Fender Telecaster Left-Handed Model Solid Body Electric Guitar (1965), made in Fullerton, California, serial # L87827, Blonde lacquer re- finish, ash body, maple neck with rosewood fingerboard, tweed hard shell case.
This mid-1960s "southpaw" Telecaster is an extreme rarity, one of a VERY few from this period we have ever seen. It has been refinished more than once along the way but still retains its original feel and sound. This "old" model was not built in large quantities in the early/mid 60s, and a left-handed example would only be assembled when the order from a dealer came in. Although this guitar's neck is dated to May 63, it appears it was not assembled until Fender had become CBS/Fender; the wiring dates to mid-1965 with pots coded 6528. This is not unusual for the slowest-selling Fenders; the factory would make up batches of necks and bodies and hold the pieces in stock until they were needed. Telecasters were slow sellers up into 1965 compared to Jazzmasters, Jaguars and Stratocasters although they experienced a huge revival later in the decade. We have had several Bass VI examples (another slow-selling model) with the same date split of spring 1963 fabrication codes on the necks and 1964-5 finishes and hardware.
This instrument has another interesting bit of history; although it now carries a more recent re-finish, it was factory refinished at Fullerton sometime in the 1960s as well. Under the pickguard is the factory job marking specific to a later 1960s period refinish, with the "Blonde" color noted. The "thin-lam" clay-dot rosewood fingerboard neck is still carrying the original finish, and does not have a matching code; the "Spaghetti logo" decal with three patent numbers would be correct for both 1963 and 1965. It is of course possible that this neck and body were married later along the way, but considering the rarity of left-handed Telecasters in general that seems somewhat unlikely.
The parts are largely correct for a guitar assembled in mid-1965, as the pots and later L-serial number neckplate would indicate. The tuners are the double-line Kluson Deluxes phased in in 1964; there is no indication they are not original to the neck. The pickups are the older black-bobbin units just being generally replaced by grey bobbins as 1965 went along. The cloth wiring is correct for the period, along the way the guitar was re-wired to "modern" switching allowing the pickups to be blended; in mid-1965 the 3-way switch would have been set up with the old "mud cap" on the neck pickup and no combination available.
The bridge plate is particularly interesting; as Fender built so few of these "upside down" models they did not have a template made up to stamp this part with the correct pickup orientation. The factory simply turned the plate over and pressed the edge flanges in the opposite direction, with no rounded corners at the back. The "Fender patent" markings wind up in the underside of the plate as seen here, not visible when the guitar is assembled. The single-layer white pickguard is a later replacement; the guitar would have likely had the 1965 8-screw, 3-layer guard when new, unless an older "upside down" piece was lying around!
At any rate, this lefty Tely has a long story behind it! The nicely grained ash body looks to have carried the original finish, a factory re-finish, possibly painted over later (there are small color spots in the neck pocket) and now a more recent correct blonde refinish. This is a good looking pro job, although whoever did it finished OVER the ferrules on the back, which is obviously not authentic. The body edges have lost some of their crispness over the course of these refinishes but not to an excessive degree. It also looks to have been very professionally refretted with exact correct wire, with a new bone nut.
Through all this this rare "Upside down" Telecaster has survived sounding and playing great, although holding it righty demonstrates to us why southpaw John Neuse famously added a second cutaway to the righty Tele he got from Mike Bloomfield; it just feels weird! When we had that guitar last year, everyone asked "How could someone DO that?" Well, now we understand!
Overall length is 38 7/8 in. (98.7 cm.), 12 13/16 in. (32.5 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 3/4 in. (4.4 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 25 1/2 in. (648 mm.). Width of nut is 1 5/8 in. (41 mm.)., 8.02 lbs.
As noted above this very rare guitar has been partially restored and is in excellent playing condition. The body-only refinish was well done except for the faux pas of not removing and resetting the string ferrules in the back; it shows hardly any subsequent wear. The neck finish remains original with a decent amount of natural wear down to the wood; there appears to have also been some buffing done as there is some light loss to edges and corners in the headstock and heel. The decal, Kluson tuners and string tree remain original; the frets and nut were re-done to a high standard.
Original parts on the refinished body include the chrome control plate, knobs, switch tip, strap buttons and the complete rare left-handed bridge unit; the steel bridge saddles show some typical corrosion but all work as intended, the knobs have some flaking to the chrome. The reissue pickguard is a single-layer type more correct for 1964 and earlier Telecasters, but does not look out of place. Both pickups are original, looking to have been wax potted sometime along the way; as noted the pots and switch are original but the guitar has been re-wired to the later 1967 and after switching system.
This is an excellent playing piece; for the left-handed player/collector this is a very rare find. Even with the more recent refinish the guitar looks and feels great; it has not been artificially "reliced" and the fingerboard and frets show very little wear. At just over 8 Lbs. it is heavier than some '60s Telecasters but handles extremely well. Whatever adventures this old southpaw Fender has had it is now back to its original appearance and offers the classic vintage Telecaster sound all the way. It lives in an '80s re-issue Tweed fender case. Included is a detailed spec sheet from another dealer dated 2022; it is largely accurate but missed a few things. Restored to Excellent Condition.
