Fender Telecaster Solid Body Electric Guitar (1966)
LOADING IMAGES
This item has been sold.
Item # 10295
Prices subject to change without notice.
Fender Telecaster Model Solid Body Electric Guitar (1966), made in Fullerton, California, serial # 142108, Blonde lacquer finish, ash body, maple neck with maple fingerboard, original black tolex hard shell case.
This somewhat worn-in but lovely Telecaster was built less than a year-and-a-half after Fender became CBS/Fender, and is still a wonderful instrument upholding the grand Leo tradition. The neck date is May 1966 and the visible pot date is the 17th week of that year. The evolving features of the Telecaster in this specific era include the blonde lacquer finish, a 3-ply laminated white plastic pickguard (replacing the earlier white single-layer and subsequent green nitro versions), and a headstock with the new in 1966 "transition" logo decal but retaining the old-style Kluson tuners.
This Tele has the then-fairly new option of a "maple cap" fingerboard in place of the standard rosewood version. Some players (notably Buck Owens and Don Rich) petitioned Fender in the 1960s to make the 1950's style maple fingerboard again, and using a separate maple cap was an easy way of honoring those requests without having to re-tool production. Eventually, this became such a popular option that in 1968 the company re-introduced the original '50s style one-piece maple neck. When this Telecaster was made in spring '66 the maple neck was still a custom order option, and thus is rather rarer than the rosewood alternative. These "maple cap" Telecasters are often considered a connoisseur's specialty Fender.
This Tele has an ash body that handles perfectly and resonates nicely, and a very comfortable slim round-backed neck. At 7.7 Lbs. this is not featherweight but not in the heavier zone for a CBS-era Telecaster. This is still a delightful mid-'60s Tele gem, from the last year they really retain their Pre-CBS character before the F-tuners and heavier finishes arrive. It remains nicely original, well-used but offering excellent playability and a slightly smoother less spikey tone than many later '60s examples.
Overall length is 37 3/4 in. (95.9 cm.), 12 3/4 in. (32.4 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 5/8 in. (4.1 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 25 1/2 in. (648 mm.). Width of nut is 1 5/8 in. (41 mm.).
This Tele shows signs of fairly heavy use but is still a well cared for, substantially unaltered guitar. From the general condition it definitely spent time as a serious player's instrument. The most notable alteration is a refret with slightly taller wire than Fender spec (1966 is when Fender themselves had started using larger wire on many of their guitars). The maple fingerboard shows some substantial wear to the wood so it's easy to see why a refret was in the cards. The lacquer on the back of the neck is worn down to the wood on the entire treble side, and much of the bass side as well. The decal is fairly well worn with much of the gold fill missing but the black outline largely intact.
The original fairly thin lacquer finish on the body has a decent amount of wear on the edges (typical for slab-sided Fenders) and a larger area of armwear in the expected spot. The rest of the face has mostly random dings, with a couple of deeper marks over the controls that might be cleaned-up cigarette burn and a small finger wear spot under the treble side of the bridge. The back and sides have moderate checking, with dings and dents but no heavy buckle wear.
As is often the case with well-used Telecasters this one has been rewired to modern spec, so the two pickups can be blended. Because of this a few solder joints have been redone but all the components remain original including the pickups, pots and cloth wire. All hardware appears original and in good shape overall with some minor plating wear; the "ashtray" bridge cover has a patina underneath showing it was often used as an ashtray! The pickguard has some shrinkage at the screw holes but no cracks or popped corners. Overall this is a great-feeling and sounding '66 Telecaster with some mojo to spare, in the original worn-but-solid black tolex Fender HSC. Overall Very Good + Condition.
This somewhat worn-in but lovely Telecaster was built less than a year-and-a-half after Fender became CBS/Fender, and is still a wonderful instrument upholding the grand Leo tradition. The neck date is May 1966 and the visible pot date is the 17th week of that year. The evolving features of the Telecaster in this specific era include the blonde lacquer finish, a 3-ply laminated white plastic pickguard (replacing the earlier white single-layer and subsequent green nitro versions), and a headstock with the new in 1966 "transition" logo decal but retaining the old-style Kluson tuners.
This Tele has the then-fairly new option of a "maple cap" fingerboard in place of the standard rosewood version. Some players (notably Buck Owens and Don Rich) petitioned Fender in the 1960s to make the 1950's style maple fingerboard again, and using a separate maple cap was an easy way of honoring those requests without having to re-tool production. Eventually, this became such a popular option that in 1968 the company re-introduced the original '50s style one-piece maple neck. When this Telecaster was made in spring '66 the maple neck was still a custom order option, and thus is rather rarer than the rosewood alternative. These "maple cap" Telecasters are often considered a connoisseur's specialty Fender.
This Tele has an ash body that handles perfectly and resonates nicely, and a very comfortable slim round-backed neck. At 7.7 Lbs. this is not featherweight but not in the heavier zone for a CBS-era Telecaster. This is still a delightful mid-'60s Tele gem, from the last year they really retain their Pre-CBS character before the F-tuners and heavier finishes arrive. It remains nicely original, well-used but offering excellent playability and a slightly smoother less spikey tone than many later '60s examples.
Overall length is 37 3/4 in. (95.9 cm.), 12 3/4 in. (32.4 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 5/8 in. (4.1 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 25 1/2 in. (648 mm.). Width of nut is 1 5/8 in. (41 mm.).
This Tele shows signs of fairly heavy use but is still a well cared for, substantially unaltered guitar. From the general condition it definitely spent time as a serious player's instrument. The most notable alteration is a refret with slightly taller wire than Fender spec (1966 is when Fender themselves had started using larger wire on many of their guitars). The maple fingerboard shows some substantial wear to the wood so it's easy to see why a refret was in the cards. The lacquer on the back of the neck is worn down to the wood on the entire treble side, and much of the bass side as well. The decal is fairly well worn with much of the gold fill missing but the black outline largely intact.
The original fairly thin lacquer finish on the body has a decent amount of wear on the edges (typical for slab-sided Fenders) and a larger area of armwear in the expected spot. The rest of the face has mostly random dings, with a couple of deeper marks over the controls that might be cleaned-up cigarette burn and a small finger wear spot under the treble side of the bridge. The back and sides have moderate checking, with dings and dents but no heavy buckle wear.
As is often the case with well-used Telecasters this one has been rewired to modern spec, so the two pickups can be blended. Because of this a few solder joints have been redone but all the components remain original including the pickups, pots and cloth wire. All hardware appears original and in good shape overall with some minor plating wear; the "ashtray" bridge cover has a patina underneath showing it was often used as an ashtray! The pickguard has some shrinkage at the screw holes but no cracks or popped corners. Overall this is a great-feeling and sounding '66 Telecaster with some mojo to spare, in the original worn-but-solid black tolex Fender HSC. Overall Very Good + Condition.