The Fender 72 Telecaster Custom is one of the lesser known models, though it was the company’s first to carry a humbucking pickup as stock – designed by Seth Lover, who also created Gibson’s humbucker in 1955. It was followed by the Telecaster Deluxe and re-worked Thinline versions with two humbucking pickups each.
Telecaster Custom
The 1970’s Fender Telecaster Custom was a significant departure from the 1960’s Custom, which had basically been a stock model with a bound body. In contrast, the Telecaster Custom introduced in 1972 and built until 1979 introduced the head-end “Bullet” truss rod adjuster, the three-bolt MicroTilt neck angle adjuster, and a huge change for Fender – the Wide-Range Humbucker designed by Seth Lover.
Here is a rare piece – a Fender Telecaster Custom with an original Wide Range Humbucker, a model produced from 1972 to 1981. Fender’s goal was to provide a guitar with a humbucker to compete with Gibson, and added a humbucker in the neck position, three way toggle switch, and individual volume and tone controls. This model was used by a number of prominent guitarists, including Keith Richards and The Edge.
This instrument has sold
MORE →The Fender American Vintage 72 Telecaster recreates a version of the Telecaster built from 1972 to 1981, a major change from the Tele Custom introduced in 1959. For 1959 with the introduction of Rosewood fingerboards, Fender introduced an ‘upmarket’ Telecaster Custom, with the new Rosewood board and a body with binding around the top and back. The rest of the guitar was standard Telecaster. However, by 1972, Fender Marketing was feeling pressured because of its close association with thin and bright single coil pickups, while Gibson was almost synonymous with fat sounding humbuckers.
This instrument has sold
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