Epiphone T-310 Tele Copy

Your basic Tele clone. Not a lot of features, but isn't that the point? Bought used in 1991 or 92 (memories of that era fuzzy), and gigged for years. It's not an honest-to-Leo, Big-F Tele, but I realized a long time ago that AUDIENCES DON'T JUDGE YOUR MUSIC BY THE BRAND YOU PLAY.

Made in Korea -- in the same factory, no doubt, as Squiers, Samicks and every other T or S clone from the era. The Epi T can be ID'd from a distance by its hockey stick neck.

Solid cream (actually beige) finish, which disguises the fact the body is plywood. I doubt solid ash would greatly enhance the tone of a cheap Asian electric, so plywood was not an issue -- until the strap button screw stripped the upper bout hole during a show. Epoxy fixed, and I never gave it another thought. Body is slightly thinner than an actual Big-F Tele -- lighter, too, which is a blessing after three-or-four-set gigs.

Maple neck and fretboard are great -- smooth and playable, rounded but not cylindrical, comforable thickness somewhere between chunky and shredder's delight. Back-angled headstock means no need for string trees.

Pups and other electronics cheap -- replaced immediately. Tuners are no-name knockoffs, but enclosed and good. Not the smoothest, but if you know how to string up correctly, they'll hold tight.

I named my Epi T "Deborah" after an old girlfriend who was also a little plain and thin, but would play sweet all night, in all positions, and loved licks.

Twangy to warm, like a good Tele should. Played rock/blues/country/R&B/beach/Top 40 in every bar in the Southeast. Teles are so versatile because they're so simple. The sound is thin (or "unassuming," if you want to say it more positively) so it's almost impossible for a Tele to overwhelm other instruments or singers. If you can find the groove, it'll fit.

That said, members of the Tele family (especially the bastard Asian stepsiblings) tend to make better rhythm guitars. They're great for R&B/soul choked strums and country chicken-pickin', where a percussive sound is what you want. Distortion at the just-breaking-up point is also great (think Keith Richards stabs). Clean with a touch of chorus, it can sound damn close to an acoustic.

You can play leads on it -- blues licks through the neck pup are especially sweet. But even with replaced pups (Seymour Duncan Hot Rails, then Vintage set) it's never really wanted to go into Roy Buchanan territory. The tone is just too thin to make a convincing lead machine. If that's what you want, forget the Epi T -- or any other guitar in this price range. But if good overall Tele versatility is what you're after, this should do -- after you replace the cheap electronics.

Used to play though an old Ampeg VT-22, but it weighed a ton, tubes are a headache, and overdrive on the behemoth is impossible without cranking way too high for bar stage levels. Because I was getting my dirt from a pedal anyway, and because I eventually realized AUDIENCES DON'T JUDGE YOUR MUSIC BY THE BRAND YOU PLAY, I switched over to a Peavey solid-state with enough wattage and clean headroom to keep from gettng drowned out by the sax player and drummer (bass and keyboard volumes rarely a problem). Tubes are great for home and recording, but for the road give me transistors! If you know what you're doing, and if the gear is even decent, you'll sound fine.

Bought used, so I can't comment on factory setup. All guitars, new or used, should be set up to you preferences.

I will, hwoever, comment on original construction. Cheap parts, but surprisingly well put-together.

This one needed more than the usual setup for action, relief, string height, fret polish, etc. Pups, pots, switch, wires, jack -- all were junk. Replaced by my regular repair guy in Atlanta (no idea which brands except Seymour Duncan pups). Also replaced plastic nut with graphite, and cheap saddles with graphite (warmer tone than metal, and less string breakage).

Only original hardware still on it are tuners (good), T-style bridge (I doubt a new one would make a dramatic difference in tone or playability) and pickguard/screws (rusting, but so what?).

Your basic cheapie T clone -- I knew what I had when I bought it. But that works both ways. I knew this was a good foundation for a player when I first pulled it off the shop wall. Neck is terrific, fits pocket tight, body vibrates against your ribs when you strum unplugged. Korean assembly line did an excellent job with decent to good materials. This is cheaply made, but not poorly made at all.

I gigged with this thing for years. It never let me down, except the time the strap button screw stripped out of the cheap plywood body in the middle of a show. But that's why you NEVER gig without a backup.

In fact, this was originally my backup piece. I bought it after my former backup, a Peavey T-27, was stolen from the van. But a funny thing happened -- instead of the Epi being the semi-expendable piece I intended it to be, it became my main gigger. I began to worry my "baby" (an actual, honest-to-Leo Strat) would also get stolen, or suffer some other road misfortune. So after the upgrades mentioned above, and after realzing AUDIENCES DON'T JUDGE YOUR MUSIC BY THE BRAND YOU PLAY, I started playing "Deborah" (the Epi T) on the road and leaving "Ginger" (the Strat) at home. My Sigma acoustic ("Maybelle" after Mama Carter) became backup to the Epi, and vice versa. With a little amp fiddling, each can sub for the other -- close enough to get through a set, anyway.

