Fender Squier Tele Special

Mine is Black with a white pickguard white fret board an head I love the Neck Pickup and im fine with the bridge pickup though i think it should be a 2coil humbucker pickup like some srtats overall is amazing

sounds Perfect even on my little piece of crap yamaha amp

Perfect

I havent had it long though i banged it up in the store enough

Alder body, rosewood fingerboard on a maple neck. General old school fender Tele type of thing. One alinco single coil on the neck, and one ceramic 'bucker in the bridge. three way tele switching. Nothing fancy.

Sounds really good. It is what it is. Both of the pickups sound like they should. The Humbucker is thick and punchy and the Single is very pretty. However, the 'bucker doesn't have as high an output as others that I've tried. Still, it doesn't sound bad. I really like the single. It's very clean and is great for regge, ska, or anything where you need a clean, punchy sound. Distorts well too. Sounds good with my Line 6 pro and its many amp sounds. Good sounds from the 'bucker and great sounds from the single.

The shop I bought it from did the final set up for me. Everything seemed good at the time. I have had to do some work to it, but that is because I've upgraded stuff.

Very solid. My bother even through it through a sheetrock wall, neck first. It hit a stud and some of the frets popped out. All I had to do was use my fretpress, and push them back in. This would have broken the neck on some more expensive guitars I've used, and should have at least snapped the truss rod. But no problems. I always put straplocks on and never gig without a backup, but this guitar is really tuff!

I do all my own work. I have all the tools and am too pridefull to let someone else do the work.

Now all of these good things being said, I never leave very much stock on a non-vintage guitar. I replaced the stock 'bucker with a SD JB. Much higher output. Way better for strong lead work and for some of the high gain amp modules on my Line 6. The stock tuners were swapped for Schlaller tuners, and the pots were swapped for some pots from Allparts. The nut was replaced with a graphite nut and the saddles were replaced with solid brass ones from fender as well as were the string trees. I even sanded off the logo and put a decale that says "ME". I also painted the guitar my trademark off-white with a big black star. This is not the first guitar I've modded.

All of this said, I bought this guitar as a platform. I knew going in that I would change pretty much everything on this guitar. However, I like the single coil so much, I think I will keep that in this one.

If someone took this guitar, I would kill them. Not because it is such a great guitar, but because of all I've invested into it. I could by another one like $200, but the parts cost more then twice what I payed for it.

But all in all, I'm glad I bought it.

The finish on mine is black with rosewood fretboard, 21 frets, 1 vol, 1 tone humbucker/single coil pickup config basic stuff

It suits my needs fine. I LOVE this guitar. I play rock and country and this guitar can do it all. I have a Crate GLX 30 and a Digitech RP 80 and this is a freakin awesome setup!

IMHO, this guitar was set up pretty darn near perfect all I did was make adjuments to the pickup heights and ta daa it works for me and that's al that matters.

I think this guitar would withstand live playing. I replaced the strap buttons with Dimarzio Cliplock straps on all my guitars(I also own a squier strat) Any musician knows, Never to gig without a backup.

never dealt with fender/squier.

I LOVE this guitar end of story

This is the third Squier product I've purchased, and it may be the best.
It's a 2006 model with the Walnut finish, which is excellent and perectly matches the finish of my old 60's console stereo. The rosewood
fret-board looks a little unfinished but stands out nicely against the body. I'm not much of a humbucker guy, but I love this pick-up. And the
neck pick-up is great for strumming type stuff when behind a vocal. The neck is pretty good, and I only had to adjust the high-e bridge piece
to prevent it from fretting. Other than that the set up was perfect.

The sound is cool. I went and played and $856 Carvin T60(Tele Looking) the day before I bought this one, and this guitar blows the Carvin away. The humbucker isn't the hottest there is, but it mixes punch with tone better than a lot of big money humbuckers. I play through a little Fender combo amp and I'm able to get a lot of versatility, even with no pedals. A little spring reverb, and overdrive/clean switching and I'm good to go. The first song I played was Red Sector"A" by RUSH. And it sounded so cool. The second song I played was Believe What You Say by Ricky Nelson. It's an up beat rock-a-billy tune and just by swithching to the middle position and rolling back the overdrive a bit I had a completely different guitar. I've been a live sound engineer for 17 yrs. and have guitar techd' for many a player. I have played some of the most expensive guitars ever built. But I enjoy holding and playing this guitar as much or more than some of those.

This was the least amount of adjustment to a Squier that I've ever done. Just the one adjustment that I mentioned earlier. The bookmatching was very good, I had to hold it up to a bright light and look real close to see it. I half expected it to be three pieces but it was only two. The tuners aren't that great, but there has to be a weakness somewhere I guess. And it's one of the easier things to replace. But I'm already having a custom solid rosewood neck built with a 50's style v-shaped contour. The tuning machines will be Gotoh copies of the old Kluson tuners. The neck is costing $310 which is more than twice what I paid for the guitar, so I guess you do need to think about how far you're willing to go when you buy a budget guitar. The stock neck is really pretty good though. The guitar wieghs a bit more than my Standard Tele. That liitle bit of wood in the center that would normally be routed out and covered by a pick-guard does make a difference. I kinda like a weighty guitar though.

I've had my other Squiers for quite a while now and the finish has held up perfectly. But this is the first satin finish I've had, so I'll be curious to see how it wears, it looks killer right now. I'm going to replace the pots with AllParts pots and after that I would play this guitar anywhere. The tone and volume pots are really touchy, and don't seem to do much adjustment, it's one extreme or the other. I don't mind that sort of thing though, because I like to put my own bits and pieces on anyway. Thats part of the reason I buy cheap guitars. Just by replacing the pots and tuners you will have greatly increased the performance of this guitar.

Are You Kidding!?!?!?!?!?!?

I've played off and on for about 25yrs., and have owned a lot of cheapy guitars. And I'm glad Fender has put more effort into the Squier brand. I play along with music while sitting on my couch mostly, so there's no reason to go buy a $1000 guitar. But it's nice to have a guitar that is a blood relative to the guitars I've dreamed about my whole life. My standard Tele sounds like it should, my Tele Custom sounds like it should, and this guitar breaks new ground for me, between these three guitars(totalling about $650) I have an endless variety of tone. I do wish there was a switch to split the humbucker though, that would really make this an unbelievably cool instrument.

I only give an 8 here, not because of quality or anything, but a Tele is a tele. Not too many bells and whistles. It does what it does and it's the best at it.

I CANNOT EMPHASIZE ENOUGH THAT THIS IS A PURE 10 SOUDING GUITAR.

The sound on this thing is simply unbelievalble. I was once the proud owner of an Fender American Tele, and honest to whoever God you pray to....This sounds BETTER!!! Yes, you heard me right, and Im not talking $hit here. The humbucker screams and the Neck pickup sings. Im not one to try and get gear to sound like someone, I try my best at creating my own hybrid of sounds, but man, the neck pickup on this thing, run through my Roland JC120, was David Gilmour of Pink Floyd's tone to a tee. It turned riffs that ive been playing for years, that I thought sounded quite dry, and turned into searing, beautiful tunes.

Got from Guitar Center. It was the last one and the floor model. Everything was set up perfectly for me, however Im not too picky. As long as it sounds good, has the action I like, and stays in tune, Im a happy camper. Ill sum everything up in the overall rating.

Havent had it long enough.

Havent dealt with. Honest hope i wont ever have to.

All right everyone. I know youre wondering whats up with the 10's on a Squire guitar. I rate this on what it is. Im not pitting it against its Fender brothers and sisters, and Im not pitting it again 1000.00 and up guitars. I rate it for what it is and does, and in the up to 500.00 price range, its the best. Read my sound review for what I think of the sound.

I've owned an American Tele in the past that I traded in for a PRS Santana SE, that I've since put in a Duncan JB in the neck. (This guitar sounds incredible.) But as much as I love the PRS, I missed the Tele big time. So I remedied my remorse with this Squire, and as I stated, I swear this thing sounds better. The stock bridge pickup in the Am. Tele was completely useless. Both pickups in this Squire are equally impressive.

