Looking for the killer resonance and vibrant tones of a Hardtail Stratocaster? We have the guitar for you. This 1977 Fender Stratocaster is 100% original and looks, plays, sounds and feels amazing. It is a lightweight Stratocaster and comfortable like silk underwear. The strings-through-body bridge yields an incredible resonance and sustain-and the design affords a superior experience if you like to bend strings...but you probably already know that, right? This particular guitar was very-well cared for and it is in excellent condition. The guitar was made in 1977 at the original Fender factory in Fullerton California, U.S.A. It is set up and ready to go-it needs nothing.
The body is a 2-piece swamp ash unit with beautiful high contrast-grain and the original clear finish is glossy and smooth. The contours are really nice and defined-especially for a 1970's Fender Stratocaster. There is some light rub wear along the bottom edge-not noticeable at all, but We like to be picky about condition-see photos... Overall, the body is super clean and in excellent condition. The neck joint is an excellent fitment and the neck angle is really good with this one. I know it is adjustable and all that-because this neck sits low in the body-you have tons of room to increase pitch, should you ever want to do that. As it is-it sits totally perfect! The pickups sit nice and low in the pickguard and once again, that allows plenty of room should you want to adjust them up (or down). There are several Fender employee's inspection stamps in the neck slot as well as on the bottom and end of the neck. The employee name "Sage" is ink-stamped in the neck slot.
The neck is Maple and it is smooth and laser-straight. It has a perfect vintage-C profile and is super comfortable. The nut measures 1.65" wide. The neck depth measures .869" deep at the 1st fret and .975" at the 12th fret. The tuners are in excellent condition and function smoothly. The guitar stays in tune like a champ-even with aggressive bends. The headstock and logo display excellent with a touch of patina around the tuner ferrules.
The fingerboard is super clean and smooth-it is in near-new condition. The frets have been professionally cleaned, crowned and polished and appear near-new condition with an excellent height-see photos. The action is set low for an easy and fast playing experience. The string height measures .010" at the 1st fret and .045" at the 12th fret. The guitar plays lights out up and down the. fingerboard and it is suitable for all levels of players.
The pickups all have an excellent signal and are very well-balanced. The neck position measures 5.80 ohms, the middle position measures 5.71 ohms and the bridge position measures 5.94 ohms. The perfect set! The guitar is all-original and that means it still retains the original 3-way selector switch. The pickups sound just like you think a strat should sound: it has the quintessential Fender "bell" chime and the resonant hardtail bridge coupled with ash body yields a spectacular tone that is best described as "more alive" than your typical Stratocaster. All of the controls function smoothly and quietly. The pickguard has the matching serial number sticker on the bottom side and the harness is flawless. The original CTS potentiometers date to the 31st week of 1977 (1st of August). The bridge is ridiculously clean and fully adjustable.
The guitar is very lightweight for ANY Stratocaster-it only weighs 7.74 lbs. No shoulder fatigue with this one. You can play all night and still feel fresh. The guitar sits very comfortably in your lap or on a strap-you won't want to put it back down once you pick it up. It just has great feel.
The original Fender hard case is the earlier style version with the orange interior and 'duck foot' pull-tab for the compartment. It is a 1960's case, but came with the guitar. There is a band name stencil on the outside (cool), one end has a structural defect (not cool) and one latch sucks but it does the job of protecting quite well.
So there it is... Your chance to own a 100% original vintage Fender guitar that you can enjoy whether you are recording, songwriting, playing live or just plinking around on the couch. It also makes a great visual addition to any room. An excellent investment.
