Here's a vintage and real solid player's grade Hardtail Stratocaster for your consideration. This guitar was made at the original Fender factory in Fullerton California U.S.A. in 1979. The guitar had changed tuners at some point, but the original style F-key tuners are now back on and the extra screw holes on the backside were filled, The rest of the guitar appears to be all original including the cool vintage brilliant 3-color Sunburst finish. The guitar is set up and ready to play-it needs nothing.
The body is the familiar Stratocaster shape with front and rear contours. The non-tree models had the strings through the body which produces added resonance and a thicker tone. The finish has a factory lacquer clear coat which has both checking and rub wear here and there-see photos. The finish is still very bright and the red looks really nice. There are typical pecks and dings and mars in the finish as you would expect from a vintage piece. The neck slot has a couple of Fender employees' inspection ink stamps. The neck joint is a good fitment.
The neck itself is smooth and straight. it has the typical vintage C-shape profile and measures 1 5/8" wide at the nut. The neck depth measures 8.51" at the 1st fret and 9.37" at the 12th fret. The F-key tuners function smoothly and the guitar holds tune very well. The headstock and logo display nicely. There are impressions from the former tuners' bushings-see photos. The string trees were moved about 1/16th of an inch towards the nut-I guess to assist the string pressure. The rosewood fingerboard is clean and has a nice soft feel. The 1st fret was replaced at some point. The feats are clean and nice and tall and have a crisp aftertaste. The action is set low for an easy playing experience. The string height at the 1st fret is .010" and the measures .050" at the 12th fret. The guitar plays great up and down the fingerboard.
The original pickups all have an excellent signal and produce the familiar "bell" tone we all want in a Strat. They have an excellent balance. The pickups are grey bobbin units with date codes intact. They measures 5.55 ohms in the neck, 5.45 in the middle position and 7.05 ohms in the bridge position. The wiring and potentiometers and switch also are all original. The potentiometers date to 1979 and the switch is the correct 5-way unit. The bridge and saddles all function as designed. The pickguard is nice and flat with typical signs of some playing wear-see photos.
The guitar is very fun to play and the rosewood fingerboard is a rare find on a 1970's Strat. Comes with original hard case-which is has one latch missing and the other two work fine.
