if the tortoiseshell that i've got right now is the regular tortoiseshell seen on fender guitars and stuff, i won't even think twice but this one.... i've been ripped lah.
agree with the abalone and its friken expensive but then... it adds some MOJO to it and it matches the abalone inlays. damn.
F-holes on a semihollow tele probably started as a weight reducing option during the seventies when heavy assed ash was used but then i may and can be wrong. Ask around REAL players and they'll tell you it'll sound different when compared to a solid body. I dare say it'll sound different too but for me, I've always been attracted to F-HOLES :mrgreen: and USA Custom Guitars happened to have a batch of em on sale.
Lucky me. I got my FHOLES cheap. :mrgreen: