First timer: Telecaster body swap

neil_d

Over the last couple of years I've discovered I quite like teles. I have myself a Baja, which is great but pretty heavy. Rather than try to sell/swap it for a lighter one (where's the fun in that?), I'm thinking of swapping out the body. I'm happy with screwing/unscrewing things and general set-up, less so with any woodwork, and I think I can manage a little simple soldering. (A project to work on is also surely a better use of my time than browsing online marketplaces.)

There are new Fender classic series bodies (limited colour choices) available in the £200-300 range, but at the top of that range it looks like I could get a body custom mad). As well as keeping a look out for more affordable secondhand bodies, I think I could also pick up a used Squier classic vibe? (And then I'd have the Squier to practise on, and use the parts for something else...)

I think finishing an unfinished body may be beyond me (not least because I don't have somewhere decent to do it). I'm also apprehensive about positioning a bridge, so am looking at bodies with bridge pilot holes already.

What would be your approach in my position? Any advice would be much appreciated. I'll continue to look through all the helpful info already on the forum.

paulnb57

Id go for a Guitarbuild body, choose one with nice grain, finish with stain and Tru Oil bolt it together, you need very little room to do that….

Funkfingers

The Baja body is/was identical to Fender MIM Classic and Classic Player series bodies of the same era. (Now, rebadged Vintera and Vintera Modified.) Changing to any of these series opens up other colour options.

Unfortunately, unless you are very fortunate, an alternative MIM body is likely to have the same weight issues as your stock Baja body.

Additionally, the Baja body was originally built from Sen/Ash. Changing to a body made from another wood species may alter the tone. 

Some "modern" bodies may be drilled for a modern, machined from solid bridge rather than the vintage-style stamped steel version. (The holes are in different places. They come nowhere near lining up with the other bridge format.) 

The most important issue will be the neck pocket fit. You have correctly spotted that the USP of the Baja Tele is its excellent neck profile. The bad news is that the MIM neck heel is narrower than many neck pockets routed to USA-specifications.

Proceed with caution. Maybe, just invest in a well-cushioned guitar strap?



NOTE: Squier CV Telecasters are manufactured on a different production line, in a different country and using different components than Fender MIM ones. Hardware is not necessarily directly interchangeable.

ICBM

As Funkfingers said...

The biggest issues will be first, the potential incompatibility with any one of the roughly half-dozen slightly different bridgeplate designs - the screw hole positions and the distance from the string holes to the pickup cavity vary significantly enough to prevent some combinations working, even when they appear to be near enough identical at first sight.

The easy way round it is to use the bridge that comes with the different body, but that may not be exactly what you want.

The second issue is neck pocket fit - the difference between imperial and metric measurements is enough to make some pairings from different factories/countries, and in some cases just due to manufacturing tolerances incompatible, and others extremely loosely-fitting.

Proceed with caution.

Funkfingers

neil_d said:

I have … a Baja, which is great but pretty heavy.

The critical point of the question can be simplified to, "The guitar is fine. I just wish that it were lighter."

The actual problem is the excess weight. The solution is a wide and/or padded guitar strap. 

In extremis, you could have one of those Pat Metheny / Alex Lifeson stage stand things.

•

A friend of mine recently failed to make me a sufficiently tempting offer for my Fender AVRI '52 Telecaster. He then splurged far more money than I had asked for by buying a Vintera 50s and a pre-owned American Pro in very quick succession.  

The Vintera Fifties Telecaster has the same MIM weight issue as your Baja.

The Am Pro is the guitar that my friend should have bought all along - and for the price of a Performer series model! Its weight presents no problem at all.

Now, guess where Fender deploys the low mass wood with the prettiest grain?  

Bramley

+1 on Funkfinger's neck pocket comment, plus neck screw hole positioning can be a can of worms often requiring drilling and dowelling the heel if there's misalignment. If the body has no neck screw holes drilled there are a few tricks to transfer the neck screw placement into the pocket.

neil_d

Thank you for the all the replies, they're very helpful. I realise the bridge and neck pocket compatibility could be more problematic that I anticipated.

Funkfingers said:

The actual problem is the excess weight. The solution is a wide and/or padded guitar strap.

Absolutely. I guess I was looking for a guitar "project", and solving the (minor) inconvenience of a heavier guitar might've fit the bill. Maybe something a bit more straightforward is the way to go.