Bought used, ripped its guts out, then took on the road for years -- where it suffered dings, drops, defensive and a few offensive bashes, scorches, a stabbing (long story), frequent alcohol-soakings and a web of razor-blade scorings across the back (gave that up a long time ago). What customer support could I reasonably expect?

Played 35 years, professionaly more than 10. I settled down nearly 15 years ago -- real job, family, etc. No regrets. I still play -- for myself mostly, but I jam with some other guys every week or two. Sometimes we'll play a few tunes at a barbecue or fish-fry, just for fun. I take the Epi instead of my Fender (and the Sigma instead of my new Taylor).

New players at our jams, depending on how snobbish they are, will either smirk or say they didn't know Epi made a Tele. Regardless, they don't expect much from it -- at first. It doesn't bother me anymore, because I know that ONLY OTHER GUITARISTS JUDGE YOU BY THE BRAND YOU PLAY. After my first lead, the new guy's eyes will open wide. By the second or third, he's shakign his head in disbelief. When we take a break, he'll ask, "Man, you must've really hot-rodded that Epiphone!" I'll say, "Nah, it's just my old road warrior. I keep a Fender at home that really plays."

If something were to happen to my Epi T ... well, I've had her nearly 20 years. That's pretty good for semi-expendable. I'd replace her, but I wouldn't go out of my way to find the same brand, or even another Tele copy. I'm sure the local pawn shops or Craigslist would have a decently made import upgradeable to a good play-out piece.

Good set of features. Individual bridge saddles allow for accurate tuning unlike the real tele that has two per saddle, strings thru the body give this guitar nice sustain. I see other reviewers indicate this is a plywood body but shoot-must be heavy alder ply as mine weighs a ton and the solid, beefy body seems to add nicely to tone and sustain. Never had any issues with tuners, I love the maple neck & pretty well has standard tele like features for everything else

I absolutely love the sound. I bought this as a beater, backup guitar but now can't help reaching for this first. I did replace the pickups with seymour duncan. The split rail SD pickup in the bridge position is particularly sweet and I rarely move off this.
I play mostly contemporary gospel (worship on Sunday) and classic rock/pop (wedding band) and this does fine in both cases. I have actually had guitarist come up to me to see what I'm playing as they love the sound too. (been told its the best tele sound they have heard) All have been surprised that this is my little epi tele knock off. Guitar has incredible amounts of sustain and tone. Even unplugged this is fun to play-rings like a bell you Johnny Bs.. :o)

Pretty good fit. Solid guitar, well built. Neck pocket has a very small gap but I am guessing that is just a bit of shrinkage over the years...
Action is to die for. I have it set low and love it. The maple neck is a joy to play on.
Finish is an off colored creamy pink/light salmon. Quite gross to me but its playability is so phenomonal...the strange color now just makes me grin-its growing on me. Nice thick black. manly pickguard however..
I have had trouble with the nut and will probably replace it with a bone nut before my next string change.

This guitar feels very solid and I could probably defend myself with it when necessary. Switch has never given me any trouble and as indicated pickups were replaced with SD's.
Stays in tune and very dependable..

N/A.

I picked this little fella up in a pawnshop cheap and wouldn't part with it. Been playing over 15 years and like this better now then my US strat or my epi custom les paul. Don't ask me why. I was never a tele lover either. The epi neck just looked so funny on a tele body, I'd picked it up out of curiousity and after strumming it was impressed enough to buy it. The tone (with the seymours), the sustain/ring still blow me away. The neck is just the right size for me too. Too much fun to play.

Commenting on 1991 Epiphone T-310 "tele-clone" Body is same general size, thickness and outline as the classic Fender Telecaster. Mine was made Oct 1990 in Korea. It has an opaque "faux blonde" finish that is surprisingly intact after 18 years of abuse. It deviates from classic tele specs in a few minor yet notable areas: This is a laminated (plywood) body wheras teles are classically made from 2-3 joined peice of solid ash or alder. Information on this model is hard to come by but a few sources state the laminate is alder/birch. Old-skookl teles have 21 frets-the T-310 has 22 frets. The small headstock of the Tele is completely ignored-mine has what is sometimes termed a "hocky-stick" headstock which does look a bit out of place but has the bonus of not requiring string trees to keep the strings in the nut. There are 2 pickups as per the classic recipe. The tailpeice is through-the-body and has 6 individual chrome-plated barrel saddles. It does not have the ridges that old (or faithful replicas of the old) teles show. It has 1 volume and 1 tone with 250k pot values and a .47 microfarad tone cap. The neck is definitely influenced by the 80's shredder values but isn't a bona-fide shredder neck..thinner than vintage, heftier than modern shred-bats. The scale is a Fender-like 25"...basically a somewhat updated take on classic tele elements executed on the cheap but with attitude and grace. If you want soemthing else you won't be happy but if you are looking for a funky but functional Tele clone this will probably make you smile. I give it a 10 because it has everything you need for teleosity with some thoughtful updates. It should lose a point or two for being plywood but I can't--the instrument has held up under enormous adversity and owner stupidity and still sounds better with every passing year. IT does not have a whammy, a 3rd middle pickup or phasing options--and you don't need 'em...The fretboard is maple but it is not a 1-peice neck as there is a clearly visible glue line between the wood of the neck and the fingerboard. The nut is more of Gibson/Epiphone mold and will not accept Tele-style aftermarket replacment nuts thgat slip into a slot on Fender-style necks. Dimensions are very close to Fender Teles but are not identical to either Korean, MExican or American specs-this is most noticeable re: the pickguard, should you ever need to replace yours-getting an Esquire-style guard and cutting the neck PU slot by hand seems the best strategy should you need to go there

