1983 Fender Elite Telecaster Lefty
The Fender Elite Telecaster was envisioned by Dan Smith - Fender's legendary Director of Marketing in the early 1980s - who is largely credited for sparking the beginning of the return to quality at Fender after the Dark ages of CBS ownership in the 1970s. The Elite Series consisted of a Telecaster, Stratocaster, and Precision Bass, each of which were massively redesigned and reimagined, incorporating modern looks, hum-cancelling pickups, and new hardware.
The Elite Telecaster features Gibson-style 3-way switching, a new heavy-cast top-loading 6 saddle bridge, and a pair of Alnico 2 pickups with active TBX and MDX tone controls, which offer fat humbucker tones and classic single-coil sounds at the turn of a knob. The neck was built with a two-way biflex truss rod, and featured jumbo frets at a 12” radius.
The Elite Telecaster was a truly modern Fender, perfectly evolved for the high gain rock music of the time. But it was ill fated still. Released in 1983, the Tele Elite was retired at the end of 1984 when CBS pulled the plug on Fender and put the company up for sale.
This is an impossibly rare left-handed Fender Elite Telecaster. It's in beautiful condition, and has been carefully set-up here at Folkway. The pickups are incredible, and the guitar can do classic Tele or massive high-gain depending on how the tone controls are spun. It has the potential to be the loudest guitar in your arsenal, and can push the front end of any tube amp into dizzying overdrive.
With original hardshell case
The Elite Telecaster features Gibson-style 3-way switching, a new heavy-cast top-loading 6 saddle bridge, and a pair of Alnico 2 pickups with active TBX and MDX tone controls, which offer fat humbucker tones and classic single-coil sounds at the turn of a knob. The neck was built with a two-way biflex truss rod, and featured jumbo frets at a 12” radius.
The Elite Telecaster was a truly modern Fender, perfectly evolved for the high gain rock music of the time. But it was ill fated still. Released in 1983, the Tele Elite was retired at the end of 1984 when CBS pulled the plug on Fender and put the company up for sale.
This is an impossibly rare left-handed Fender Elite Telecaster. It's in beautiful condition, and has been carefully set-up here at Folkway. The pickups are incredible, and the guitar can do classic Tele or massive high-gain depending on how the tone controls are spun. It has the potential to be the loudest guitar in your arsenal, and can push the front end of any tube amp into dizzying overdrive.
With original hardshell case