Barnwood Nashville Tele - UK Made

One-Off Barnwood Tele – Salvaged. Rewired. Reborn.

This isn’t a factory clone. It’s a resurrection. A Telecaster silhouette carved from roofing timber and an old Ikea bookcase—raw, unrepeatable, and full of soul. Built by Rat Bait Guitars in North Devon, this one-off Nashville hybrid fuses Tele shape with Strat-style wiring, thanks to a 5-way Cor-Tek switch lifted from a 2000s Squier Affinity Strat. It’s a Tele that thinks like a Strat, but plays like rebellion.

Built to Break the Mold

The body is hand-built from reclaimed barnwood and salvaged materials, each piece carrying its own scars and stories. No CNC machines. No mass production. Just raw timber, hand tools, and a vision. The finish is natural and imperfect—traces of old paintwork, subtle nitrocellulose highlights, and the kind of texture you can feel under your fingertips. This guitar doesn’t hide its past. It wears it proudly. The neck is a 22-fret maple with a classic, old-school profile. Lightly nitro-finished, it feels broken-in from the first touch—like an old friend that’s been through the wars with you. It’s smooth but not sterile, vintage without the fake relic. Electronics are wired in a configuration inspired by early 2000s Affinity Stratocasters. You get a Tele bridge pickup for that signature twang, a single coil in the middle pocket with a naturally aged white cover (sunlight, not acid), and a Fender Squier neck pickup for warmth and bite. The 5-way switch gives you Strat-style versatility in a Tele-style frame—bright, gritty, and unapologetically raw.

Hardware & Dimensions

This build includes 10mm machine heads and standard strap buttons—no frills, just solid function. The scale length is 25.5 inches, with a nut width of 42mm (1.656″), giving you familiar playability with a slightly punk edge. The body thickness sits around 45mm, and the whole guitar weighs in at approximately 3.9kg—light enough to throw around, heavy enough to feel real.

Identity & Ethos

Handbuilt in North Devon, this guitar is a Tele-Strat hybrid born of rebellion and resourcefulness. It’s crafted from recycled materials and new old stock, assembled by hand, and designed for players who value soul over symmetry. It’s not polished. It’s not perfect. It’s alive. The Nashville Barnwood Telecaster by Rat Bait Guitars is a right-handed 6-string electric guitar with a solid body in natural colour and a maple neck. It ships with a gig bag and a story—crafted for musicians who want something unique, sustainable, and unapologetically real.