I somehow failed to give this guitar the respect it deserves for about 16 of the 17 years I have owned it. It is my 3rd guitar and the 2nd electric guitar I ever owned. It has been abused, neglected, butchered to accomodate humbuckers (I enlarged the single-coil sized routs with the saw blade of a swiss army knife during a performance-it was fun but not a preferred setting for guitar mods...), plastered with stickers and then later restored to "tele-ness" with GFS alnico vintage neck and alnico vintage '62 bridge pickups. Stock pickups were OK but my younger self wanted humbuckers and my older self (who has a few double humbucker axes)had to see what aftermarket PUPs would do for it...I guess it comes down to recognizing what we're dealing in: a Tele is not a funny-looking les paul. A Dull neck and a sparkly/spanky bridge is what the tele-nation is all about and if you keep that in mind you can certainly find a lot to love in this axe. It is not well-suited to metal but it can be used for metal-crank the gain and roll off some treble on the bridge pickup and you're in the game...but it won't be the smooth refined sound of humbuckers&glass (tube amplification) as the tele voice is a bit more raucous and primitive when hitting the distortion end of tone--but do keep in mind Jimmy Page used a Tele for all the electric guitar parts on LEd Zepplin I--it's not that you can't go there with this instrument it's more that you're more likely to use a different axe for the creamy Santana/Cram-era Clapton kinds of sounds. Clean sounds on the other hand, from bridge pu twang to neck P/U pseudo-coustic, are dynamic and totally workable. During the last 2 decades I have run it through cheap transistor and pricey tube amps-and have always found usable sounds. The upgrade to GFS vintage-inspired pickups has worked well-a bit more gristle and snot on high gain sounds and a lovely new depth and dimension for clean and rythmn sounds. Teles inhabit a certain sonic turf and the T-310 shares that turf. I also swapped the stock capacittor for an ORange Drop Cap-not a huge diffference but having a more robust cap in the circuit does seem to add or simulate a hi-fi sort of sheen. These mods are not necessary-the axe is worthy in bone-stock condition but does give you a bit more if you show it some love and upgrades. Best fit is clean, percussive stuff like country and funk; add the right pedals or amlplifier gain stages and it is good to go up to and including metal. Teles can be used anywhere you need guitar and the t-310 is the same as it's role-model in that regard

I bought the guitar used. I had thought it was a few years old but later research by serial number uncovered it as being about 9 months old at the time I purchased it. The neck had shifted slightly towards the bass side and the action was a bit sketchy on the "dusty end" up past the 12th fret. Frets were well-shaped but a wee bit prickly at the ends. Loosening the neck bolts and pulling the neck straight corrected the slight lean and has never needed further attention.

I would not have predicted that this guitar would survive and thrive the way it has. Again I have to confess just a general disrespect it never deserved. I have played this guitar live more times than I can list and have even lent it out to friends in need. The worst problem it has ever developed is some crackly pots that were easily tamed with WD-40. It has never fallen off of its strap for me despite using normal straps and the stock buttons. IT balances well both standing and sitting and, while philosophically I have objections to gigging without a backup I have to confess that when I was gigging this axe I didn't have no steenking backup. The tuners still look new. The control plate is showing a couple oxidation spots and the saddles have held up fine. If I hadn't cut out chunks to squeeze humbuckers into it it would look near mint with the exception of one small chip and some belt scratches on the back. I think that if you had your heart set on breaking it you could but it would be much more effort than it's worth to do so. A rough&tumble solid axe you don't need to lose sleep over

I really can't comment in this area-I have never had any reason to claim warrantied service. Most Epiphones carry a lifetime guarantee but I am not 100% sure this is one of them

