Fender New American Vintage '52 Telecaster, butterscotch blonde, made in USA 2013.  The American Vintage series replicated the original famed models of Fender's golden era instruments with religious fervour, including thin nitro finishes, period correct alnico pickups, cloth wiring as well as cosmetic touches like the spaghetti decals. Launching in 2012, the 'New American Vintage Series' updated things to get even closer to those famed original 50s models: thinner finishes with updated colours, re-designed pickups with period-correct magnets, updated neck profiles and pickguard shapes... nerdy changes, but in the hands: oh boy, what a treat. These were only made for a couple of years before being replaced by the cheaper and lower spec American Original models. The neck is a vintage correct chunky U profile with the classic 7.25" radius. It's a gorgeous piece of maple: lovely subtle grain on show under the golden aged lacquer, perfectly straight, nice and resonant... it's big enough to mean you slow down a touch and choose your notes carefully, plus the extra maple adds some presence and articulation through the top end. The tone: there's a lot to love. The thing with Teles is they generally all have a decent dose of 'twang', but the good ones are fat, airy and warm. This has a gooey, dripping rich midrange with miles of space and superb harmonic complexity, as well as an immediate reassuring punch in the bottom end and a sparkling, articulate treble. It never tries to cover a wide range of tones, but when it sounds this good, a Tele is all you need, right? The N-AVRI butterscotch finish is a little lighter in hue than the earlier examples, so it shows off the grain of the two piece ash body beautifully and channels that 50s look perfectly. This rules, friends!

Model: Fender New American Vintage '52 Telecaster
Made: 2013, Corona USA (serial V1320128)
Finish: butterscotch blonde thin-sin nitrocellulose, 1-ply matte black guard
Body: ash
Neck: one piece maple inc board, 25.5" scale, 7.25" radius
Weight: 3.555kg
Mods: none
Pickups: 2 x Fender New American Vintage '52 single coil
Case: Non-original black hard case with case candy and docs

Cosmetic condition notes: minor finish wear. Headstock has a very minor mark on the end as well as some nicks in the decal, no major marks. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands, no marks that we can see or feel. The back has widespread light scuffs, no major marks though. The sides have a number of small chips on the bottomside edges, getting worse closer in addition to some checking around the jack. The top horn and topside elbow area have a few small chips as well, again mostly along the edges. There is more checking around the neck joint as well. The front is mostly tidy with minimal play wear. Overall: very good condition (8/10). 

Playing condition notes: Action is low, neck is straight, intonation is good, truss rod works. All electronics tested and working properly. Frets have no visible wear, 9/10 for fret life left. Wearing fresh 10/46 Moonshiners strings.