My guitar collection - G&L
This model is similar to the original Fender Telecaster Thinline as designed by Roger Rossmeisl in 1968 and released to market a year later. That version now is called the Fender Deluxe Telecaster Thinline with the non-Deluxe version having the 2 humbuckers upgrade it received in 1972. Which is somewhat ironic, because within the G&L ecosystem, the (ASAT) Deluxe has 2 humbuckers as if the adjectives are crossed between the 2 brands! The ASAT Classic Thinline was built as a limited Pilot Run between April and June 2017 with all initial 58 pictured in this post on the Guitars by Leo (GbL) website. Between January 2017 and late-November 2019, CITES restricted the trade and transportation of all species of rosewood, not just Brazilian. So to avoid any infraction, the 13 Thinlines for the foreign markets have an ash body with maple fingerboard; no rosewood nor mahogany. In all, 11 of these are in Three-tone Sunburst of which 10 went to Europe. The 11th, joined by 2 Belair Green Thinlines, went to Australia. Those for the domestic market consist of another 6 in Belair Green over an ash body with maple fingerboard, 10 in Thee-tone Sunburst over an ash body with rosewood fingerboard, 11 in Alpine White over a mahogany body with maple fingerboard, 8 in Ruby Red Metallic over a mahogany body with rosewood fingerboard, and finally 10 in Himalaya Blue over a mahogany body with maple fingerboard. All bodies are chambered with a single f-hole on the bass side and feature 2 Magnetic Field Design (MFD) ASAT Classic pickups, 3-ply parchment (for those in Belair Green and Himalayan Blue) or black pickguard in the typical shape for a Thinline, hence diagonally oriented 3-position pickup selector, volume control, and tone control. All necks are hard-rock maple with 9½” radius fingerboards, Jescar Medium Jumbo 57110 frets, 1¹¹⁄₁₆” nut width, and closed tuning machines. The production model which comes closest is the ASAT Classic Semi-Hollow. But in October 2022, G&L released the ASAT Classic Thinline Limited Run for which one can find information at:
ASAT Classic Thinline
The story behind this guitar
Year:
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I had seen the GbL post referenced above. Even though the ASAT Classic Thinline has my least favorite neck radius, the unique and funky look make this model unique. But was it unique enough to be added to the collection? In the end it is just an ASAT Classic Semi-Hollow, maybe with a slightly different body and certainly a wonky layout of the controls. However, when Wolfe Guitars in Jupiter, FL, offered this guitar at a sizable discount, action was required. I really like the color but if any of the other configurations would have been offered anywhere at the same price, I would have tried to get that one. If the serial numbers are truly sequential, this guitar is #16 in the Pilot Run. The first, with S/N CLF1704116 in Alpine White, also happened to end up at Wolfe Guitars. It is hard to get to the wiring harness unless one disconnects the output jack (which I did not do). But it looks to be your standard ASAT Classic wiring harness. The neck pickup has its own rout and the lead is going through its own subsurface conduit to the cavity; no open channels. Neatly done! The sound is what one expects from an ASAT Classic although with its mahogany body, it seems to be a little warmer. But that is an extremely subjective remark. What is definitely very pleasant though is its weight, or lack thereof. You can gig this thing for hours. Still, a 12” radius fingerboard would even be better.
The story behind this guitar
2017
CLF1704179
none
APR (no day nor year visible in stamp)