I played a small Red & Black Harmony accoustic for several years before going electric with a Hohner Steinberger clone...that guitar seemed almost too easy action-wise and one day while buying strings I happened to strum a few chords on this plywood playground and had to have it. I no longer recall the exact price I paid but it was under $150 and seemed well worth it at the time. Since it was an Asian knock-off I felt I had license to experiment on it and sometimes wonder whether it has been more useful as a luthiery tool than a musical tool. I have many other guitars now-Epiphone Les Paul JR, LEs Paul Special and LEs PAul Ultra II-all of which have been modded with Auricaps or ORange Drop tone capacitors and DiMArzio pickups. A PRS SE Santana hardtail with DiMArzios, A Hohner Electric 12 string (also based on tlee shape but with coil-tapped humbuckers Bridgeand neck)a MExican Fender Strat, an Ibanez AX-30, a couple Silvertone Archtops from a garage sale a Cordoba Flamenco guitar and an Adamas accoustic. I have stripped my amps down to my apartment (and car)-friendly VOX DA-5 and Roland Microcube but have previously played through Fender Champs, Deluxes, a JTM-45 MArshall Combo and, for a very brief time in the mid 90's a MEsa Boogie combo. The T-310 hangs with the other axes in any situation and often surpasses them for fast clean parts due to its tele-liciousness. IT has never been a tempting target for thieves but those who have tried it have always given it due props. I do wish it were a nice solid wood body with a translucent finish but having A/B'd it with rahter more expensive tele-style guitars I can't hear anything other than a little less sustain. Notes sound good all over the neck in all postitions. I bought it because it attracted my attention at a time whne I really wasn't conciously concenred with finding a T-type axe and felt nice, played well and encouraged me to learn about modding since it was obviosly never going to be a museum peice. It has taken all the use and abuse I could throw its way for almost 20 years now and still keeps sounding better every year. Now that I understand a bit more about what a Tele is about I am if anything even more impressed with this Korean-made plywood slab. They don't make 'em any more and that's a shame. Due to the string-through bridge and the indivdual intonation adjustabilty it is, imho, a few notches higher than even mid-grade Teles which cost from 4-8X as much as this axe did. Outstanding guitar; if you find one used snag it quick, you won't be disappointed

98 korea. Standard tele set up, controls ets.

This thing is versatile. Played in a punk/street rock n roll band for years with this as my gigging guitar. At home on the couch it fills the bill for more twangy country and blues too.

set up was good, pickups were adjusted properly. Finish...well there are chips and dings. I'm not sure if this is due to a cheap finish, or the multiple tours throughout 30 US states.
Action is nice and low, extremely playable.

Work horse. This 180 dollar guitar has been played over many many thousands of miles on tour...been beat up bad, been knocked around, kicked outta every bar in this here town... It stays in tune period. My lead guitar player had an american strat that was constantly going out of tune...This cheap korean made tele knock off has never given me any fits.
I would and always have used this on tour without a backup guitar. 100% reliable, only thing that can stop it is a broken string.

na

17 years. I've owned many guitars. Currently I own this one, and acoustic and (as of today) a les paul.

If something happened to this guitar I wouldn't blink before buying the same thing again. It is so inexpensive, but heavy, built like a tank, versatile sounds and very playable.

This is Epiphone's version of a Telecaster, so feature-wise, it's about as simple as it gets. A couple of things to note, it has Epiphones "batwing" headstock, which is angled, so doesn't require string trees. The body is laminated (maple/alder), and slightly thinner than a Fender. Mine is the vintage white (cream) with a black pickguard, maple neck.

I'm not going to put numerical ratings here because I think they are rather meaningless (compared to what?).

Unplugged it sounds suprisingly good, considering that it is a laminated wood body (a lot of people consider this a negative, but I've played some pretty good laminated guitars). The neck pickup has a warmer tone than most teles, but still has a nice single-coil chime to it. The bridge pickup seems quite a bit hotter than most tele pickups and definately hotter than the neck. I needed to adjust the neck PU up to compensate. The bridge has a nice bite to it (sounds like a tele). Overall, it has good usable tones. The pickups are a bit microphonic, which is annoying because I keep hitting the neck PU with my pick and it pops pretty loudly. The volume/tone pots work smoothly, are quiet, and have a nice range. I popped off the cover and was quite impressed that they were full-sized pots (most guitars in this price range use the cheapie mini-pots).

I bought it used off eBay. It was pretty grungy when I got it, but a good cleaning, a new set of strings, and a basic setup brought it into good playing order. The neck seems like a normal tele neck at the first fret, but tapers so that it's pretty chunky by the 12th fret. Still has a nice feel... just a little different than my other tele. The frets are fairly large and nicely finished. The fit and finish of the rest of the guitar is fine. The tuners are fine.

It's built like a tank. The hardware is as good or better than most guitars in this price range.

I bought it used and do all of my own guitar tech work.

I've noticed that many of the reviews of this guitar here are from people where this is their first guitar, or they have limited experience... and it seems that a lot of those people end up keeping them even after they gain experience. I've been playing for 35 years and have owned upwards of 50 guitars throughout the years from cheapies to very high end. My hobbie is building and tinkering with guitars. I bought this on eBay mostly out of curiosity and to see if I could make it into a serious player.

My point of comparison is my current tele that I built from scratch, and a recent Standard Squier (Korean made). Well, it doesn't hold a candle to the one I built, but if I had to choose between the Epi and the Squier I'd probaby go with the Epi. The pickups on the Squier I thought sound pretty anemic, and the neck is too thin. This guitar really does sound pretty good, and is an all-around solid instrument.

Black gloss finish with white pickguard
Epiphone Tele Copy
Standard Tele type bridge, w/ no cover
Unknown enclosed tuners
Solid maple neck and fretboard
Manufactured in Korea in 1993
22
Believe the body is solid (alder?)
one volume and one tone control with three way switch
lipstick and standard tele style p/us manufacturer unknown
passive electronics
Maple neck, (alder?) body

Have used this in some country music and love the sound.
Have ran it through several amps.
The pu's are not noisy.
Can get very trebly if desired.

