Maple cap, custom colour telecaster, what more do you need? Oh, hold on, ash bodying and yards of fantastic tele tone! 1966 Fender Telecaster in Dakota Red.

This guitar is certainly no shrinking violet. The finish is exquisite and will stand out in any collection. Admittedly this is a refin but it is an old refin, it looks authentic and its been done very sympathetically to a high standard as you can see from the photos. There is some forearm wear and buckle rash to the back but all this does is let you see the lovely Ash grain underneath. It even has some natural checking on it and is probably a refin from sometime the last century.

The maple cap neck (available as an option from early 1965 and not part of normal production until 1967) has possibly been re-fretted but is otherwise correct . The electronics are correct but the neck pickup has been rewound and the electrics have been wired to post 1967 configuration so that there is no capacitor in line with the neck pickup when this is selected by itself. The chrome parts are in great shape and have remained free of any major corrosion, a common sight with telecasters of any age.

The guitar comes with a correct Fender black tolex case.

Sonically, the combination of ash and maple here gives the guitar a ‘spanky’ quality with plenty of bite from the bridge pickup as you’d expect. The 250k pots help round the sound a little, a feature that is much appreciated when compared to telecasters form later on. The neck pickup is a perfect foil bringing a warmth to proceedings. The maple neck is comfortable to play and the finish has been sufficiently worn to provide a compliant playing surface.

Custom colour Fenders are always a welcome sight here at ATB Guitars and although this 1966 Telecaster didn’t leave the factory in this particular coat, what we have here is a fantatic example sporting a maple cap neck and a great tone to match. Grab it before it gets away!