This guy is so cool. Been trying to figure out what to get as my first tube amp and came across this demo of the Pricenton Reverb on the Fender site. I’d heard of Jim before but now I’m pretty interested. There is also a great (long) interview with him after the jump!
Tag Archives: Fender
Fender Factory Tour in Corona, California
Back in January I linked to some very cool pics from the PRS factory in Stevensville, Maryland. So how about some pics from the Fender factory tour in Corona, California? These were shot on an iPhone by Strat Talk member gerryl98 and posted over on Strat Talk. From the post:
…we toured the metal shop where we [saw] them punch out the pickguards, control plates, and amp housings, the area where they CNC the bodies and neck, the area where they skunk stripe the necks, press the frets, trim the fret ends, contour sanding and finish sanding, pickup and pots soldering, and the custom shop!!
From what I remember the inspection is done by employees that are guitar players and then goes to final inspector before it gets sent out. They said they produce about 500 American Fender guitars a day and about another 15 in Jacksons, Charvels and EVH. What’s interesting is that the tour guide said each guitar takes a total of about 8 hours labor but about 2 weeks to complete because of wait times. I think he said drying after painting was several days…might have been 10.
See more pics after the jump and you can get more info on the tour at Fender.com
Vintage Fender Champ Amp With Original Box
Posted by James Wilsey (former member of the Avengers and Chris Isaak/Silvertone, now a solo recording artist). Don’t know the year. Who can tell by that serial number?
The Blackguard Book
In my opinion the Telecaster is the coolest guitar ever built. And the original Blackguards? The coolest of the cool. But if you want an original from the early 50s, it’s gonna cost you, big time. So what’s the next best thing? The incredible Blackguard Book by Nacho Banos, which takes a very detailed look at Fender Telecasters built from 1950 to 1954.
The book itself is huge–you better have a strong coffee table! It measures 12″ x 12″ and comes in a hard case. Nacho is only publishing 5500 copies, and they are each given Tele-style serial numbers from 0001 to 5500 (mine is 2095). Inside you will find 50 guitars disassembled and photographed in stunning detail. The book devotes a chapter to each year from 1950 to 1954 and also provides an abundance of technical details on the guitars.
Be warned: this book will increase your GAS. I originally bought it with the idea it would help me spec out a partscaster. But now it has me pretty much sold on a Road Worn 50s Telecaster. Or maybe I should save a little more for a American Vintage ’52. Hmmm….
So should you buy it? Says builder Ron Kirn on TDPRI: “If you’re into Teles and don’t have this book, who ya tryin’ to kid???”
One note on ordering. I got mine for $85 plus $10 shipping from JK Lutherie. It was shipped promptly with no issues. But the site seems to be down at the moment. I’ll update this blog if I get more info.
More pics of the book after the jump!
The Ten Most Expensive Guitars Ever Sold
The Telegraph recently put together this list of the ten most expensive guitars ever sold. Pretty cool, but they are definitely missing Bob Dylan’s guitar, which sold for $965,000 back in December. But check it out and see how many you recognize. The Hendrix guitar shown below was used at Woodstock and sold to Paul Allen for $2 million back in 1998. I don’t recall seeing it at the EMP. Maybe they keep it hidden away?
Falls Rock Shop Blue Burst Custom Strat
Fender makes some awesome affordable instruments, but if you want to go custom with them, the things can get expensive quickly! Luckily, there are a ton of options out there, and many may be more affordable than you think. Like this custom Strat from the guys at Fall Rock Shop. Prices for their custom guitars start around $500. This Blue Burst Strat was about $900, but has a top of the line Wilkenson tremolo bridge, $150 worth of pickups and a flame maple neck. Check out the specs and another pic after the jump!
60s Fender Guitar Colors and the 50s Car Colors That Inspired Them
Cool little graphic of 50s cars and 60s Strats.
Led Zeppelin in 1969
This was filmed on March 17, 1969 in Denmark. Led Zeppelin had just released their first album and Jimmy Page was still playing his 1959 Telecaster (a gift from Jeff Beck). Via Guitar World
Kurt Cobain’s Fender Mustangs
Cool little video by Fender looking at the Mustangs used by Kurt during the In Utero era. Fender opened these guitars up in order to ascertain wiring schemes and pickup configurations for the Kurt Cobain Signature Mustang guitars.
Fender Beggars Banquet Telecaster
Looks like maybe it’s meant to be displayed more than played, still, I like it. For sale at Amazon