Action is great, neck is straight as an arrow.
The fret finish is good.
Controls were loose when I purchased it, but aren't now.

This is a reliable guitar.
I have had it for a couple of years with no problems.
I have used it at gigs without another electric b/u.

Haven't used it, bought used. I was able to look up the manufacture date from serial number though.

Been playing for 41 years, own several other guitars, acoustics and electrics, as well as, banjos, mandolins, fiddles, dobros, drums, etc...

1993 Vintage cream body(originally) black pickguard with the usual tele layout for controls. I took the neck off and replaced it with a stratocaster neck and also stripped the guitar to its natural finish.

Surprisingly this guitar has lasted in my collection. I've owned 60+ guitars since the late 1980's and this thing is still there...whats more, I still play the damn thing! It sounds pretty damn good...I will replace the pickups..but as is, not bad.

The neck is no longer original, nor is the finish and I love the way it plays and looks now! The wood is crap...looks like 30 pieces of plywood glued together...but somehow this thing sounds good

I've put this thing through hell (smashed it many times/dropped it/drank beer from it) and it still keeps on taking it. Used it at many shows and never needed a backup.

This is an oddity that I can't explain. I keep coming back to this cheapo guitar...it just feels good to play. Just for perspective here are some of my other guitars..Gretsch 6120, 1976 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe, Washburn HB 35, 1965 Fender Jaguar, Gibson J-45, etc...Now in no way is this Epiphone better than any other of these guitars, But.... It still gets played regularly. It's in my collection to stay!

I just bought mine for $120 as a project guitar however the more I have played it the more I like it as is. I agree with anohter review that it would sound great with custom shop Texas specials.

Mine I suspect is late 80 - 90 black with a hocky stick maple neck similar to an 80's Kramer. I own a Kramer Focus 3000 which are the parts as the New Jersey made and the necks are close in size and feel.

Its a tele, no frill swith standard tele pickup config and features.

I play mine clean with I assume stock pickups and it sound pretty good.
I don't know if you want to buy one for alot of distortion its tele. If you want rock by a double hum guitar.

This one would sound great for blues, moderate rock and maybe jazz especialy with fender custom shop texas special installed.

The country twang isnt bad out my amp however mine is a clean Berringer ACX acoustic amp. I play everything clean jazz mainly

Action is fender spec. after I set it up. xxx off the 12th fret. Cant get much better in higher end guitars with out any buzz.

Standard Black paint with good finish, tuners seem decent however don't stay in tune as well as I would like probably just old and need replacing it was a low to mid range guitar remember.


Alder body.

It would hold up as a great playing, giging guitar especially for $120 I paid.

N/A

Great playing guitar that just needs some minor tweaking and maybe a pickup swap. I have been playing for 26 years everything from Rock, blues jazz etc.

Buy one in good shape for a player of country, moderate rock and blues but don't plan to get a heavy distortion sound out of it like several reviewers I read if you want distortion buy a double hum guitar and put a seymour duncan JB , super distortion, or classic 59's in it.

Epiphone T-310 CR, made in Korea, during the 90s I guess.
It's basically a Tele-copy, except for the ugly headstock.
Mine is sort of pink, it used to have a black pickguard, but for some reason the previous owner had changed it to white.
The body is pretty heavy, and the neck is all maple. The tuners work fine, the guitar stays in tune and the intonation is excellent.

Sound is amazing for a guitar in this price range.
I know it's hard to believe, but this Tele-copy actually sounds better than many u.s.a. made Fenders.
I don't know what it is, but once it picked it up I was blown away by the sound and the playability (the neck is great), and I had to buy it.
It's one of the most versatile guitars I've ever played: it can deliver the classic Tele twangy sound, but if you turn up the gain, this little crazy pink guitar can handle hard rock and metal sounds too. You can go all the way from Albert Collins to Van Halen.

Set up was pretty good and the action was low. Intonation was excellent. The finish was perfect and the hardware was alright too.

This guitar looks very solid, so far I haven't got any problem.

Been playing for 15+ years. I own 15 guitars, including a 1960 Gibson Les Paul Jr, a 1968 Gibson SG JR, a Gibson Custom Shop Firebird VII, a 1964 Epiphone Crestwood Deluxe, a 1967 Epiphone Crestwood Custom, Gibson ES-335, Fender Rosewood Telecaster (the japanese reissue), Mosrite Bluesbender, Gibson SG Supreme, etc.
So I guess I know something about GOOD guitars, and believe me, as crazy as it might sound, this EPIPHONE T-310 is one of the best guitars I've ever played. Since I bought it, I've been playing this one non-stop. I don't know if mine is a "lucky" one or what, but you can find these for less than $ 200, so if you bump into one, be sure to give it a try. It's an amazing deal for this price range.

Korean Telecaster copy, dating back to between 1996 and 1998. Pretty standard features as far as Telecasters go, two single coils, two knobs, a three way selector, and a fixed six saddle string-through-body bridge. The neck is pretty average, thicker than my 80's Kramers, but thinner than my girlfriend's Fender Standard Strat. 21 frets, six-on-a-side tuners on a tilt back head, all maple, fingerboard and all. It's got a black pickguard, black finish, and a black head. Basically, it's all you need to play guitar. No frills, but no frivolity either.

