52 Tele vs Stnd

I'd say go for a used one over the net. Not eBay neccessarily but rather a proper guitar shop. Used is the key though to save. Save youself some on these guitars. THaey are not fender but as you said (sensibly) you are not too concerned with the brand. Fender have pretty good quality control on the USA guitars so I would buy unseen if I could save big money. The '52 teles are way too expensive in town at something like €1750!!

Check these out:

G&L ASAT Special .. ok its hard to find L/H used!

G&L Asat Bluesbay Again new but much nicer for the money than the Fender '52 I'd reckon... build and finsh wise


I couldnt find any suitable fenders L/H. Its a big dissadvantage in the used market.

By the way the '52 and the American series guitar are VERY different. The '52 has a more radiused fretboard, smaller fretwire, vintage electronics + pickups, a V-shaped neck profile, different machineheads, a three saddle bridge and only the choice of ash for the body as well as only the choice of maple for the fingerboard. The two guitars are different in every respect!! I'm surprised the slaes rep didnt mention this to you. They probably wanted to make the sale there and thenm instead of waiting for the '52 to come in . Well, It wasnt a bad reccomendation but he/she didnt give you much information it would seem.

It really depends on what you are after. If you want vintage tones get the '52, if you are a modern player and want a faster neck with more ease in string bending and better intonation (debate of tone Vs. intonation begins here!) and more modern pickups thenn I'd go for the American series model. Dont get confused though, one is part of the "American Vintage" series ('52) and the other is part of the "American" series. They are both still USA guitars if you get what I mean.


I think the prices on '52's here are too high. They are nice but not worth those sums. For most tastes I reccommend the Fender Ameican model or even better, a used Anderson Hollow or regular Classic or nice G&L ASAT if you are right handed as they are easier to find. There is so much choice when you go used at the €1100-€1400 mark.

All depends on what sort of music you play and feel you like. Hard to find L/H guitars on the net so you may not have luck there. Hope this helps.