This was the floor model at Guitar Center. I picked it up in the store and played it. It was already in tune. It sat in my car all day while at work, I took it home and played for two more hours, still in perfect tune. I havent even turned the pegs yet.

I usually dont submit reviews, let alone after only having it for one day. but this guitar won me over in a big way. It has VINTAGE tone, and there is nothing cheap about this guitar. I think people should wake up and see what is going on with Squire. These guitars are getting better and you should get out and get one of these before they relaize what they've got. No, I don't work for Squier (I could only dream of having a good paying job dealing with guitars) People are missing out just because it says Squire instead of Fender on the headstock, please don't be one of those people. Buy one and enjoy.

2005 Tele Special, Sparkle Black finish. One alnico single coil, one ceramic humbucker in bridge position. No pickguard. 22 frets, 9.5 inch radius rosewood fretboard. 2 string trees and sealed tuners. Simple features, but really all you NEED for quite a bit of versatility. If Squier would put the coil tap switch off their 51' model this would be incredibly versatile. (just a thought)

Really good pickups cost more than this entire guitar, so I am not going to fault it for not sounding like a $1000.oo Tele or Strat. It has a real alnico single coil which sounds authentic. Not extremely hot. Sounds fine clean for blues and early rock/surf. The SC has a vintage stagger on the magnets which I don't understand. The newer strats and teles don't have this drastic stagger because with newer string sets with an unwound g string it sounds out of balance. (ie. too close to the middle strings) Seems like something that would be a very easy fix at the factory. The humbucker has some treble bite and sounds good distorted. Sounds best with little to medium distortion through marshall type amps, has a nice growl. I notice it retains its string definition well under distortion. Has a lot of mids when run clean. Does it sound like a tele? no not exactly. Does it sound like a strat? no not exactly. But it is a very versatile mix of both.

If you don't know how to set up a guitar, find someone who does and take it to them BEFORE you start playing and get a bad first impression of these guitars. I have never seen one, even a lot of higher dollar fenders, that were set up perfectly. I'm sure the factories couldn't keep the cost so low if someone there had to spend 30-40 extra minutes per guitar being precise with adjustments. The relief was ok, but the strings were set too low and they were set flat, not matching the radius of the neck. This made the strings fret out when bent. After adjustment it plays fine.
NOTE: THE SINGLE COIL PICKUP IS SCREWED STRAIGHT INTO THE BODY AND CANNOT BE ADJUSTED FOR HEIGHT UNLESS YOU MAKE THE FOLLOWING ADDITION.
Take a cheap ink pen apart and get the spring out. Clip the spring into 2 equal halves. Remove the single coil pickups and slide the springs over the screw ends under the pickup cover. Carefully put the pickup back into the slot and turn the screws back into the body. Test to make sure the springs are still on by pressing on each side of the pickup to make sure it springs back up. Now you are set. See the squier website to get their setup specs for pickups and string height.

The body and neck are solid. The alder body has some weight to it, which is a good thing for your tone. The neck has a comfortable shape to it. I have found that less expensive guitars necks don't get as good a finish on them, and as a result they feel a little "dry" and sound that way as well. Two things will greatly improve this. Buy a bottle of Formby's pure lemon oil furniture treatment at a hardware store, or a bottle of pure lemon oil (without any cleaner in it) at a guitar store. Treat your fretboard with it. Buy some tung oil and remove the neck from the guitar and put at least one coat on it. It shouldn't build up and feel thick like laquer finishes, but it will make the neck feel much smoother and improve the color of the wood. You can also take a very fine 0000 steel wool to the back of the neck to make a very smooth matte surface. This will improve the feel and sound of these guitars dramatically. You may also want to replace the cheap string trees with some better ones which let the strings move more freely. Theyre innexpensive, and solve a lot of the tuning problems.