This thing looks like a Telecaster, but that's where the similarity stops. Sonically, this guitar can be as brutal as a Kramer or as gentle as a regular Tele. I run through a Danelectro Fab Tone and it coaxes out the sweetest, harshest distorted tones I've know. I play a lot of Smashing Pumpkins, and my style involves a lot of distorted open chords (a la Billy Corgan), this guitar fits it perfectly. When I want arena rock, it gives me arena rock. When I want acoustic ballads, it gives me acoustic ballads. When I want grunge, punk, ska, experimental, it gives me those. Even when I want metal, it gives me metal (thanks to the Fab Tone and some heavy strings).

I got this guitar used, but the previous owner set it up perfectly. Intonation, action, and pickup adjustments were right on. The thing's built like a tank. It always stays in tune and the finish is durable, it's going to last forever!

This guitar will definately withstand live playing. Like I said, it's going to last forever.

I've got no regrets with this guitar, it's opened so many avenues of sonic expression to me. It's seriously become my favorite guitar to play (compared to three Kramers, a classical acoustic, and a Standard Strat).

It's a Tele. If you want a ton of features you're barkin up the wrong tree.

IT still has the stock pickups in it. Sounds good on the clean channel of my peavey classic 50 head and 412 classic cab. Can't say much for the distorion side of it though. It would suit blues more than rock. I do like the neck pickup it gives off a pretty nice tone.

I bought this guitar used and when i got it the setup was bad. I lowered the action and set the inotation. It plays a lot better but it has some buzzing through out the neck. The body finish is black. It seem to be holding up pretty well. The neck is maple. Frets were in pretty good shape but the headstock it ugle as hell. Overall not too bad for a cheap guitar

I would gig this guitar if I had to but I would rather not. It's more of a around the house player. The hardware is average for a guitar in this price range. You get what you pay for. The finish seems like it'll hold up to gigging. One of my strap buttons stripped out but that happens to most guitars. I play it quite a bit and havn't had too many problems with it but I've never gigged it. I wouldn't gig any guitar without a backup so no.

never dealt with them

I've been playing for about 10 years. I also own a Epiphone LP JR, a Squier strat, and a late 40's Gibson L50 acoustic. Besides my acoustic I like this guitar the most. I like it enough that I am going to buy the real deal. If it were stolen I would prolly bash the guy who took it in the face with the guitar and then give it to him because he obviously needs it more than I do.

I think my guitar was made in Korea. It has 22 frets and is black with a white pickguard. There are only the basic controls, a tone knob and a volume knob, and selector. There are only 2 pickups. It is the telecaster body style of course, with a tele-style bridge. I'm 14 and i got this when i was 13 this is my first guitar, I should be wowed even if I got a Hondo, honestly, I think these features suck. I'm the kind of person who loves lots of features, if you like simplicity, then you'll like this. My uncle gave this to me, i guess he didnt have any use for it. I think the body is maple.

Since the day I got it I've played about every day for about 1/2 to 1 1/2 hours on average, and i still havent warmed up to the sound. It sounds nice undistorted, but my friend has some wacky lookin epiphone that looks like an explorer but its not and looks cooler, and his sounds so much better with distortion. From playin his guitar, my cousin's Epi Les Paul, and mine, i realized, the sound is good until i add distortion. I use a Zoom 505-II distortion pedal and a peavy 15 watt amp. I surprised myself when i played the LP with my little setup and i thought it actually sounded really good. I didnt want to give the LP back. The tone knob is really bad. It is either really clear, or really muddy. The selector doesn't bother me, i can actually hear a difference in sound. Now, I am okay, ive been playin a year, i play every day, so I also play palm mutes. But I still can't figure out how to play them on this guitar! I get so pissed off, I can't play Gob cause my palm mutes suck. But once again, I play an epi Les Paul and they sound fine.

Well, my uncle had this before me, so it was all pretty well set up. Maybe better than the factory. I like the way the strings were close to the neck. I haven't had one problem with it.

It feels like it could withstand anything and I think that is the most favorable aspect of the guitar. I play it a lot and it has still been played before i had it, great durability.

I guess really it is a good guitar. It is definately not the best and far from it, but i'd still rather have it over a Squire any day. I was really fond of my guitar up until about 3 months ago. I think that this guitar is great for beginners but as you choose what music style you like to play, you will want a guitar that is more specific in sound. What keeps me liking this guitar is that I like the fact that I can tell people its rare when they make fun of it because their guitar is better. THe guy at guitar center was like "Holy SH!T, theres such thing as an epiphone telecaster?, thats gotta be rare". Well if the rareness is worth anything its not anymore because i put stickers all over it unless the buyer likes AFI Reel Big Fish, and Goldfinger. Also what made me mad about this guitar, is i couldnt do any research, its almost non existant, this is the first place i actually found reviews on my guitar. Bottom line: Great guitar for a beginner and has good sound for non distorted guitar music, but heavy distortion is not one of its better spots. I am lookin at an Epiphone G400 as its replacement.

