So Many Tele Choices...

[Tig]

Final Tele search entry:
The winning guitar for my Tele quest is the Hell Guitars "No. 2".
More here.

News Flash:

I've zeroed in on a possible Tele to save up for. While I could go with a nice Squier Classic Vibe Custom, I'm considering something special yet still affordable for under $800 from Logan Custom Guitars...

Butterscotch Blonde ash Nitro finished, tinted 9.5" birds eye maple neck, Bill Lawrence Keystone pickups, 4-way switch, Wilkinson vintage bridge with brass compensated saddles.
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UPDATE: Due to owing taxes instead of getting a refund this year, the Tele purchase has been postponed indefinitely! :thwap
Thank you all for your input. I might be able to pull off a Squier Tele, which sure isn't a bad choice these days.
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I've been on the hunt for a good sounding, quality Telecaster for under 800 clams. I would love any of these on my short list:
Fender Baja Telecaster maple neck with 4-Position Blade Switch and 2-Position Push/Push S-1, brass barrel saddle bridge, and Custom Shop "Twisted" neck and Custom Shop Broadcaster bridge pickups. $799

The Fender American Special Telecaster with maple neck, Texas Special Tele Pickups, brass barrel saddle bridge, standard 3-way switch, Greasebucket tone circuit, and made in the USA. $799

The Fender Standard Telecaster Mod Mini Twang Rocker (modded and set up by Sigler Music) is a modified MiM with Seymour Duncan SM-3n Seymourized Mini Humbucker neck pickup, DiMarzio DP173BK bridge pickup, Babicz Full Contact™ Bridge System, Fender Locking Tuners, and strap locks. $749 w/free shipping

To make things difficult, there's a Korean made Koa Telecaster on eBay with Seymour Duncan Alnico Pro pickups (APTR-1 neck, APTL-1 bridge), rosewood fretboard, gorgious birdseye maple neck, and oh, it is also signed by Robben Ford (not a selling point, but cool). $650

 

[Katastrophe]

I'd narrow it down to the first two... The MIM is still an MIM, and you'd never get anywhere near out what you paid for it if you didn't like it and decided to sell / trade it. The koa tele, while cool, is a little high on the price, IMO... I think, if memory serves, they were $699 new.

So, I'd try out the Baja and American Special and see which neck you like best. Don't forget the Highway 1 model, if you can find it. I love the necks on those, both Tele and Strat.

 

[Tig]

I'd narrow it down to the first two... The MIM is still an MIM, and you'd never get anywhere near out what you paid for it if you didn't like it and decided to sell / trade it. The koa tele, while cool, is a little high on the price, IMO... I think, if memory serves, they were $699 new.

So, I'd try out the Baja and American Special and see which neck you like best. Don't forget the Highway 1 model, if you can find it. I love the necks on those, both Tele and Strat.

Thanks Katastrophe!
I like the quality of the first two as well. I have played the American Special and was really impressed with the pickup's tone and overall quality. I'll demo a Baja soon.
Also, the top two can be bought from local independent shops, which is important to me.

Edit: The Koa Tele sold for $500 +shipping on ebay. I watched to see the price, but decided against buying it.

 

[deeaa]

I don't want to think of resale values etc. I just get guitars for using them and preferably cheap...so for me that MIM job sounds like a really sweet axe. Hardly a classic tele in any way sight or sound though.

That said, I do now and then eyeball a nice gibson used...there was one pretty sweet SG standard for 800 on sale here, and if I won in a lottery or something, I'd get one.

 

[Eric]

I'm with Dee on this one. The third one you listed (blue, MIM?) with the mods is the one I'd gravitate toward first. Resale value is something worth considering, but ultimately it's probably not what would drive my decision.

 

[Tig]

I'm with Dee on this one. The third one you listed (blue, MIM?) with the mods is the one I'd gravitate toward first. Resale value is something worth considering, but ultimately it's probably not what would drive my decision.

Yes Dee and Eric, resale value is pretty low on my guitar buying decisions. Sound and feel are at the top. I'll likely mod any single coil neck with a Seymour Duncan mini humbucker. What's so cool about the modded MiM blue Tele is it already has almost every upgrade I would do to the other Tele's. They also perform a pro setup, so the sucker should be ready to rock on arrival.

I'll still demo the American Special and Baja before making my big choice. The Special sounds really sweet, so the bar is set high.