A great guitar, as is, for beginners. With a little work it makes a nice guitar for more experienced players. If you replace the string trees, tuners, and pickups it would be a fantastic guitar, but thats not the point. I bought this as a drag around guitar to take to guitar classes I teach. I wanted something that sounded ok and that would not bring tears to the eyes when some of the kids in my guitar club bang it against the wall. I am very impressed with the quality for the money. It would have been impossible to get a guitar this good for twice the money a few years ago. This model is a super guitar for a beginner to keep for years. It can do metal and rock with the humbucker. It can do vintage rock and roll, blues and surf with the single coil. You don't have to worry about tuning and restringing hassles due to a floating tremolo. It can also be upgraded to keep up with their improving skills. And best of all, it only cost me $169.00 shipping included. Don't waste your money on anything below the Squier Standard series, they are un-playable junk that will end up collecting dust.

This is a update to my older reveiw. It should be right under this one.

I have put a DeArmond GoldTone pickup in the bridge and it sounds awesome. I am a hard sell but this guitar with this pickup is mind blowing. I would give it a 9 becuse a 10 is perfect and nothing perfect. It's very close.

same as last

same

same

I would give this guitar with new pickups a 7 or so. I still need to work on the tuners.

IT's a squire tele special. wooo. It's got one single coil and one humbucker. I bought it for the pickup configuration. No pick guard... Maple fret board lalalala.

The pickup leave something to be desired. The single coil is pure crap. The humbucker is OK but not great. If I were going to keep the pickups in it I wouldn't buy this guitar. The single coil doesn't have any life and the humbucker has no warmth. Maybe the humbucker has a little warmth but no where near where it should. BTW, I play rock-n-roll/punkish/foke. I have played for over 10 years.

It's a well made guitar for the money. I paid under 200 dollars and that is a steal for it. The set up was bad. I had to spend 2 hours on the guitar to make it play well. Now it plays decent. It's easy to do once you get going. The finish is nice but cheep.

The tuners compleatly suck. Anytime you play it you have to tune it over and over. Well... enless you like the whole out of tune thing. I would replace them also. I am going to. I think you could gig with this guitar but it needs some work. Oh yeah, my jack keeps falling out. Stupid thing... As far as the wood, it is a nice guitar. It's defently a guitar that you want to work on.

Who the hell knows... Not me...

When I get everything done on this guitar it will be SWEET! Right now, it's sub par. If you are looking for a guitar that you don't need to work on don't buy it. If you like the pickup config, it might be worth it to you. It's kinda a pretty guitar for a cheapy. I would say it will be an 8 when I get it finished. Not top quality but not bad. As for right now... A 5-6 is deserving for the guitar. The guitar is not crap but it is not good.

Features...hmmm....1 volume, 1 tone. No Pickguard. H/S configuration, 3 way switch. 21 Medium Jumbo frets, String thru body. Ping style non locking tuners. Alder body, maple bolt-on neck, rosewood fretboard. 7/10 on features, wish it had a maple fretboard, HH option and coil tap.

Tone is great. I play Southern Rock/Contemporary Christian/Hard Rock and this Tele can handle it. I play through a Digitech RP100, into a Fender FM 212, so I can make any sound I want, but this Tele can handle anything I throw at it. It currently splits time with a '94 Fender Strat (Mexican), and an '02 Epi Les Paul Classic, so tonally, it has to be up to the challenge. Again, I wish it had a Neck 'bucker, and a maple fretboard.

Recently it has become my Drop-D machine, but I've noticed that the Med-Jumbo frets dom't like the heavier strings. Action's a little high right now, so I may go back to standard. Played a Squier Tele Custom recently and was floored by the poor finishing on the neck, so I'm impressed with my Tele. I feel that the neck is a little thick, but that may be due to the slim, one piece maple neck on my Strat. Set-up and intonation was done professionally, and now it holds tune like a tank. I'm really impressed!

I have played this live, 4 times a week (1 rehearsal), approximately 1 hour each time. Solid as a rock. No back-up here, as I ain't bending and twanging away. Then again, if I break the Power Slinky's, I'm stronger that I thought.

