Telecaster Necks

Telecaster necks are replacement necks for the Telecaster-style electric guitar and for its predecessor, the Esquire, which has the same neck. They come in handy when the original neck is worn out, when you want a different fingerboard or profile, or when you are building a guitar from parts. Here you will find Fender necks made in Mexico and the USA from the Player II, American Professional II, Vintera II and Road Worn series, as well as unlacquered Dr.Parts necks. The fingerboards are made of maple, roasted maple, rosewood or pau ferro and have 21 or 22 frets.

Maple or rosewood fingerboard for your Telecaster?

A maple fingerboard is light in colour, lacquered on Fender necks, and its dark dot markers are easy to see. It belongs to the look of the 1950s Telecaster, which is why the Road Worn 50's Tele and 50's Esquire necks have one too. Roasted maple has a darker, honey-like shade. Rosewood is a dark, unlacquered wood that Fender has been putting on fingerboards since the late 1950s, and pau ferro is close to it in both colour and feel. When you replace the neck on a finished guitar, choose a wood that goes well with the body and the pickguard.

What should you look for when choosing a Telecaster neck?

• Fingerboard radius – 7.25" is a rounded vintage radius that is comfortable for chords. Most necks have a 9.5" radius, which is a modern compromise, and 12" is flatter and well suited to string bending.
• Neck profile – determines how the neck sits in your palm. The 1950s U profile is chunky, the slimmer Modern C is used on the modern series, and you will also find Deep C, Soft V and Flat Oval here.
• Frets – the traditional Telecaster has 21 frets, while most modern series have 22. Taller Medium Jumbo and Narrow Tall frets make string bending easier.
• Scale length – standard necks have a scale length of 648 mm (25.5"). The Sub-Sonic Baritone Telecaster and Tele Baritone baritone necks have 686 mm so that the guitar sounds lower.
• Truss rod – depending on the model, you adjust it at the headstock or, on vintage necks, at the heel, where the neck has to be loosened or removed.

Necks for Stratocaster-style guitars are on the neighbouring page Stratocaster Necks, and other types of necks are in the guitar necks category. If you are building a complete instrument, choose a guitar body to go with your new neck as well.