My new custom build Tele Jr....

is being made by this dude:

http://www.crestonguitars.com/index.php

Mine will be very no frills especially compared to many in his gallery that were hand painted, etc., but it's exactly what I wanted... a combination of, IMO, the best features of both a Telecaster and Les Paul Jr.

Basic specs:

Tele style body (mahogany)
1 Lollar P90 (no neck pick up)
1 volume, 1 tone knob (nickel dome)
500K CTS pots
Top-loader bridge w/3 compensated brass saddles
Tele style Maple neck / rosewood board (nice radius & frets, but not too fat)
Kluson staggered tuners
Unbleached bone nut
Finish: To be finalized, likely either a TV yellow or honey blonde type

Will update upon build completion... probably will not be until after the first of the year.

Vehry interestink !!

Like the no frills approach....... Tele's were designed that way in the first place.

Is there a reason that you opted for a Lollar P90 over everything else ?

TV Yellow sounds pretty darned good. Pickguard colour ? Hardware finish ?

Looking forward to seeing this F.

coastie99 said:

Vehry interestink !!

Like the no frills approach....... Tele's were designed that way in the first place.

Is there a reason that you opted for a Lollar P90 over everything else ?

TV Yellow sounds pretty darned good. Pickguard colour ? Hardware finish ?

Looking forward to seeing this F.

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Jason Lollar makes great P90's. I had one in the neck of a Tele a while back, but it blew away the pup I had in the bridge so that never entirely worked for me. But, his P90's tend to have more of a 50's vibe to them when compared to a lot of the other fine P90's that are being made today (including those Gibson makes now).

Pickguard color: Black (P90 will be black also)
Hardware: Nickel

Finish is still a little up in the air because I would be fine with either TV Yellow for a LP Jr. type vibe or the same era classic Tele honey blonde color. I'm going to talk to Creston about this more down the road & go with his instincts (if he has a strong opinion on what will work best with the particular mahogany body he's working with).

Can't tell you how excited I am even though this & my amp purchase will mean sacrificing a lot of other gear... bottom line is I'll use the guitars I have much more & they'll also be much easier to maintain.

Well, it's done... and what a guitar it is. Exactly what I was hoping for, and then some

I'll probably take some photos down the road, but this gallery is pretty cool:

http://www.crestonguitars.com/gallery/detail.php?gid=126


Like Scratch, I now have a guitar named "Lucky". It came with a strap that says that on it so why fight it??!!!

This really turned out to be the perfect Les Paul Jr/Telecaster/Esquire hybrid I had aimed for.

Very nice, I've been looking at Creston's site and like a lot of what he builds. Congratulations on the new guitar, it's a beaut.

Nice indeed ! I wasted the last hour browsing this guy's website. Hadn't heard of him. Interesting theory about toploader bridges. Congrats on the new fiddle !

So, if you ever want a custom built Tele (or Esquire as I obviously lean towards), this guy should definitely be a consideration: http://www.crestonguitars.com/index.php

Custom shop level quality at below custom shop prices, and you get a truly custom built guitar to your desired specs. I'm done now, but after the first one I had to get another. The craftsmanship & tone of both of these guitars is absolutely outstanding.

Just had to crow about 'em!

Hi Michael; they're terrific ... and have to be way better than the factory-mades. The Dr Z; what model is that? EL84s? J

capnjuan said:

Hi Michael; they're terrific ... and have to be way better than the factory-mades. The Dr Z; what model is that? EL84s? J

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Thanks, Cap'n! Yes, I've played many $3K/+ Fenders, and they don't compare to these sub $2K monsters. I feel so fortunate to have them.

Yep, Dr Z Carmen Ghia... blazing 18 watts & you betcha... EL84's! It's a great rock/blues amp, extremely dynamic. I love it's simplicity too... only has volume & tone knobs, just like these guitars.

Still love my '60 GA-5 like nothing else for recording.

Well ... it seems like you aren't the only Dr Z Carmen Ghia owner who's happy Harmony Central / Dr Z / Carmen Ghia reviews and just poking around on the B&S section of the Gear Page, it looks like they hold their value pretty well. With makes like Headstrong, Reeves, Divided by 13, Geronimo, Port City, Greer, Bruno and more, hard to tell how anybody can keep them all straight; which ones sound like what ... amazing that so many boutique mfrs are alive and apparently doing pretty well! Best wishes, John