1 year limited warranty. Never dealt with Squier, but I have talked with Fender and they have been most helpful. Just check out Mr. Gearhead for any Fender related issues!

Been playin 15+ years. Currently own the Tele, a '94 Strat (Mexican), and an '02 Epi Les Paul Classic. If it were lost, I'd probably call Warmoth and order the parts to build one! When I was growing up and learning to play (80's), Squiers' were rip-offs. No self-respecting guitarist would be caught dead with one. Now it seems that Fender has seen the light and has allowed Squier to come into it's own. For starter instruments (my daughter has the Squier Mini Strat), and affordable gigging instruments, Squiers are top notch!

As noted in the previous reviews, this is a 2004, made-in-Indonesia Squier Telecaster. It has 22 frets, a rosewood fretboard on a maple neck (with skunk stripe) a two-piece agathis (Indonesian alder) body, one neck single-coil pickup and one bridge humbucker with a three-way switch, one volume and one tone knob. It seems to have a fairly-thin, bolt-on neck with medium-jumbo frets, and Gotoh-style sealed tuners. It didn't come with any swag, except for two allen wrenches. Pretty basic, but that's what I was looking for. I got the dark cherry mahoghany stain, and it looks fantastic!

Here is where it really shines! I play in a eight-piece, horn-driven 70s funk-cover band, and it's super important for me to be able to cut through the mix. I own a 1970 Gibson ES-335, a 2003 PRS Santana SE, a mid-90s Ibanez Talman and a cheap Epiphone Les Paul Junior doublecut with a single P-90. I love my ES (my first guitar), but it's just too darn valuable to gig with anymore, so I bought the PRS, which I have been using as my main axe. As you can probably tell, I'm a humbucker kind of guy. I bought the Talman to check out the single-coil scene; same with the P-90 Epi. Let me just say that, by far, this Tele has THE BEST tone that I have come across so far! The neck single coil has that super creamy, Clapton-esque "woman" tone, and the bridge humbucker gives you a brighter humbucker sound for some great changy-changy syncopated funk rhythms. I run all of this through a 1970 Dunlop Crybaby>Digitech RP-200>Boss 7-band eq>Fender Hot Rod Deluxe and it just sings! I just finished a gig last night, and two of the horn players said that I produced the best tone they had ever heard. We've been together almost five years, so I take that as a huge compliment!

It came out of the box beautifully set up, with excellent action and nary a scratch, except for a couple of dings on the top, for which I got a deal on it! The single coil has less volume than the humbucker, but I can remedy that pretty quickly by adjusting height.

It will definitely last, as it's about as basic as you can get. I always put strap locks on my guitars, as I really don't want to take the chance of any of them dropping! I also always take a backup, guitar and amp. We play four-hour shows, so I can't chance having something go wrong!

I have never dealt with Fender, and probably never will, as I have everything serviced locally. I'm not sure of the warranty, but it really doesn't matter to me.

Again, I am absolutely amazed at the quality and value of this budget guitar! Most importantly, I am amazed at the tone! Ask my wife: I have been on a tone quest for years! This thing freaks me out with how nice it sounds! I am 43, and have been playing to some extent since I was 6. I had the ES for almost 25 years, and I still love its warm,smooth tone. However, the PRS replaced that on gigs. Now, I will probably rely on the Tele, using the PRS as a backup.

Made in Indonesia '04- 21 "medium jumbo" frets 9.5'' Radius neck-Alder body -Rosewood fretboard- Strat single coil neck/humbucker bridge pickups- Walnut satin finish- Short "string through body" bridge w/6 steel saddles.

Pickups are a little weak (volume wise), but balanced well. Just turn the amp up a little louder. You can get a wide range of sounds from Les paul tones off the bridge bucker when cranked, to good rhythm sounds off the neck. If you roll the volume down in either middle or bridge position you can still get the classic "tele twang" sound. Overall very versatile. A splitter on the humbucker would be nice, but the balance is nice, so I guess that would be asking for trouble. But that might be my next modification.

