miroslav
Cosmic Cowboy
A coupe of months back in a Tele thread...(I think it was)...I had mentioned how this past winter I decided to sell my Fender '52 RI Tele, after having it since '95, but just not playing it hardly at all, due to the fact that I could never warm up to the feel of the '52 neck with it's very narrow, 7.25" fretboard radius and deep "C" back.
I mean...it wasn't like really bad to play...it just never felt very comfortable, as I tend to prefer more of a shallower "U" shape, with a 12" to 15" radius fretboard, which is what my Hagstrom guitars have, and something I've been use to for a very long time, even long before I ever got that Tele.
That said...I was missing the Tele, because I always loved their look, and I wanted at least one single coil guitar in my stable. Oh I have a couple of Hags that will do the split-coil thing...but it's just not quite the same.
After selling the Tele...a few months later I was looking at Tele's again...
...but this time I figured I might as well try to find one that will fit my preferences, which would be the wider radius, plus I wanted a Tele with a double-bound body but with a maple neck with that 12" radius fretboard.
Talk about finding needle-in-the-haystack. Fender just doesn't make too many guitars with 12" radius fretboards, and especially maple necks.
Oh they have a couple...but not with my other prefs.
I even looked at Strats, as much as I'm not a Strat person...and that's even harder.
I then looked into getting a custom build from Warmoth...but damn, it would cost me more than a genuine Fender.
I just got to where I was going to give up, and adjust me preference...and find a Tele that at least met the critical stuff, which I did. There's the Deluxe Tele Thinline model, single-bound with a 12" radius maple neck. Nice looking in either Candy Apple Red or 3- burst.
I had a couple in my sights, as I was going to go for a used one which could be had for like $500-$600...rather than drop $800 on a new one...but both missed out on both.
So as I was bouncing around the internet looking for used ones on the GC website...I came across a used Hagstrom F300 (or Futura) in a Ferrari Red (I think they actually call it Italian Red due to trademark issues)...and it looked to be in great shape other than a lot of dust on it.
It had my totally preferred Hagstrom neck...so that was super, no need to make adjustments in feel...and it was laid out with 3 single coil pup in Strat-style layout. Actually, the body has a Strat-ish shape, but with some SG lines...like if a Strat and SG had a baby.
Though it's pure Hagstrom, and the styling goes back to the '60s...though back then they headstock looked like a typical Fender...but these have the unique Hagstrom headstock, which I think is without a doubt one of the coolest looking.
Anyway...I bought the red one from GC...then I saw they had a used burst also...I figured what the heck, they were almost giving them away.
Then a day later...
...I saw the Sky Blue one on Reverb and couldn't deny that it was meant to go with the red one...and I ended up getting that one too.
So here they are:
I have to say...for what I paid for them (all three cost me less than the price of that used Deluxe Tele Thinline I was looking at...and they sound really great! The pickups are not that thin/lame single coil sound...but more like hotter Texas Specials. With a 5-postion switch, the tones are exceptional, and the necks are perfect.
All three were damn clean (well, dusty yes, but not beat up with dings/scars)...they all needed to be overhauled and set up properly, since they were probably laying around for quite awhile...but no issues with any of them.
These were only made for maybe a couple of years with the 3 single coils and with this style of headstock...and then Hagstrom redesigned them to look closer to how they were back in the '60s...but they had to change the headstock since those had the Fender shape. So now they are part of Hagstrom's Retroscape line... but with an IMO real stupid looking headstock. They should have just stuck with the truely "original" Hagstrom designed headstock, like these three.
So I got my single coil guitar...well, three of them...
...didn't spend some crazy money...and with the perfect necks/fretboard that I love.
I mean...it wasn't like really bad to play...it just never felt very comfortable, as I tend to prefer more of a shallower "U" shape, with a 12" to 15" radius fretboard, which is what my Hagstrom guitars have, and something I've been use to for a very long time, even long before I ever got that Tele.
That said...I was missing the Tele, because I always loved their look, and I wanted at least one single coil guitar in my stable. Oh I have a couple of Hags that will do the split-coil thing...but it's just not quite the same.
After selling the Tele...a few months later I was looking at Tele's again...
...but this time I figured I might as well try to find one that will fit my preferences, which would be the wider radius, plus I wanted a Tele with a double-bound body but with a maple neck with that 12" radius fretboard.Talk about finding needle-in-the-haystack. Fender just doesn't make too many guitars with 12" radius fretboards, and especially maple necks.
Oh they have a couple...but not with my other prefs.
I even looked at Strats, as much as I'm not a Strat person...and that's even harder.
I then looked into getting a custom build from Warmoth...but damn, it would cost me more than a genuine Fender.
I just got to where I was going to give up, and adjust me preference...and find a Tele that at least met the critical stuff, which I did. There's the Deluxe Tele Thinline model, single-bound with a 12" radius maple neck. Nice looking in either Candy Apple Red or 3- burst.
I had a couple in my sights, as I was going to go for a used one which could be had for like $500-$600...rather than drop $800 on a new one...but both missed out on both.
So as I was bouncing around the internet looking for used ones on the GC website...I came across a used Hagstrom F300 (or Futura) in a Ferrari Red (I think they actually call it Italian Red due to trademark issues)...and it looked to be in great shape other than a lot of dust on it.
It had my totally preferred Hagstrom neck...so that was super, no need to make adjustments in feel...and it was laid out with 3 single coil pup in Strat-style layout. Actually, the body has a Strat-ish shape, but with some SG lines...like if a Strat and SG had a baby.
Though it's pure Hagstrom, and the styling goes back to the '60s...though back then they headstock looked like a typical Fender...but these have the unique Hagstrom headstock, which I think is without a doubt one of the coolest looking.
Anyway...I bought the red one from GC...then I saw they had a used burst also...I figured what the heck, they were almost giving them away.
Then a day later...
...I saw the Sky Blue one on Reverb and couldn't deny that it was meant to go with the red one...and I ended up getting that one too.So here they are:
I have to say...for what I paid for them (all three cost me less than the price of that used Deluxe Tele Thinline I was looking at...and they sound really great! The pickups are not that thin/lame single coil sound...but more like hotter Texas Specials. With a 5-postion switch, the tones are exceptional, and the necks are perfect.
All three were damn clean (well, dusty yes, but not beat up with dings/scars)...they all needed to be overhauled and set up properly, since they were probably laying around for quite awhile...but no issues with any of them.
These were only made for maybe a couple of years with the 3 single coils and with this style of headstock...and then Hagstrom redesigned them to look closer to how they were back in the '60s...but they had to change the headstock since those had the Fender shape. So now they are part of Hagstrom's Retroscape line... but with an IMO real stupid looking headstock. They should have just stuck with the truely "original" Hagstrom designed headstock, like these three.
So I got my single coil guitar...well, three of them...
...didn't spend some crazy money...and with the perfect necks/fretboard that I love.
