nut, 12" radius, 25.5" scale, 22 medium-jumbo frets, black plastic binding; and intricate abalone inlays. Abalone has also been used for the gorgeous floral inlays along the butt end of the body and in between the pickups. A classy touch indeed!

This custom Tele came to me in rather poor shape, silent testament to the various ill-executed mods, rough handling and neglect suffered over the years. I'm blessed to have been part of its rehabilitation and return to a giggable state. Well, that's about it for this post. Stay home, stay safe; and do enjoy the pics :)

Custom Neck-Through Tele Rehab: Part Three

Quick Links:    Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four

Well, let's see here. I've already refinished this Tele in Tru-Oil and installed the electronics. Now it's time to string it up and do a proper setup for maximum playability. Easier said than done, huh?

The maple fretboard's already as straight as an arrow, so I reckon there won't be much truss rod tweaking needed. So on goes the Ernie Ball Regular Slinkys, I tune up, and then realize the first issue: excessively-high action at the nut. Boy, are you going to have problems fretting barre chords such as F or Bb major!

In case you're wondering just how I determine nut action, it's pretty simple. With the guitar tuned to pitch, press any string at the 3rd fret and eyeball the distance between the bottom of that string and the top of the first fret. There should only be a tiny gap, a hair's width; one might say. I know there are more scientific ways to measure the gap using feeler gauges and what not; but eyeballing it works just fine for me. If there's just a tiny sliver of light shining through; you'll be good to go.

Anyway, out come the fret and torch nozzle files; and away we go. Now I've lowered the nut action to where I like it, the strings are sitting way too deep in their slots. And then there's the fact that this bone nut is really gnarly and needs a face lift. A nut reprofile job should kill these two birds with one stone, methinks.

I start by filing the top of the nut down to where about half the diameter of the wound strings are visible, and then do a cleanup and polish with successively finer grits of 3M Flexible Polishing Papers. I really like these polishing papers as they're flexible, durable; and offer a degree of control you won't get with regular sandpaper.

So now the nut's been taken care of. The fretboard's still relatively flat with the strings tuned up; and there's only the tiniest bit of relief in the 7th to 9th fret area. Nice, but fretting any string at the 21st and 22nd frets produces the same note. This means that the 22nd fret is way too high -- when you fret a note at the 21st fret, it's actually fretting at the 22nd!

The solution is to do a really minor fret dress on just the 22nd fret to lower it. I do just that; problem solved. Of course there's lots of fine sanding and polishing to do after lowering the fret height; but that's life. I've finally got the action and intonation just right, so I'm calling it a day on this job. Here's a YouTube video of yours truly trying out this Tele straight into my Fender Champion 40, no effects; no nuthin.

Custom Neck-Through Tele Rehab: Part One

Quick Links:    Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four

This is a Tele-style guitar, no doubt. It was custom built for the owner, who then handed it over to an individual or number of individuals for further "upgrades." And now it's come to me for some serious rehabilitation. Gnarly finish, no pickups or electronics; and no control cavity cover. 

A very attractive guitar all the same. Intricate abalone inlays, neck-through construction, five-piece maple neck, strings-through-body; never mind that the holes for the string ferrules are seriously out of alignment.

The first stage of rehab involved a partial refinish. Partial as in I did not sand down right to bare wood as it was stained and I did not want to have to do a lot of restaining. Turns out I did burn through the finish along the edges and center of the body, and had to restain the affected parts with StewMac ColorTone Liquid Stains. 

Vintage Amber (#5030) was used to restain the maple center, and for the edges; a mixture of Medium Brown (#5033) and Red Mahogany (#5032). Next, I filled the grain with StewMac ColorTone Clear Grain Filler so as to provide a relatively even base for the Tru-Oil that would be applied.

Then I remembered that I had not fashioned a control cavity cover yet. So I put the refinish on hold, and got right down to cutting and shaping one out of black pickguard material. I made two at one go, the other one being for the Explorer-style bass I'm also working on.

As I write this, the Tru-Oil refinish is complete and I'm moving on to the pickups and electronics. Two humbucker-sized P90 clones have arrived, and the neck pickup won't fit in its cavity. There's going to be a bit of chiseling and Cremeling to do, no doubt. Do stay tuned for the next installment. Till then, stay home, stay safe; and keep on rocking the free world :)