2018 Ithacaster Tele Style Surf Green Esquire Guitar

Ithacaster is a small builder in Ithaca New York that specializes in T and S type guitars and sells primarily out of Carter Vintage in Nashville. New ones are selling for $1850. A quick Google search will show you a couple nice examples for sale. Search “Ithacaster single pickup” on YouTube to see this exact guitar played before I bought it in 2019. This one is from 2018 before he changed the headstock and started using his custom neck plate. Photos of build process were taken by Mick LoPinto, the luthier. It is an esquire build, with a single bridge pickup and an Emerson USA wiring/pot with what’s called the “Eldred Mod” for a neat three-way set up: 1) cocked wah fixed tone; 2) tone pot engaged; 3) open tone. It is routed for a neck pickup if you want to convert though. The pickup is handmade to 50s spec by Q Pickups out of Croatia and really spanks. It’s beautiful. Hand-wound USA parts, authentic 50s copper-plated steel baseplate, correct vintage style cotton 8-strand string to protect the coil, fiber bobbin flatwork, vintage staggered pole pieces. Alder body and Musikraft medium C one-piece maple neck with Nickel 6105 frets. Vintage Fender bridge and vintage spec Kluson tuners round it out. Weight is 7 lb. 6 oz It plays like a dream and is exactly what you would expect from a faithful 50s esquire style build. I also use this with a Tube Screamer or DS-1w and it sounds wonderful with dirt. It’s a very percussive guitar that responds to attack organically. The nitro finish is great, but prone to scuffing and nicking, as shown in the images. This is clearly used but never outside of my home and has never been gigged. Comes with a legit SKB TSA approved hard flight case. $850