Chambered Swamp Ash with Ebony on Padouk

[Stew]

Here's number 2!

Chambered swamp ash with a flame maple cap. Front finish is amber dye with trans brown on the back and sides.
The neck is a ebony on padouk, fatback with 6115 stainless steel frets, MOP inlay and TUSQ nut.
Tuners are Hipshot Grip Locks.
Pickups are Effbuckers by Uncle Fezzter.
Angled control plate and brass compensated saddles by Marc Rutter.
Fender bridge plate, All Parts knobs and three-way pickup selector. Tone control is a Stellartone Tonestyler.
Neckwear by DangerousR6  :icon_thumright:

I ended up smoothing the edges of the headstock a touch and I'm very happy with how it's turned out ... subtle yet effective.

Setup is a bit rough but already it plays very nicely. A completely different instrument to my strat. Very happy with this build.  :cool01:

 

[Stew]

A couple more snaps ...

I got Rutter's angled control plate because it's 0.06" thick, the same as a single ply Warmoth pickguard. Notice how they sit flush ... sweet  :glasses9:

 

[JaySwear]

VERY nice! Normally I'm not a big fan of Teles with forearm contours, but this thing turned out great

 

[Stew]

Jay, that's just the crappy lighting (grey ol' day here) ... no forearm contour  :icon_biggrin:

 

[Corey P.]

You can sleep easy tonight knowing I approve of this build.  :glasses9:

Seriously, looks killer and I'm sure will play incredibly after some final tweakage.  :headbang1:

 

[JaySwear]

Jay, that's just the crappy lighting (grey ol' day here) ... no forearm contour  :icon_biggrin:

Then I take it back! I like everything about it :laughing11: That is one seriously nice Tele

 

[record83]

Great looking Tele! I got to ask, is the Rutters control plate worth it? I wanted one for my Tele, but didn't want to pay him that money! But then again, I most likely won't drill my own control plate! I like the idea of the selector switch being out of the way of the knob.

 

[Strat Avenger]

Gorgeous.  :kewlpics:

 

[DangerousR6]

That's pretty sweet Stew.... :headbang: :headbang:

 

[Johnfv]

Looks great!  I like the contour also. 

 

[Strat Avenger]

Looks great!  I like the contour also. 

There ain't no contour.

 

[Nando Vallart]

Awesome!!!!

 

[Stew]

Great looking Tele! I got to ask, is the Rutters control plate worth it? I wanted one for my Tele, but didn't want to pay him that money! But then again, I most likely won't drill my own control plate! I like the idea of the selector switch being out of the way of the knob.

I like it  :icon_biggrin:

In all seriousness, I bought it for two reasons—so that the pickguard would be flush with the control plate and to have the angled switch. If either of these things appeals to you then this plate will give them to you.

I don't have a lot of experience with Teles ... before owning this one I probably hadn't played one for at least five years. Personally I like the angled switch. It seems to sit in a logical place for my hand and there is plenty of clearance from the volume knob. But I can't remember if I ever thought the straight switch was a problem  :laughing7:

Sure it's expensive for a control plate ($30) but in the big scheme of things it ain't much.

 

[Mor Paul]

Those angled switches are nice, huh? I got a Rutters plate of my own  :icon_thumright:

 

[Stew]

Those angled switches are nice, huh? I got a Rutters plate of my own  :icon_thumright:

Yeah, that's where I first saw it Max  :icon_thumright:
I'm diggin' his compensated saddles too ... they look totally stock but have angled grooves in them. And they intonate great!

 

[Johnfv]

Looks great!  I like the contour also. 

There ain't no contour.

DOH! I like the mirage that looks like a contour. Sorry I missed that...

 

[Death by Uberschall]

I like it!! It's Burn Unit approved!!  :icon_thumright: :headbang1:

 

[hannaugh]

Looks super classy, congrats!  ccasion14:

 

[add4]

Beautiful!
the amber dye finish doesn't look as good on the bodies on the warmth website. i don't know if yours is particularly good looking or if it's because the guitar has the pick guard, pickups, and accessories, or the light on the warmoth pic is not flattering for this finish...
But it looks great!
I was looking at a burst finish but now i'm really looking at an amber dyed one.

How much do you think the chambered body alter the sound? and in what way?

 

[Stew]

Thanks for all the nice comments folks ... I'm stoked with this guitar. It's taken me a while to get into it ... very different to my strat ... this feels much chunkier, I guess that's the fatback with 6115 frets.  :laughing7:

I didn't take to it immediately like I did the strat. If I was to describe the strat as a sports car, then this tele is a muscle car ... took a while to work out how to throw that power around. I'm lovin' it now and the best thing is that when I pick up the strat it still plays/feels awesome and I'm inspired again in a whole new way  :icon_thumright:

How much do you think the chambered body alter the sound? and in what way?

First tele I've owned, first chambered body ... so hard to say. I think it makes it louder acoustically. I also found that this guitar wasn't as 'bitey' on the attack as I had expected. No problems getting what I want out of it though by digging in a bit ... actually makes it more versatile. It's a smoother sounding tele than any I've ever played (not many to be honest) but can get just as twangy if I want that. Can't say if this is to do with the chambering or other factors like neck wood or pickups.  :dontknow: