Rustler Thinline

[meyekl]

I have a "Rustler" TL model 4022 serial number 0007.
It is in excellent condition hopefully I can add a few picture so everyone can get an idea of the shape. It is a tele-style that had a MSRP of $1699 in 1993. the rustlers which have a quality fancy leather design incorporated on the sides between the upper and lower banding were built by Charles C. Caponi who died in 1998. The guitar is solid body. The guitars were produced in his shop in Mason City Iowa. I hope I did this right, 1st time.

[VintAxe]

Hi meyekl.

Looks like you found Zach's blurb on Rustler guitars in the Blue Book.

It will be hard to establish a precise value for this guitar since they probably don't sell that often. Value will probably come down to what a tele thinline buyer can get from another company that is similar to the instrument you are offering.

How does your guitar compare to a Fender Custom shop thinline?

Here's a guy in Texas that is building thinlines and wants $1,900 for them. How does your guitar compare to the specs he lists for his instruments?

[VintAxe]

Just reread your post and realized you said your guitar was a solidbody. I thought by definition, thinlines had a body cavity.

If your guitar is solid, you may need to be comparing it to regular Teles.

[VintAxe]

I took a look at my Rustler literature and it appears you have a Rustler 4021 rather than a 4022 TL.

The 4020 was an original Rustler with a rosewood fretboard.
The 4021 was the same guitar with a maple fretboard.
The 4022 was the Thinline model and had a chambered body

The original suggested retail price for the 4021 was $1,599 but my literature indicates you could buy one for $1,250 if you purchased it directly from Mason City Music Center.

[meyekl]

Thank you for the information. Hopefully more will come. there just is not alot for a guy that only produced 3 years before he died. I have seen 3 others on a Canadian forum.
Tx. Guitars.com really blew me away. I guess CARE Distributions and a subscription to Panjiva really have there benifits. They are definitely beautiful instruments and what a website I spent an hour on it.
I would rather have the manmade rustler though. I am kind of a hypocrite I know because I play on instruments made outside the U.S. and assembled here. he probably was not like a local luthier close to me that does all the work himself.
I don't know. I do not know how many Rustler's there are. I'm pretty sure they didn't have CNC machines in the 90's
I guess I keep it because he only produced a short time. I figure it's an oddball. Where did you find the liturature?

[VintAxe]

The Rustler literature is uploaded in the Catalog Library: