SeriesSchecter PT

I bought this guitar used from eBay. I had ordered a new red one from Musician's Friend but it was backorded. While I was waiting for them to restock, I found this one with a natural finish for auction and I ended up paying $250 including shipping and a hard case. Someone was crazy for selling it. The body is a string-thru Tele shape with a mahogany back , and a beautiful bookmatched quilted maple top. Not a make-your-eyes-pop quilting, but a bit more subtle. The body is sculpted on the front and back for comfortable playing. The neck is maple with a rosewood fingerboard with diamond shaped inlays rather than dots, which add to it's unique personality. It's got jumbo frets and gold hardware. The pickups are Duncan Design humbuckers with a coil split for single coil sounds. These pups are sweet! Play by the bridge with the single coils and you get a Tele twang, play by neck with the humbuckers and you get the fattest, sweetest Les Paul blues you can dream of, and there's lots of combos in between. Gold Hardware. It always rubs off, even on really expensive instruments, and it already has signs of wear on the bridge saddles where I rest my hand. Black hardware would look good on this guitar, but it's not offered as an option. The pickup selector switch seems a little flimsy, but I did but this used, and it might have been tighter when it was new. If anyone told me this was a $1500 guitar, I would have no trouble believing them. The finish is high gloss on the body and satin on the neck, and it is flawless. The guitar feels solid, and the bolt-on neck joint is tight. The pickups are strong and it stays in tune. Everything is top notch. I own and have owned quite a few guitars, and I must say that this is one of the very best. After I got this one, the red one I had ordered came in and I am expecting it in a few days. At first I thought I would sell one of them and keep the other, but now I plan on keeping both. The PT Elite (PT is for Pete Townsend) plays, looks, feels, and sounds great, and what more could you ask for? How about a bargain price of $300-$500 new? They are made in Korea for Schecter USA, but don't let that worry you. I have several other Korean guitars and basses and they can be first rate. The last time I checked the Musician's Friend site, they said this model is discontinued! The PT Standard is still available, and the only difference is the lack of a quilted top and gold hardware. I am totally happy with this guitar. This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com