Set up was ok out of the box, but a little tweaking, and it plays as well as my heavily modded '90 American Standard Tele. A couple of sharp edges on some of the upper frets were fixed in 15 mins. with a fret file, But otherwise a very nice feeling neck. The wood is really beautiful, looks like one piece, the grain matches perfectly (no visible seams). The tuners (although heavily criticized around here) are actually OK. The secret (actually an old Ibanez secret) is to pull the tuning key knobs off, wipe the "quart" of oil from the factory off the plastic washers, and crank down the knob mounting screws (very tightly). Mine never goes out of tune ! Also the factory .009 strings HAVE TO GO put .010's or .011's on, you'll be much happier. I also changed out the cheap,cheap pots for a set of real 500K pots I had around , also I changed out the cheap knobs for a set of real Tele knobs from Allparts ($10). Hey, I would rather have them keep the cost down by skimping on pots and knobs, than the wood and neck !

I do gig with this guitar 4 nights a week, about 6 months of the year. It's been holding up very well for a year now. I bought this as a backup Tele since my #1 Tele is a little too old, and a little too expensive/nice (with all the mods) to take to some of the pubs we play (where the occasional drunk guy wants to play my Tele). I used to bring my #1 Tele and my Casio MG-510 to gigs, but now I've put a Roland GK2 MIDI pickup on the Squier Tele, and I can leave all the vintage/ expensive stuff at home. Yes, I have relied on this for about a year with no backup guitar. Except for the occasional broken string no problems.

Don't know, but they've got a website with manuals and schematics. Thats worth a 2.

I've been playing over 30 years (mostly Blues in "biker bar" bands), I am very into the "Tele sound", the Squier Tele Special has that down ! If it was stolen... Hell yeah, I'd buy another one. I might even buy another one now. I bought this as a backup "cheap" Tele I could beat on and kick around, but the only problem is that it is actually nice enough that I don't want to see it get damaged. I even hate to let the occasional drunk play it at gigs, but I jut keep reminding myself of how cheap it was. Now I need a cheap backup for my cheap backup.

2004 Indonesia
21 frets
Alder body
Strat SC in neck, HB in bridge
Walnut finish
3way 1 vol 1 tone
STB
Tuners-no names
Fosewood FB, maple neck, rosewood skunk strip on back of neck
No pickguard Yes!

Stock, the neck pickup is ok. A noisy strat pickup-very good tone, but hum City. the bridge pickup, with ceramic magnets had to go. Immediately.
I use a Carvin Belair 212 and a Yamaha DG stomp
The SC neck, HB bridge arrangement is quite versatile with the right pickups.

Action needed adjustment. No biggie. What did I expect going from 9s to 11s. Fit and finish was as good as an American Fender. no complaints. Not Jackson or PRS or Schecter. But way beyond what you would expect for $200.

I have had it 5 months. The guitar is built to last, except the tuners are finnicky.

I have been playing for about 28 years. I also own a Jackson Fusion Pro.
Would I buy the guitar again? Heck yeah! I might buy another.

This guitar needs to be seen as potential: A very competent neck and fingerboard and fret work. Alder body and lots of it. Amazing sustain for a $200 guitar. Slap a REAL Bill Lawrence 280S ($40) in the neck and a Duncan 59 ($60) in the bridge and you are ready for anything from jazz to blues to rock to ska. And no noise. Classical? No. Death metal? Look elsewhere.

Since I took put 11s on, the tuners stay in tune much better.

I compared to many, many guitars by many manufacturers.

Made in Indonesia 2004, 22 frets, no pick guard, mine was pewter, looks like an average tele (without pick-guard). Made of alder.
came with strap, picks, and gig-bag. After all these years don't you think Fender can come up with a different head-stock for the Tele?

THE SOUND ON THIS GUITAR IS INCREDIBLY GOOD!! I was in shock when i went to my guitar shop and played it through a Marshall amp. As soon as I played the intro to Smells Like Teen Spirit (ye im a NIRVANA fan) I knew I had to buy this guitar. I play grunge, rock, punk, and some classic rock. This guitar is perfect for every style I play.

