What should I know? I have played them and they are SOOOO inconsistent. Still, they are aged, and they are going up in value.
Tele's are more likely to deliver some sort of goodness - they held onto 4-bolt necks and other older attributes for longer than the Strats. You can walk a while in the desert of 70's Fenders before you come across a cool drink of water. But if you find one that works for you, cool.
+1 for the 4 bolt Teles, but those were only the Standard Teles, Thinlines and Customs went 3 bolt in 72. Also true that you have to try a bunch of them, there are some great 70's Teles out there and a lot of dogs. Personally, I have no interest in Strats or Teles with 3 bolt necks and bullet truss rods.
they have mainly gone up in value as things got insane with earlier, more prized vintage guitars. Much like "last hired first fired" holds true in the job market, when the vintage guitar market 'levels off,' they will be the first to take a huge hit. Woe is the person who pays a lot for a guitar they only sort-of like when it drops in value by half or more. If you buy one, make sure it's worth what you pay for it to you, in terms of how it sounds. In other words, if it is only worth $100 tomorrow, would you still be glad you bought it?
i have a 70's strat, tele custom, and tele deluxe and they're all great guitars. i didn't pay today's prices for them, but they weren't cheap. i did go through a lot of them before i found ones that i really liked, but the ones i have will be with me til i no longer play. i don't think they'll lose value since there are so many people into the nostalgia of older guitars, and there is a finite amount of that stuff that hasn't been messed with or modified. i'll always prefer older guitars to the new ones they're making these days, even if many of the 70's fenders were duds. find a good one and hang onto it.
AS long as they aren't ALL ORIGINAL in super clean shape - many 70s teles are still very affordable. For me personally - it's mostly the old wood that I'm after. If it doesnt have the 70s pickups - I dont care. Most were very low output and microphonic. A set of GOOD boutique pickups (in most cases) sounds way better to ME. One of my favorite teles is a worn blonde from '72. I got it off Ebay for $860. It has a tortoise guard w/ duncan stacks and black knobs. A new guard, a set of GVCG / lollars , and a new set of knobs and this thing is one of my best. Certainly beats my '66 and two GVCGs !! - Not bad for a $900 investment
Once upon a time I had a Tele Thinline, my first name-brand guitar. It was early 70's, non-bullet russ-rod, THICK poly finish right over the frets(!) maple neck, shrill, microphonic, bridge pickup, muddy or thin sounding neck pup (depnding on vol pot setting- I removed the .001 bypass cap). The thing had very few merits and I installed a then-new Fender HB into the neck pos'n. That helped a bit, but for a rock player it was just not the right tool and was traded in on a LP deluxe, much better. This put me off Fenders for decades and if you think that old guitars=good guitars you need to shop very carefully and compare well.
I have seen folks asking 3.5k to 5k for F series fenders. If you are buying to invest, probably worth it. They will continue to climb as the pre cbs stuff does. If you want a player there are with exception to a few (and Far between) good 70's strats but also great Fullerton era 62/57 reissues as well as Cunetto era Custom shop guitars (both of which are gaining in value), newer thinskin and hot rod and custom shop guitars too. And Dont forget the MIJ stuff too. With a little parts swapping they can be stellar if they are an 80's or not for export model with correct body wood. IIRC Fender started sooting POLY Finish all around in about '68, so even the expectation of getting nitro is out the door with anything 70's on.
I have a 73 strat of course I changed all the pickups, the bridge, frets, tuners knobs and only original parts are body & neck and the axe screams. It is my favorite guitar www.myspace.com/franksguitar1952
