Kubicki Vintage Guitars Telecaster

Hired by Fender in 1964 by Roger Rossmeisl, Phil Kubicki was responsible for the concrete realization of the research and development team’s projects. This in the company of the biggest names in the history of the brand: Geroge Fullerton, Freddie Tavares, Gene Fields, Seth Lover, Leo Fender. After devoting himself to acoustic and jazz guitars, his first responsibility was to produce the very rare “Ltd” archtop guitars of which there are only 36, and the Montego. Subsequently he developed rosewood Telecasters like George Harrisson’s, Hendrix’s last Stratocaster, the Thinline Telecaster, the Starcaster among many other things. So I think you could say he knew a little about the subject. Phil Kubicki unfortunately had to leave Fender when Roger Rossmeisl moved to Germany in 1971. He was faced with a choice, either move to a classical production job at Fender or start his own company. This is what he chose to do and the guitar presented here is part of a brand that he briefly proposed. It bears the “Vintage Guitars” logo (yes I didn’t invent anything…), we only find very few of these models because it is an artisanal production and he was all alone in making them. This particular model is made from Zebrano, a wood that Kubicki was particularly fond of. The neck is made of a superb bird’s-eye maple which feels absolutely amazing. The fingerboard is ebony. The neck is one of the strong assets of this instrument. It is crafted by one of the most capable pairs of hands of its time. We can easily compare this instrument to the best that comes out of the custom shop today. The potentiometers have a 81 serial number,  and the neck is hand dated by Phil Kubicki in 1980. It must therefore have been started in 1980 and finished in 81. The pickups came from his friend and neighbor in Santa Barbara: Seymour Duncan. The action and intonation are perfect, once again the comfort is exceptional. It comes in a rectangular hard case. Don’t miss it, it’s a unique guitar.