Bought used. I couldn't hazard a guess as to when it was made. Korea.
3-way selector.
Seymour Duncan PUs. I don't know what is on top, but I believe the bridge is a Jeff Beck (???).
Passive.
I have no idea what it is made out of.
Black finish - trashed.
Tele body, w/ the horribly ugly Epi headstock.
String-thru.
Non-locking closed tuners.
Maple neck - nice.

This horribly ugly orphan is the bomb for blues, country, and roots rock. I play through an Ampeg VT-22, Peavey Deuce (old), and a Peavey Delta Blues. It is somewhat noisy, given the butchery inflicted by a previous owner. It is beautifully rich, not annoyingly bright, and tough to the core. It is is somewhat less jangly than a Fender (probably due to the PUs), but it has beautiful, expressive character all its own.
Variety? Weeellll...whadya want? It's a Tele copy. If Mark Henderson is your deal, this ain't it. On other fronts, it is downight beautiful.

Bought used.
It is my opinion that a previous owner got swacked and began surgery on this guitar. The horn has been sanded to the wood, the lower PU section routed to accomodate a bucker, the soldering is a fly-by- night mess, and the controls are supremely f-ed up. The only way I can get a middle postion setting is to tweak the switch between middle and bridge. I'll work on it, but as it sits, it's a mess.

Solid, w/ some help. Now I can't depend on it, but it seems mighty sturdy over all.

Wha????

I'm fairly new at guitar: I've been a pro keyboardist for 25 years. Given that, I know my way, slowly, around the guitar. I love it! I own a Fender Bullet (the bomb), 2 Peavey t26s, and a MIM Tele. I don't think I could replace this nice bastard if I could. I'll work on it, and by cracky, I will redeem this axe of it's ignominious history.

same as above,vintage creme color with black pic guard, maple neck and fret board, not sure of the year,bought it used at a Pawn shop for 60.00

I have been looking for a Tele and the Tele sound. I played a lot of Fenders and I am not sure why this guitar gets bad reveiws? I play blues and Rock, a little country.This guitar has great blues tones in the neck possition and sweet tele tones in the middle and bridge.It has more sustain than Fender,The tilt back headstock eliminates the need for string tightners that are on the Fender.I will change the pickups, use a line 6 amp and a Carvin.

The finish on the body is not great but passable,the finish on the neck is as good or better than the Fenders I played,and the fret edges smoother than Fender and I love the feel of the neck better. This guitar stays in tune! The hardware is as good as a mex. Fender or better,again I dont get the bad reveiws on those parts. Tuners are sealed,better than vintage Fender.Bridge 6 saddle adjustible that works and adjusts great, pots ok

the Tele style in general is a work horse.I think this one will stand up to anything a fender will.

Dont Know. This one is used and I have a Pro lutheir set my guitars up anyway.

Playing over 30 years,I have 2 Fender Strats,Les Paul,a Rickey,Epiphone Casino,D35 Martin,and this guitar, Guess what guitar I pick up and play the most? The Casino and this Log!I dont know what it is but I like this guitar,I think its the playability and the blues tone.I will change out the pickups and have a pro setup done,but this will still be my least expensive guitar after the mods.
If your looking for a tele and can find one of these used get it!
New they were 300 and change so you should get it used for 100 or less
Still dont know why this one didnt go over discountinued model now.

very comfortable neck/fretts/action. Easily adjusted for both action and intonation. With the proper PU's (eg. Fender Custom Shop TX Specials) the tone controls are perfect. This instrument stays in tune for days.

As a proffessional musician and studio owner, I have 8 high end electrics and a T310. The T310 is the instrument of choice. The PU's must be replaced for live performance due to their microphonic nature. With Fender Custom Shop TX Specials installed, this is the best sounding, most versatile guitar I've ever played, especially when used with a multi-trick pony amp like the L6 Flextone. Not only can this instrument achieve phenominal Jazz and Blues tones in the neck position, but it's rock tones are superlative in the bridge position. More importantly, in the center position for live performance, you can eliminate the acoustic guitar from the stage. No other instrument can do this, not even a Fender Tele........... But again, replace the PU's with Fender Custom Shop TX Specials...

Factory set up was average to good, but the instrument is easy to adjust for action and intonation. A neck PU adjustment would be a great upgrade, I can't adjust my neck PU without removing the pick guard with the strings off. Once adjusted, it demonstrates unrivaled action.

This finish sucks, but the instrument looks good at a distance. Apparantly there is no attention given to the sanding of the wood prior to finishing, but hey, this is a cheap guitar that sounds and plays like an expensive one (once the PU's are replaced)so who cares.

I regularly use this guitar both on stage and in the studio. It STAYS IN TUNE!!!!!! Although I always use 2 guitars on stage anyway, up until recently I would have felt comfortable using it without a backup. My truss rod let go and the neck went south instantly and without warning while properly stored and in a climate controlled area. So... I'm afraid I'll have to give durability a poor rating. But again, this is a cheap guitar that plays and sounds great (once the PU's have been replaced)

I have no Idea about warranty or service because I traded for this guitar from a gentleman who had purchased it new just weeks before. When I played it, I new I had to have one.

