Manufacturer Fender Neck joint Bolt-on Body Alder or Ash | Body type Semi-Hollow Scale 25.5" | |
Period 1972–1981, 2000–present | ||
The Fender Telecaster Thinline is an electric guitar made by the Fender company. It is a Telecaster with body cavities. Designed by German luthier Roger Rossmeisl in 1968, it was introduced in 1969 and updated with a pair of Fender Wide Range humbucking pickups, Bullet truss-rod and 3-bolt neck fixing in 1972.
Contents
- 1990s Telecaster Thinline
- 2004 FSR American Vintage Telecaster Thinline
- Squier Thinline Telecasters
- References
The design was originally an attempt to reduce the weight of the solid-body Telecaster guitar, which had become ever heavier throughout the 1960s due to the dwindling supply of the light ash wood Fender had formerly used. The f-hole and reshaped pickguard are the most apparent visual clues to its construction.
There are now two versions of the Telecaster Thinline. The 1969 version has two standard Telecaster pickups and a mahogany body, while the 1972 version, based on the Fender Telecaster Deluxe, yields two Fender Wide Range pickups and a natural swamp ash body. Both guitars are made in Mexico and Japan as a part of the Classic Series of guitars and basses, followed by higher-end American-made Factory Special Run (FSR) versions from the Fender Custom Shop in 2005 and 2013.
1990s Telecaster Thinline
This short-lived model was based on the '69 Telecaster Thinline, but used many of the modern features found on the first-generation American Standard Series guitars manufactured between 1986 and 2000. It was introduced in 1998 and discontinued at the beginning of the 21st century.
2004 FSR American Vintage Telecaster Thinline
In 2004, a few thinlines were made for the Yamano company in Japan. These are all USA Fender models made in the Corona factory. Though they were built strictly for sale in Japan, some seemed to make it straight to the United States for sale.
Squier Thinline Telecasters
Fender's second string brand, Squier, also makes Thinline Telecasters; these are the Master Series Thinline Telecaster, the Vintage Modified Series Thinline Telecaster, and the Classic Vibe Thinline Telecaster. The Master Series features twin Duncan Designed P-90 style single coil pickups, 2 volume and 2 tone controls and a 3-position toggle switch. The Vintage Modified Series is more traditional, based around the '69 Fender Thinline, featuring 2 Duncan Designed single coil pickups, 1 volume and 1 tone control with a 3-position toggle switch. The Classic Vibe Thinline Telecaster is also based on the '69 Fender Thinline, but features a mahogany body, and Alnico V single coil pickups. However, in a break from the usual Fender standard, the master series and Vintage Modified thinline telecasters both feature the more Gibson-esque shorter 24.75" scale where Fender uses a 25.5" scale.