DETENTION!
We all do it, don’t we? Despite our own best advice and intentions we just can’t stop ourselves. So our tale goes something like this. Despite us saying that in an ideal world you shouldn’t buy a used guitar unless you’ve had a play on it, Jamie saw a Fender American Vintage ’52 Tele and thought he’d take a punt. Then, before he’d given it a close inspection, he thought he’d get it pinstriped, as we documented back in issue 466’s The Build feature. Next thing, he’s knocking on the The Mod Squad door asking us to “hot-rod” the guitar. He’d got a set of Lollar pickups that cost a pretty penny, breaking another fundamental rule: before you mod anything, get your guitar playing as best as it can and then decide what you want, or what needs to be changed. Oh, and then Jamie noticed some fretwear: “Does it need a refret?”
When the guitar arrives, there are no strings on are unboxed and loose in the gigbag pocket. Can things get any worse?
