Nice wood ;-)
Yeah, some bursts (Tomato soup they called it on the 1960 LP's) can be pretty garish, and they don't fade like you'd want them to. They figured out a way to keep the red from fading that was turning all of those pre 1960 LP's into "unbursts".
I've use the sun to fade bursts with limited success, in a sunny window.
The best faded LP Flametop I ever had was supposedly faded in a window for a year.
Bursts also always look different in pics than what your eye sees, not as many transitional color nuances.
UV light does the same thing.
For sure. Those pics are actually pretty close to how it looks in person -- it's a bright red and the middle is pretty bright yellow. Just kind of garish, like you said. It originally had a white pearl pickguard on it, which made it worse. I swapped for the tortie to kind of darken the overall vibe, but it might look less busy with plain white/cream and would probably look better with chrome hardware, for the same reason, but I'm too cheap to swap it all out. If it wasn't a physically nice finish, I'd have probably redone it by now, but it's hard to justify stripping off a nice, aged finish like that, just for a color swap.
It's just the best tele, though -- so loud and strident.
Outside of the Not Roy Buchanan T-250, I just picked up a G&L Will Ray Signature ASAT Tribute. Made in Indonesia, reportedly American hardware. It has a Hipshot B-bender, z pickups and locking tuners. Nice satin neck, in sunburst. It was hanging in a music store for ten years, so the shopkeeper is scrounging me a case. Not sure how long it will stay in my hands, but it will be fun to play around with for a month or two. Along with it, I picked up an Egnater TOL 50 amp, so I can live up to the adage, "If you can't be good, at least be loud".
You left the strap in Tahoe? ;-)
Too cool, so was that it for him playing the guitar in the movie?
Dang, the good Tele's keep coming.
That's got some hellacious checking on this butterscotch Tele, what is it, Fender Custom Shop?
Super cool, I'm working on #2 right now, when I get time.
Getting close.
Question: You left the strap in Tahoe? ;-)
Answer: Yep, it was in the bottom of bag, it was summer, I forgot it was in there, plus it gets pretty hot in Texas these days. I'm still mildly surprised that the plasticky stuff started breaking down, but there it is.
Question......so was that it for him playing the guitar in the movie?
Answer: I don't know, I never saw the movie. As far as I know, Farrell plays it on some song named Gone Gone Gone. I hope it's not on the cutting room floor.
The story on the finish? Well, it's complicated, but I can tell you what I was told. As I posted on March 25th (page 4 of this thread), I know a guitar show dealer who would buy 50 'dry' (unfinished) bodies and necks at a time, then 'mix and match until he got the best fitting/looking combinations. That dealer sold the tele body and neck to a customer, who had the dry guitar sprayed, then relic'd. At later point, the original customer traded it back to the original dealer and informed him that MJT Aged Finishes in Carthage, MO had done the finish/relic work.
A good friend of mine bought it from the dealer at a show, then sold it to another good friend of mine in Austin. I wound up with the guitar from the Austin gent. I love it, but do not appreciate the underwound pickups as much as the original purchaser.
Looking back, I think the dealer told me that the original body and neck were purchased from All Parts, which means the one-piece, very-slightly-oversized-by-a-1/4" body and neck were made in Japan. Where the maple and ash wood came from, I do not know. I would not be surprised if they were from here (USA), but that could be just wishful thinking.
For what it's worth, it does not seem to look like a Fender Custom Shop finish in person.