Most people don’t give Teisco guitars a second look, or if they do it’s only because the instruments have such an unusual appearance. One could argue that most of the Japanese company’s guitars don’t play well or sound that great. But while many of them were built to be mediocre starter guitars, there are a couple that deserve another glance, such as the Spectrum series and its fabled Spectrum V, a monument to guitar building. For this issue, let me introduce to you another praiseworthy model: the Teisco Del Rey EP-10T.
WEIRDO FACTOR
In terms of its body design, the Del Rey EP-10T isn’t so odd. Its offset horns bring to mind popular ’60s solidbody models from the likes of Fender and Mosrite. Unlike those guitars, however, the Del Rey is hollow-bodied and sports a stylish f-hole.
PLAYABILITY & SOUND
This is a strikingly beautiful guitar. The 4+2 headstock is endlessly cool and something of an innovation by the standards of the early ’60s. The thinline body is appointed with double cream binding, and the rich tobacco-burst finish is nicely complemented by the stunning deep-red pearl pickguards. But as cool as this example looks, it didn’t play very well at first. Mike Fox at the Starving Musician in Santa Clara, California, helped me shim the neck with a thin piece of mahogany, and, boy, what a difference that made.
Once the neck was set properly, the bridge lowered, the truss rod adjusted and the pickups raised, it was time to put the Teisco to the test. A quick inspection revealed a mahogany neck with 22 thin frets and a feel like a pleasingly slim Fender. The bridge has six independent rollerballs that allow for precise intonation and help the Bigbsy-esque vibrato work smoothly. There are two single-coil pickups, with a