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    Fender

    American Professional II Telecaster2023

    The American Professional II Telecaster keeps the classic Tele twang but modernizes the details, compensated brass saddles for better intonation than a vintage 3-saddle bridge, and V-Mod II pickups voiced for a bit more clarity and headroom.

    11 mods reviewed: 4 drop-in, 7 need verification.

    Fender American Professional II Telecaster guitar

    The American Professional II Telecaster keeps the classic Tele twang but modernizes the details, compensated brass saddles for better intonation than a vintage 3-saddle bridge, and V-Mod II pickups voiced for a bit more clarity and headroom. Standard modern 6-saddle Tele bridge footprint, so most current aftermarket Tele bridges should fit without the vintage 3-saddle caveats that apply to older-spec Teles.

    Quick facts

    Tailpiece

    None (bridge-integrated, string-through)

    String spacing

    54mm (2-1/8")

    Scale length

    25.5" (648mm)

    Not published by Fender: tuner hole size and bridge mounting spacing. Measure these before buying tuners or a bridge.

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    Bridge

    5 options
    Illustration, photo coming soon

    Fender 6-Saddle Telecaster Hardtail Bridge, Standard Spacing

    Needs verification

    This guitar's bridge mount is a third pattern, not quite vintage and not quite the 3-screw American Standard layout. Whether this bridge lines up cleanly has not been confirmed, worth measuring first.

    Why we say this

    American Professional-tier Telecasters use their own 4-screw mounting pattern, distinct from both the true vintage 4-screw layout and the 3-screw American Standard/Ultra pattern. Real-world reports are mixed on whether this style of bridge aligns cleanly with this specific hole pattern.

    Help confirm this fit

    See current price at Amazon

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    Illustration, photo coming soon

    Gotoh BS-TC1S In-Tune Telecaster Bridge

    Needs verification

    This guitar's bridge mount is a third pattern, not quite vintage and not quite the 3-screw American Standard layout. Whether this bridge lines up cleanly has not been confirmed, worth measuring first.

    Why we say this

    American Professional-tier Telecasters use their own 4-screw mounting pattern, distinct from both the true vintage 4-screw layout and the 3-screw American Standard/Ultra pattern. Real-world reports are mixed on whether this style of bridge aligns cleanly with this specific hole pattern.

    Help confirm this fit

    Illustration, photo coming soon

    Mastery M3 Tele Bridge

    Needs verification

    This guitar's bridge mount is a third pattern, not quite vintage and not quite the 3-screw American Standard layout. Whether this bridge lines up cleanly has not been confirmed, worth measuring first.

    Why we say this

    American Professional-tier Telecasters use their own 4-screw mounting pattern, distinct from both the true vintage 4-screw layout and the 3-screw American Standard/Ultra pattern. Real-world reports are mixed on whether vintage-style replacement bridges align cleanly with this specific hole pattern.

    Help confirm this fit

    Illustration, photo coming soon

    Joe Barden Telecaster Bridge Plate

    Needs verification

    This guitar's bridge mount is a third pattern, not quite vintage and not quite the 3-screw American Standard layout. Whether this bridge lines up cleanly has not been confirmed, worth measuring first.

    Why we say this

    American Professional-tier Telecasters use their own 4-screw mounting pattern, distinct from both the true vintage 4-screw layout and the 3-screw American Standard/Ultra pattern. Real-world reports are mixed on whether this style of bridge aligns cleanly with this specific hole pattern.

    Help confirm this fit

    Wilkinson WTB Telecaster Bridge

    Wilkinson WTB Telecaster Bridge

    Needs verification

    This guitar's bridge mount is a third pattern, not quite vintage and not quite the 3-screw American Standard layout. Whether this bridge lines up cleanly has not been confirmed, worth measuring first.

    Why we say this

    American Professional-tier Telecasters use their own 4-screw mounting pattern, distinct from both the true vintage 4-screw layout and the 3-screw American Standard/Ultra pattern. Real-world reports are mixed on whether vintage-style replacement bridges align cleanly with this specific hole pattern.

    Help confirm this fit

    See current price at Amazon

    View at Amazon

    Pickup

    3 options
    Illustration, photo coming soon

    Fender Gen 4 Noiseless Telecaster Pickup Set

    Likely drop-in
    Soldering

    Fits the standard Tele single-coil route. You will need to solder it in.

    Why we say this

    Standard Telecaster single-coil route and mounting for both neck and bridge positions, the same route the V-Mod II pickups already sit in.

    £179.00 at Andertons

    View at Andertons
    Illustration, photo coming soon

    Seymour Duncan Antiquity II Telecaster Pickup Set

    Likely drop-in
    Soldering

    Fits the standard Tele single-coil route. A more vintage-voiced alternative to the stock pickups. You will need to solder it in.

    Why we say this

    Standard Telecaster single-coil route. A more vintage-voiced alternative to the stock V-Mod II pickups, which are tuned for extra clarity and headroom rather than vintage character.

    See current price at Reverb

    View at Reverb
    Illustration, photo coming soon

    Seymour Duncan JB Jr. for Tele (Bridge)

    Likely drop-in
    Soldering

    A genuine humbucker squeezed into the stock Tele bridge slot, for players who want humbucker output without routing the body. Bridge position only. Needs soldering.

    Why we say this

    A true dual-coil humbucker built into a single-coil-sized housing, drops into the standard Tele bridge single-coil route without any body routing. Bridge position only, does not replace the neck pickup.

    See current price at Amazon

    View at AmazonAlso at Andertons.

    Tuner

    3 options
    Illustration, photo coming soon

    Graph Tech Ratio Machine Heads (6-in-line, Staggered)

    Likely drop-in

    Comes with different sized bushings in the box, built to handle small bore variations without needing an exact match.

    Why we say this

    Graph Tech's Ratio system ships with interchangeable bushings sized for multiple common Fender bore diameters, sidestepping the exact hole size question that affects a plain single-size tuner on this guitar.

    See current price at Amazon

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    Fender Deluxe Locking Tuners (6-in-line, Staggered)

    Fender Deluxe Locking Tuners (6-in-line, Staggered)

    Needs verification

    These should fit closely, this guitar's tuner holes are reported very close to standard, but the exact size has not been independently confirmed here, so measure first if you want certainty.

    Why we say this

    Fender's own site is reported to cite this guitar's peghead holes at 10.26mm, slightly larger than the plain 10mm bore these tuners are built for. Not pulled directly from a manufacturer spec sheet in this pass, so treated as needing verification even though it is a small enough gap that a snug fit is plausible.

    Help confirm this fit

    See current price at Amazon

    View at Amazon
    Illustration, photo coming soon

    Sperzel Trim-Lok Locking Tuners (6-in-line, Staggered)

    Needs verification

    Should fit closely, but the same caveat applies as our other locking tuner option: this guitar's exact hole size has not been independently confirmed.

    Why we say this

    Same reported 10.26mm hole size question that applies to the guitar's other plain-bore locking tuner option, Sperzel's standard line uses a plain 10mm bore, close but not an exact confirmed match.

    Help confirm this fit

    See also

    This page has 7 open questions

    If you have fitted any of these to this Fender American Professional II Telecaster, tell us what you found and we'll update the data.