Harley Benton Tele TE-30 BE Standard Serie

When you pick it up, you immediately notice: this thing isn’t lightweight! The body has a bit of heft – but that also means tonal substance. The neck feels really good; I’d say it’s a solid medium C-profile, with a pleasantly silky matte finish that almost feels like the F-brand models from the 2000s. Unplugged, it sounds clear and defined – there’s definitely some resonance. When I got it, it was basically like new, but: the fretwork was a mess. The neck itself was straight, but the fret heights… yeah, quite a bit off. We went all in: leveled, recrowned, and polished the frets. Now it plays like a good US Tele – a huge difference in feel! The tuners are okay and do the job. Through an amp, it sounds like a Tele should: a bit twangy, nicely clear, maybe a touch thin – but for home use, and as a beginner or second Tele, it’s absolutely solid. If you want, you can always upgrade the pickups later – the potential is there! Important: This is the standard HB budget model from the big T – but after our extensive treatment, it’s now a genuinely good, reliable Tele that’s fun to play and doesn’t need to hide. And the best part: it comes fully set up and strung with 009s.

 👉 Price:

Original price – 20% + €120 for fretwork, setup, materials, strings  

Total price: €210

No. 088