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Chuck Raudonis
10-07-2014, 1:04 AM
I just finished it. The lacquer is fresh off the buffer!

It is argued that the tele is one of the most versatile guitars around. I wanted to make sure of that with this build.

The body is air dried walnut (so it retained all the rich colors) capped with Caribbean rosewood. The neck is roasted maple with RW fingerboard. I had USACustom make the neck. I made everything else.

The neck pickup is a Charlie Christian that is matched with vintage tele pickups in the middle and bridge. Pete at Vintage Vibe built and matched all three so they blend beautifully. Pete is a great guy to deal with BTW.

The bridge is a Fishman piezo to give me acoustic sounds. I mounted the Fishman preamp so I could control and blend the piezos with the electric.

Set it up with 7 way strat switching.

http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a501/ChuckRaudonis/DSC_0138_zpsef6545f6.jpg (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/ChuckRaudonis/media/DSC_0138_zpsef6545f6.jpg.html)

http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a501/ChuckRaudonis/DSC_0140_zps2ab9f34d.jpg (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/ChuckRaudonis/media/DSC_0140_zps2ab9f34d.jpg.html)

http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a501/ChuckRaudonis/DSC_0141_zpsd54e71a6.jpg (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/ChuckRaudonis/media/DSC_0141_zpsd54e71a6.jpg.html)

http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a501/ChuckRaudonis/DSC_0143_zps5ece3bcb.jpg (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/ChuckRaudonis/media/DSC_0143_zps5ece3bcb.jpg.html)

http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a501/ChuckRaudonis/DSC_0148_zpsd231463f.jpg (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/ChuckRaudonis/media/DSC_0148_zpsd231463f.jpg.html)

george wilson
10-07-2014, 4:47 AM
A very interesting guitar. I have never played a Charlie Christian pickup. I wonder how it sounds?

Sotos Patistas
10-07-2014, 9:45 AM
FWIW, Tim Lerch demos the Jason Lollar Charlie Christian on a Custom Shop Nocaster Tele here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgYsugjmITc

Stunning build by the way. I have the materials for a Rosewood topped Walnut bodied Tele stored away. I just may have to tackle that one day soon.

Chuck Raudonis
10-08-2014, 12:48 AM
FWIW, Tim Lerch demos the Jason Lollar Charlie Christian on a Custom Shop Nocaster Tele here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgYsugjmITc



That's the sound! As a matter of fact, that video is one of the motivators that got me going on this build. The neat thing is you can mix that with the twang of the tele for some interesting tones.

Sotos Patistas
10-08-2014, 7:43 AM
Tim Lerch is a great player, and it's great he's so happy to share his knowledge via his youtube and Facebook vids. As though he's carrying on the Ted Greene teaching vibe. In one of his FB video comment threads, he mentions that the Tele is a key part of his sound. The way he moves the instrument around reminds me of Ted Greene as well.

How thick is the rosewood top on your Tele? I was drawn to the idea of a rosewood topped walnut Tele as sort of a poor man's (that would be me) rosewood Tele. :)

Chuck Raudonis
10-09-2014, 11:26 PM
Tim Lerch is a great player, and it's great he's so happy to share his knowledge via his youtube and Facebook vids. As though he's carrying on the Ted Greene teaching vibe. In one of his FB video comment threads, he mentions that the Tele is a key part of his sound. The way he moves the instrument around reminds me of Ted Greene as well.

How thick is the rosewood top on your Tele? I was drawn to the idea of a rosewood topped walnut Tele as sort of a poor man's (that would be me) rosewood Tele. :)

The top is about 3/16" thick. Here's a good look at it from the side. The first is as the first coat of oil hits the wood and the second is before the shellac and lacquer phases have started.


http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a501/ChuckRaudonis/aDSC_0143_zps1f2f423f.jpg (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/ChuckRaudonis/media/aDSC_0143_zps1f2f423f.jpg.html)



http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a501/ChuckRaudonis/aDSC_0151_zpsa8ea1bad.jpg (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/ChuckRaudonis/media/aDSC_0151_zpsa8ea1bad.jpg.html)

Julie Moriarty
10-10-2014, 11:16 AM
Chuck, your guitar is simply beautiful! I just love the way you made it. And the walnut really pops! Great job!

Chuck Raudonis
10-11-2014, 12:51 AM
Chuck, your guitar is simply beautiful! I just love the way you made it. And the walnut really pops! Great job!

Thank you very much! It's a blast to play.

george wilson
10-11-2014, 8:54 AM
Very nice walnut!! And,though I don't play the same type music as Tim Lerch,it is remarkable how little he seems to move his hands to play!! Conservation of motion is the mark of a real pro.

I swear,if you guys keep making those tele's, I'm tempted more and more to make one myself,though I don't play that type guitar(I play arch top Gretsch type). I started out in 1954(ish) making guitars. Had a terrible time trying to bend the sides,with no available info on how to do it. The sides kept coming out wrinkled as I was boiling them. Therefore,I made Fender type solid bodies for a few years before I discovered bending sides around a hot pipe.

For a while I had an expensive Fender Tele reissue,and I wish I hadn't traded it in now. In the 60's I actually had a 1952 Tele for a while,that I bought for $75.00. It was an oldie moldie(but complete. Rockers would eat it up now!!!),and I let it go! Who knew what the Tele value would develop into way back then. At the time,I thought the Tele looked cheap and unfinished compared to the Strats. Everyone removed the bridge cover and used it for an ash tray. They called the cover the ash tray!! I could not damp the strings with the cover in place. It just got in the way.

If I recall,old Leo used HARDENED steel on the surrounding plate on the treble pickup/bridge area of his Teles. I don't know if any of the reissues have this hardened steel part. I'm sure it affects the tone,along with the windings and magnets of the originals,though. If I wanted to go to the considerable trouble of doing this,I could case harden one,polish,and nickel plate it,or mill one from tool steel and harden it. That would be a lot of trouble,though,polishing the part after hardening,or polishing away the milling marks. Leo must have gone the case hardening route,unless he had those parts stamped from high carbon steel and hardened. More likely he had them stamped from mild steel,and case hardened. Anyone know about this?

There is a little more to those old ones than meets the eye.

Julie Moriarty
10-12-2014, 11:18 AM
I swear,if you guys keep making those tele's, I'm tempted more and more to make one myself...

I'll be anxiously waiting... :)

george wilson
10-13-2014, 9:50 AM
I doubt mine would be any better than yours,Julie!!:) I work nearly without jigs and templets since I always made every guitar individual looking. The mold,and perhaps a neck side view template were about it. Of course,getting into a repro tele would start to require some conformity.

I'll tell you what I think would look cool: One of my books has a tele BASS that I like the looks of. Belonged to some famous rocker I can't recall(never into rock myself). But,I think a tele bass looking GUITAR would be very cool. IIRC,it had a Strat shape,but with only the corners of the body slightly rounded,like the tele guitar. It had a typical tele peghead,and an interesting shaped black pick guard. Some things would have to be modified since the string length of the bass placed the bridge way down near the bottom end of the body. Mod to the pick guard would be needed. But,the spirit of the design could be kept.(Not that it is a great work of art,but I found it interesting,evoking the period when it was made.). That would make a unique guitar,though.