Guitar Building: A Walnut-Topped Tele
NICE!! My fellow guitar nut Andy and I put this guitar together in a solo building class. It has a gorgeous figured walnut top, and the rest of the body is a single piece of swamp ash. To set off the top, Andy decided to install gold hardware and not to use a pickguard. Pretty cool! Check out the stone accents on the control knobs.
Andy opted for a glossier finish on the top, for maximum grain pop, and the results speak for themselves. He did his own finishing work. At the same time I’ve been continuing to work on my mahogany Tele, and also opted for more gloss, for the same reason. Love that grain!
Of course, a pretty face doesn’t count for much if the guitar doesn’t also play and sound great. This one does not disappoint. The Clearfork Designs body and unfinished Allparts neck combination has always been predictable and reliable in the past, and this guitar came together and set up easily. The Joe Barden pickups are their usual sparkling and ferocious selves, and I like that. Dead quiet, too.
Other details: three-way selector switch, a NOS Sprague Black Beauty tone cap at .05 mfd, and the 22nd fret, for when you just gotta get a little higher. Andy’s got another cool guitar!