Set up beautifully! When I was at the guitar shop, i tuned up this guitar and I bought it. Everything was fine, no chips and dent in the wood or anything. I want to give it an 8.5 but im going to put it under 9.

This guitar CAN withstand live playing....but with a back-up. Hardware is perfect, then again I take perfect care of my guitars
(I own Fender Strat and Tele, Squier Jason Ellis Showmaster, Jay Turser Strat Copy, an old Degas acoustic, Epiphone Les Paul, and of course this.)Finishing is great, and it lasts you a long time, as it is doing for me.

Never dealt with them. But the owner of the shop is really friendly.

Great Guitar! If it were stolen or lost, I would probably get this again, or get a Squier Jazzmaster.

This tele was made in 2004, in Indonesia. It has 22 medium frets, a maple/rosewood neck, rosewood fretboard, and I think an Agathis (Asian Alder) body. No-name tuners. It is equipped with a single coil (Alnico) at the neck, and a humbucker at the bridge. It has one vol, one tone, and the typical Fender three way blade selector, mounted to the signature tele steel control plate. There is no pickguard. The bridge is a Fender six-saddle string through body design. The neck is unfinished, while the body is in a walnut satin. It came with no accessories. For the value of the guitar, you get plenty.

I play mostly Rock/Jazz, and the pickup configuration adds and interesting dimension to the tone (a bit different than the typical tele.) You get the "vintage" hum when the single coil is in use, but it's not obnoxious or even bothersome. It has a distinctive sound that I like - a little twangy, with a little bit of bite. It can have quite a smooth sound if you back off on the tone a bit. I acquired this guitar through trade, with the intent on "redesigning it." The pickup config was what I wanted in my design anyway, my changes are elswhere. The guitar sounds very nice.

What do you expect in a guitar worth under $200? The set up wasn't bad, but it had an audible buzz at the lower registers. I adjusted the relief, then lowered the saddles a bit. It's fine now. The frets are very level, but they protrude slightly along the edge of the fretboard (nothing a file can't fix.) The nut was cut a little off center (towards the high E; again, easily resolved.)
The pickup setup was pretty good, except that I had to raise the neck (single coil) about 1/8 inch, to give a better balance when using both pickups.
When I revamp the guitar, I will keep most of the hardware, except the control plate and the tuners. The tuners absolutely refuse to stay in tune. I thought about putting some Sperzels Locking Tuners on it, or Grovers, haven't decided.
All of the flaws are easily repairable, but for someone who doesn't know any better, the tuners could be real problem.
Fit is good, the neck joint is solid, and the pickup wells cleanly done.
The finish is nice, but I'm changing that - this is a project guitar.

Without changing the tuners, this guitar would not withstand live playing. All of the hardware is fine except the tuners. The chrome finish on the hardware seems just fine. The satin finish seems a bit thin (easier for me to sand off!)
As a stage guitar, the Tele Special would be terrible. As a project guitar, it's great.
Keep in mind, the guitars structure is strong, but the stock tuners make this guitar unreliable.
Durability 9, Reliability 3 (Average 6)

Don't have a clue.

I have been playing over 25 years. I own a Hamer Newport, Epiphone Scroll 450, Taylor 314.
If this tele were stolen, maybe the thief could keep it in tune; it's a project guitar - I'd get another inexpensive tele and start over.
The pickup configuration has a lot of tonal variety, and I like that. I hate the tuners (can't you tell.) I did not compare to other guitars - although I've previously owned a tele before (52 re-issue,) and sound-quality of this Tele Special is comparable.
I chose this guitar because it had the pickup configuration I wanted.
I wish it had real tuners.
This guitar is great for a project guitar...no pickguard, all the parts you need. It's cheaper to buy something like this, than to buy all the parts separately. I have big plans for this guitar.
For the money, it's a good deal. If a beginner bought this guitar, they would need counseling - they would never be able to play a clean sounding chord.