I just bought a guitar is it rubbish?

I’m making a tele at the moment as I’m trying to get back into guitar after a ten year break. I usually need a project to spark interest. Also dug all the effects pedals out of the loft I made, miraculously, they all still work \o/

@drakesmoke thanks for the info. Yeah it is Japanese made, the legend of the Japanese Fenders is a draw to it.

This is the guitar www.fender.com/en-HR/aerodyne-special-telecaster/0252202343.html

I’ll prob do nothing about it as per usual, as with most of us my head gets turned by the new shiny but there are some good deals on it right now.

I got an Epi LP Muse a couple of years ago and I’ve not played anything else since. Real versatile with coil splitting and being chambered it doesn’t break your back.

I had a look at these earlier and figured it would be this rather than the 'classic' Aerodyne (they used to have a very different look).

It'll be very well built from Japan, although to be fair so is a higher end Mexican these days. 12 inch radius will feel more Gibson than trad Fender which tend to have a 7.5 or 9 inch radius.

They appear to have been met with a bit of deflation on the Gear Page due to the modern looks etc - most guitarists are a trad bunch. I don't buy guitars for re-sale value but maybe bear that in mind.

Still in bits as I ordered a neck plate from the UK, then realised I’d clicked through so many it was actually China, weeeeeeks now, weeeeeks before I can put the neck on and finish it.
Body was red polyester, absolute clusterfuck to strip off, awful. And the “two part” alder body they promised turned out to be four with a couple of knots once that thick coating was off 🤨 Luckily they’re hidden under the scratchplate.
Sculpted the body a touch front and back and then finished with a white stain and nitro lacquer. Bunged a logo on the neck. Probably a good thing it all has a couple of weeks to finish curing and hardening before assembly but still

I see you are going for the (correct) three barrel saddle effect, a man of culture.

If they are the regular barrels they'll never quite intonate as you can only adjust the strings in pairs to the same length - an upgrade could be a set of compensated ones which would drop into the same bridge. They keep the look (and sound) from a distance but have notches to rough out the intonation for each pair of strings. I swapped mine out for that.

EDIT Apologies in advance if teaching a granny to suck eggs

Some compensated ones are definitely on the cards drake

The best bit! Sod the sanding and painting etc, seeing it finally start to become a guitar.

Hoping the pics work. Here's the new Epiphone Gold Glory (Jared James Nichols signature). So it's based on a Les Paul Custom, with the double binding, blingy headstock with the diamonds and the block inlays, but gold all over (save for the back of the headstock). Unlike a Custom, it's just got one P90, which is Seymour Duncan made specially for it. The finish is satin all over.

The controls are very responsive so it's not solely a one-trick pony. With the taps open, it's very, very rock and pokey though, but you can get prettier chimier tones too.

Ebony fretboard - my first experience of it. Lovely feel, almost no grain.

I love it. The gig bag is actually half decent but I feel it warrants something nicer. Bought a Tourtech Pro ABS case from PMT today which was gorgeous and then went straight back in for a refund - it didn't close all the way around even empty. Shocking manufacturing tolerances, so I'm stuck with the bag for now. Apologies if the amount of pics are self-indulgent.

Never realised it only had inlays up to 15 before

Nice to see actual unique features on a signature, better than stuff like the recent noel Gallagher 355 which is just a regular guitar and a photo in the case.

Got P90s in my double cut special and a thinline Tele build as well, love em

I'd love a Tele with the trad Bridge pickup and a P90 at the neck. Of course post photos if you can - I reckon there's not enough of it in here.

The only pickup I haven’t tried is a soapbar and, agreed, swapping out the neck pickup is the place to put one. Love the neat simplicity of that Epiphone 👍

I cut the pickguard and control washers from copper sheet

I've got a bright blue Fort Bryan one on my tobacco sunburst offset.

And a black and white checker one on the Les Paul.