Traveler’s Travelcaster Deluxe might be 2017’s ugliest lightweight guitar so far
5,0 / 5,0 | 
Coming in at under 2.5 kg, Traveler’s new Travelcaster Deluxe guitar has a stunningly low weight. But one look at the official marketing snaps shows immediately which bits they have cut away. And, to my eye, the results ain’t pretty…
Cutting Away The Fat
The Traveler Travelcaster Deluxe is essentially a Stratocaster-style guitar with the correct scale length, tremolo system and all three single coil pickups intact. But it’s designed to offer a lightweight alternative and be easy to take on the road (the clue is in the name). However, this means something had to go.
Well, you can’t really get rid of much other than body mass, and that is precisely what they have done. I cannot say that it looks pleasant to me. In fact, it looks like a Photoshop project where someone got a little carried away with the ability to cut stuff away.
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- Traveler Travelcaster Deluxe with overhanging bridge… · Source: Traveler Guitar
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- Traveler Travelcaster Deluxe · Source: Traveler Guitar
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- Traveler Travelcaster Deluxe head stock · Source: Traveler Guitar
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- Traveler Travelcaster Deluxe · Source: Traveler Guitar
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- Traveler Travelcaster Deluxe Gloss Black · Source: Traveler Guitar
Aesthetically Challenged
Unlike the recently announced Ibanez PGM miKro, which is a 22.2″ scale length and looks like a regular (albeit scaled down) guitar, the Traveler Travelcaster Deluxe has been put on a no-holds-barred diet. The regular 25.5″ scale length, however, has been retained.
Each approach has its own merits, of course, but frankly, I think the Traveler Travelcaster Deluxe looks ridiculous. And it seems overpriced when compared to the PGM miKro. Also, I don’t like their solution for the tremolo system, especially the way that it overhangs the back of the guitar. It looks shoddy, not to mention a little dangerous. I can see people getting ‘beer guts’ or even fingers caught in there!
The Travelcaster Deluxe has a poplar body in either Surf Green or Gloss Black. There’s a choice between a maple neck with a maple board (Surf Green) or a rosewood one (Gloss Black). All instruments in the series come with a gig bag.
RRP $299 plus tax/shipping
Traveler Guitar site
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13 responses to “Traveler’s Travelcaster Deluxe might be 2017’s ugliest lightweight guitar so far”
I think it looks really cool.. It’s good to see a company doing some really innovative stuff.. Shame you’ve given them a bad review.. I’m guessing the reviewer must have spent some time with one?
I love this guitar. Looks and all.
The reviewer obiously has his/her head where the sun aint shinin… Im waiting to buy a Strandberg but just ordered one of these until I do, only wish the headstock design had a straight string pull… I shoulda wrote the review… I’ll bet I have played for longer than the reviewer has been alive, hahaha, oh , wait, arghh
Ditto on the reviewer being a waste of space. The thing I don’t like about Strandberg is you have to buy special double ended strings.
We don’t review on this site very often (and this certainly wasn’t a review), we write news articles, The clue is in the site name. I actually prefer this one looks wise, which is also one of theirs. https://www.gearnews.com/namm-2019-traveler-guitar-announce-jem-style-vaibrant-range/
All about the looks… couldn’t you tell us about the actual guitar ?
No, at the time of the article being written all I had was a picture, some colours and no specifications. Therefore, I added a link to the company site, which is now updated and you can now read all about its 22 medium jumbo frets and ceramic single coil pickups etc.
Since I’ve never played one, I can only go on the details provided at the time of release. I always try and add a product page link when one is available, so if the information gets updated by the manufacturer, then you can easily find it.
Rookie reviewer/player with no aesthetic taste- still adjusting bridge etc as it doesn’t come fine tuned for sure. That being said I haven’t bought a new electric guitar since 1977 when I bought a new Fender Strat. Oh yeah I’ve read about the 70’s problems but mine plays and sounds dreamy, I don’t think I got lucky as I think a lot of them are great.. better than some 60’s Strat’s imho.
Anyway I took a chance on this Traveler creation for a vacation we’ll be on. Honestly after reading about good vintage guitars (Genuine USA Fender products, types of wood, pickup winding, tremelo issues etc, etc) I was skeptical. I have found this new product by Travelers to be surprisingly good so far. The tone compared to my original Strat is fantastic, it has the same fullness but at the same time
presence, wow. It has a comfortable fast neck as good as my original. Same with the trem action. It makes me wonder about all this vintage talk just being bs. If you have the right formula (for any product for that matter) the age is meaningless. And the price & convenience of a Travelstrat? All I can say is thanks Traveler!
After 35 years of playing the guitar, I still think this guitar is ugly as sin, but each to their own.
HA HA
Don’t waste our time with a crap review that essentially says “It looks unnatural!” We can all see what it looks like. I didn’t come here to get a second opinion on how it looks. If I want to hear an old curmudgeon tell me he doesn’t like change, I can show my granddad an iphone.
This was a news article about a new guitar at the time , not a review. Still not a fan of the shape and three-a-side headstock combination three years does the line. I can see it is practical, just butt ugly to my eye. But each to their own.
I bought this seeing that I really don’t like playing with my son’s equipment I like my own I bought this for that very reason it’s easy to take on the road it’s easy to play it sounds good I could take it with my roland Cube and my gfx707 wah pedal they’re all in a bag and take it with me then I can use my own equipment at his place I find nothing wrong with it the tremelo yeah it’s a little odd I was just kind of wonder why they don’t have that filled in but it’s it is what it is and it plays good
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