Fiesta Red
Well-Known Member
Tolstoy Version:
When I started playing guitar in 1989, I wanted to be the bastard love child of Keith Richards, Muddy Waters and Jimmie Vaughan.
I always loved the funky looks and sound of Keef’s 1974 Custom, which I later found he’d bought in San Antonio during the Stones infamous 1975 “Tour of the Americas”.
Circumstances, bad advice from a friend and poor choices on my part dictated that I didn’t get a “vintage” (then just considered “old”) ‘70’s Telecaster Custom in 1989, when they were fairly cheap.
My love for the model never completed waned, but was rekindled in 2001 by the opportunity to play (and record) with a fairly clean sunburst-finished 1974 or 1975 (?) Telecaster Custom that belonged to a bandmate.
Since I couldn’t find (or afford) an original and couldn’t find a reissue (I’m not sure if they were even being made at the time), I settled for a MIM Tele Special, which was eventually modified and customized into my beloved #1 pinstriped “Big Tex” Telecaster.
The desire to acquire this particular Tele variation has never been addressed…until now.
I found a Telecaster Custom ensconced in the corner of Murphy’s Music in Irving, Texas (city motto: “Hey, At Least We’re Not Garland!”)…
It caught my eye, and I could see the price tag before I could see the headstock…based on that, I initially thought it was going to be a Squier version of this model, but I went to check it out anyway…
To my surprise, it was a used 2006 hecho-en-Ensenada Fender Classic Series ‘72 Telecaster Custom…I have an affinity towards the Ensenada-built, so my ears immediately perked up.
Because it’s a 2006, it’s a Fender 60th Anniversary Edition and has the little logo/badge with the diamond and “60” on the headstock. I don’t know if that makes it more valuable in any way, but it’s a cool little detail.
Because I know these guitars are going for a few hundred dollars more than the asking price at their shop, I was concerned there might be an issue with it…the only thing I’ve found thus far is some chipped paint on one edge of the body and a couple small surface scratches and swirls often found on black guitars anyway.
Overall, it looks great for a 19-year old guitar.
The Good:
It sounded really good through a blackface Deluxe Reverb reissue and a new tweed Blues Jr.…the non-CuNiFe/faux Wide Range Humbucker sounded full and rich without being muddy, and the bridge pickup was suitably twangy and bright without going into icepick territory. No crackles or problems with any of the knobs or the switch.
The action was almost perfect (I like the action extremely low, but I’m gonna try this “millimeter higher than I prefer” action for a while before adjusting it), and the neck profile is similar to my beloved namesake Fiesta Red Stratocaster…it is slightly fatter than my Strat’s above the 12th fret, but not baseball bat-fat. Nice satiny feel and finish on the neck, vintage frets and 7.25” radius (I prefer 9.5”, but 7.25 doesn’t bother me at all).
The online Fender serial number app says the body is made of alder, and I’ll believe it. It’s not light-weight, but lighter than my pinstriped Big Tex Telecaster…very well-balanced on and off the strap—no neck dive or shoulder pull at all.
The Bad:
These reissue “F” tuning keys (which I have both on this and on my 2007 hecho-en-Ensenada Fender Classic Series ‘72 Telecaster Deluxe) feel a little cheap and janky. They function just fine, and stay in tune very well, but they just feel cheap and plastic-y. I don’t know if there’s something that could be used to replace that looks similar, but I’d be willing to try them if and when these ever start failing. For the time being, I’ll just leave ‘em be.
The Ugly:
I wasn’t planning on buying any more guitars or amps this year, but I’ve run across three deals I couldn’t pass up (the other pieces of gear will have their own NGD and NAD threads soon)…between these three purchases and my hope to finally finish my Telebastard partscaster Les Paul Junior/Esquire mashup should keep me happy for a couple of years.
When I started playing guitar in 1989, I wanted to be the bastard love child of Keith Richards, Muddy Waters and Jimmie Vaughan.
I always loved the funky looks and sound of Keef’s 1974 Custom, which I later found he’d bought in San Antonio during the Stones infamous 1975 “Tour of the Americas”.
Circumstances, bad advice from a friend and poor choices on my part dictated that I didn’t get a “vintage” (then just considered “old”) ‘70’s Telecaster Custom in 1989, when they were fairly cheap.
My love for the model never completed waned, but was rekindled in 2001 by the opportunity to play (and record) with a fairly clean sunburst-finished 1974 or 1975 (?) Telecaster Custom that belonged to a bandmate.
Since I couldn’t find (or afford) an original and couldn’t find a reissue (I’m not sure if they were even being made at the time), I settled for a MIM Tele Special, which was eventually modified and customized into my beloved #1 pinstriped “Big Tex” Telecaster.
The desire to acquire this particular Tele variation has never been addressed…until now.
I found a Telecaster Custom ensconced in the corner of Murphy’s Music in Irving, Texas (city motto: “Hey, At Least We’re Not Garland!”)…
It caught my eye, and I could see the price tag before I could see the headstock…based on that, I initially thought it was going to be a Squier version of this model, but I went to check it out anyway…
To my surprise, it was a used 2006 hecho-en-Ensenada Fender Classic Series ‘72 Telecaster Custom…I have an affinity towards the Ensenada-built, so my ears immediately perked up.
Because it’s a 2006, it’s a Fender 60th Anniversary Edition and has the little logo/badge with the diamond and “60” on the headstock. I don’t know if that makes it more valuable in any way, but it’s a cool little detail.
Because I know these guitars are going for a few hundred dollars more than the asking price at their shop, I was concerned there might be an issue with it…the only thing I’ve found thus far is some chipped paint on one edge of the body and a couple small surface scratches and swirls often found on black guitars anyway.
Overall, it looks great for a 19-year old guitar.
The Good:
It sounded really good through a blackface Deluxe Reverb reissue and a new tweed Blues Jr.…the non-CuNiFe/faux Wide Range Humbucker sounded full and rich without being muddy, and the bridge pickup was suitably twangy and bright without going into icepick territory. No crackles or problems with any of the knobs or the switch.
The action was almost perfect (I like the action extremely low, but I’m gonna try this “millimeter higher than I prefer” action for a while before adjusting it), and the neck profile is similar to my beloved namesake Fiesta Red Stratocaster…it is slightly fatter than my Strat’s above the 12th fret, but not baseball bat-fat. Nice satiny feel and finish on the neck, vintage frets and 7.25” radius (I prefer 9.5”, but 7.25 doesn’t bother me at all).
The online Fender serial number app says the body is made of alder, and I’ll believe it. It’s not light-weight, but lighter than my pinstriped Big Tex Telecaster…very well-balanced on and off the strap—no neck dive or shoulder pull at all.
The Bad:
These reissue “F” tuning keys (which I have both on this and on my 2007 hecho-en-Ensenada Fender Classic Series ‘72 Telecaster Deluxe) feel a little cheap and janky. They function just fine, and stay in tune very well, but they just feel cheap and plastic-y. I don’t know if there’s something that could be used to replace that looks similar, but I’d be willing to try them if and when these ever start failing. For the time being, I’ll just leave ‘em be.
The Ugly:
I wasn’t planning on buying any more guitars or amps this year, but I’ve run across three deals I couldn’t pass up (the other pieces of gear will have their own NGD and NAD threads soon)…between these three purchases and my hope to finally finish my Telebastard partscaster Les Paul Junior/Esquire mashup should keep me happy for a couple of years.