I'll be contacting Epiphone on or around May 21st to obtain a new neck for my t-310, and will update this review based upon my experience........

I've been playing for 35 years, I own many other acoustic and electric guitars to include Fenders, Guilds, Gibsons, Epiphones, Taylors and Custom instruments. I would buy another T-310 in a heartbeat. I am a professional musician and studio owner and find that when recording, 90% of the time I reach for the T-310, and when playing live, 50% of the time I use the T-310 (with PU's replaced, of course). This guitar is THE most versatile I've ever played, and with Fender Custom Shop TX Special PU's installed, NO OTHER GUITAR regardless of price sounds better for so many types and styles of music. Mabey it's the cheap wood, who knows, but this instruments definately sounds better than the most expensive Fender Telecaster..

Made in Korea, 22 frets Tele Style.
Well, its just a tele copy, so it dont haves many features.

It haves a really bright sound in the bridge pickup. The neck pickup its a bit muddy at first but i got used to it.
I play Radiohead, Smashing Pumpkins, Placebo and many other groups. I am a Jonny Greenwood fan, so i wanted to have a Tele.

The guitar sounds fine in clean tones and with effects ( I have a Zoom 505) but the pickups are a bit noisy. The tone control is pure Sh*t. You can't change a bit the sound. Or very brilliant or very muddy.

But in general the guitar sounds fine.

I had many problems with the nut. I had to change it.
I moved the pickups several times (up and down) until i reached a good sound in both pickups.
For the price is alright

The finish isn't so good as I expected.
the tuners are ok, and the strap buttons are solid.
I think this guitar will last many years, but i'm thinking to buy another one in some time (hopefully a Fender Tele)

Its my first guitar, so i love it, dont mather is good or bad.
But well it deliver what its expected for Money. I love the sound of this guitar. Maybe is a little noisy. The principal problems are with the nut and the bridge.

Its a great guitar for begginers (like me, a year ago) althought is very rare (epiphone telecaster??? what the sh*it is that)

Nice. Tele style. I bought it second hand and the previous owner had sanded it down and varnished it. i find it very nice to play and the maple neck is beutiful.but its a tele so its not feature packed. but then no teles are

I play all styles of music from blues to metal. i play in a metal band and it works fine. i replaced the bridge pickup for a dual rail brandoni custom pickup and that really boosted my sound

Well its quite old and hasnt broken down on me yet. the hardware is solid as a rock. It weighs a ton though.

dunno

i love this guitar and wouldnt sell it for the world. i am considering changing the neck pickup and getting it set up but otherwise i love it

PURE S**T
Never stays in tune.
Hardware is cheap taiwan stuff. Don't be fooled by the looks.

Sounds like a departement store special hooked up to a home theatre amp.

Warped neck. no action.

Looks ok, no durability though.

n/a

1998 or so, 22 frets, black pickguard against a black finish, multi-ply wood construction, maple/maple neck, plastic nut, everything else standard Tele style hardware.

This guitar is fairly resonant by itself, which is generally a good thing. Strumming without amplification, it's loud and rich. The pickups are so so, not horrible but certainly not anything special. I've treated this guitar as a work-in-project, constantly tinkering with pickups & electronics. As far as the stock pickups go, the neck is too muddy and the bridge is too bright. Rolling the tone knob back on the bridge pickup seems to take away too much high end bandwidth, which results in either a piercing sound or sound with too little presence. I remedied this by swapping out the tone knob with a 500k pot from StewMac. The pickups did sound great together, the classic tele in between sound. I eventually replaced the bridge pickup with a Duncan Jerry Donahue, and an Alnico Pro II in the neck. With this set up, the bridge & in between settings sounded great, very sweet and complex sounding, but the neck pickup by itself sounded horrible, way too muddy and dark. I rewired the guitar, so only the bridge p/u was routed through the tone control, and that did improve the neck sound, but not enough. So my next (and final as far as wiring goes) move was to replace the Alnico II with a p-90 pickup I've had sitting around for a while. Finally great sounds in all 3 positions.

The factory set-up wasn't bad. I've used this guitar playing slide, flat picking and finger picking, so I try to keep the action at a medium high. However, if I wanted to lower the action a lot, I couldn't. There are "hills and valleys" on the fingerboard. Nothing very dramatic, but you certainly of much lower quality than most American made axes, and even higher end Epiphones. But hey, you get what you pay for, right?

The hardware has held up well. Keeping the nut lubricated helps the guitar hold tune much much much better than expected. I figured the tuners would be the first things to go, but they've turned out to be fine. The finish has also held up fine.

haven't dealt with them

I bought this guitar as a project. I wanted to familiarize myself with electronics, hardware, fret work, etc. This guitar is great for the price (usually $175-$250 US), but doesn't compare to more expensive Tele style guitars. I still play it quite a bit, and it's definitely more than worth it's weight in spare parts, so I expect to keep it around for a while.