Instruments for Sale
Below is a list of fine instruments currently for sale. You'll find excellent examples from many production years.
These guitars are not the property of Stratcollector.com. They are selections from third-party vendors. When you click on an item, the link will take you to the item on the vendor's site. From there, you can contact that vendor if you wish to make a purchase or inquire about the item.
Guitar Dealers/Vendors: If you are interested in showcasing some of your instruments on Stratcollector.com, please contact vendor@stratcollector.com for information about pricing and availability.
Please note that if you have any rift or issue with a vendor, you must settle your differences with that vendor on your own, as Stratcollector.com does not assume any responsibility for information provided or sales made by outside vendors. However, you are free to voice any legitimate complaints to us about inappropriate conduct from a participating vendor, so we can reconsider the vendor's further participation with Stratcollector.com.
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| 1950s - 1960s Fender Stratocasters |
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| Note about early Fender factory finishes |
There has been much interest and controversy over Fender factory Custom Color finishes and Fender factory re-finishes. I would like to point out that from the late 1950s to the mid 1960s, when a customer ordered a Custom Color finish from Fender, in many cases the factory would mark the body under the pickguard with a series of letters and /or numbers representing the requested finish. An example would be LPB for Lake Placid Blue or CAR for Candy Apple Red, etc. In this case the neck was not marked as the body would just get a neck at the time of final assembly. I personally love to get my hands on these properly marked Custom Color guitars as it is an indication the guitar is most likely an authentic Fender finish, if all other dating components check out.
Likewise, a set of large block numbers were often stamped into the body and neck heel to indicate a guitar returned by a customer for a color re-finish. The large stamped numbers would give the factory a way to track the neck and body so they could be returned together to their rightful owner after the new finish was applied. When Fender was running behind it was sometimes quicker to buy a sunburst Stratocaster at a local store and have it sent back for a Custom Color finish, getting the re-finished guitar back in a couple of weeks, versus waiting perhaps several months for one to be built and then finished in the color of choice.
We should value these special order factory Custom Color re-fins as we would any original Fender Custom Color guitar. It shouldn't really matter if the final finish was applied at the time of first assembly or applied by the Fender factory after sale. This is just one of the great unique practices that made these old Fenders what they are today - individual, hand-made guitars with their own character.
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| 1970s Fender Stratocasters |
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| Interesting note about early '70s pot stamps |
In 1972, CBS Fender made a deal with a company in Mexico to assemble the electronics (pickguard electronics only) and for a short time the CTS pots (most dated to 1972) that showed up in USA model Stratocasters and Telecasters included the word "MEXICO" stamped on the pot. Naturally, all Fender guitars were made in the USA until the Japanese models of late 1981-82, but if you bought a 1972, 1973 or 1974 model Strat it was possible to get one with these pickguard electronic assembles from Mexico. They still had CTS company pots and are no different with respect to sound. The only way to tell is from the very small "MEXICO" stamped on the pot (most likely a legal requirement to indicate origin of assembly).
So, if you buy one of these model years and the solder is virgin factory and you notice the word "MEXICO" on a pot, not to worry, this is a rare but kosher CTS pot. After '74, the Mexico assembly of electronics ended. Also, not all pickguards during this period were done in Mexico, many more were assembled in California.
Above: Pot with "MEXICO" stamp from 1972 Stratocaster. The small "137" under the word Mexico indicates CTS as the manufacturer. The next four numbers, "7243", mean the 43rd week of 1972. We have found these pots in all the Strats we've seen with pots dated 7238 through 7254. We have only seen them in 1972, 1973, and very early 1974 models.
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| Early '80s Stratocasters (1980 - 1983) |
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| American Vintage Reissues |
1982 - 1984, Fullerton Facility
In late 1981 Fender hired Dan Smith to head up marketing and help turn Fender's quality issues and lagging sales around. It was Dan Smith's goal to restore the confidence of the dealers and guitar players in Fender once again. The factory at this time was building about 200-300 guitars a day. Dan Smith, with Fender's approval, literally shut down the Fender plant and spent approximately 2+ years training what employees were left how to build a quality guitar.
Dan Smith, with the help of John Page, proceeded to work on a reissue of the most popular guitars of Leo Fender's era. They decided to manufacture a 1957 and 1962 Stratocaster along with the 1952 Telecaster. This project was very important and critical to the survival of Fender. These first few years (1982 - 1984) of reissues are some of the finest to ever leave Fender's factory. For the entire story we suggest you read the book, The Fender Stratocaster by A. R. Duchossoir.
We get occasional questions from owners and buyers of 1982 Fullerton American Vintage Reissue guitars about the specifications of the early 1982 models. Perhaps the following information will help clarify these questions.
1982 was the first year Fender produced the American Vintage Reissue series and the first guitars had some unique idiosyncrasies. The bodies were cut and finished but when they were assembled the loaded pickguards would not fit. Fender used a fine router in the assembly area to cleanly route out the electronics cavity on the lower side. The bridge-pickup route was also sometimes slightly routed. You can tell it's a factory route due to the very clean route lines and if the solder is unbroken no one could have done this except the factory. Only about 1/16 to 1/8 inch of the wood was removed. They also used plastic wiring and only switched to cloth in the very late '82 to early '83 models. The red bobbin pickups (see photo below) were also used in some of the very early models.
Above: Red bobbin pickups and plastic wiring. Below: Trim routes used at the bridge pickup and lower electronics area. These are features of the 1982 early Fullerton reissues.
If you own one of these early (almost prototype) models, consider yourself very lucky. Values on these will no doubt be the highest.
Below are fine examples of these early Vintage Series, Fullerton plant guitars.
1986 - Present, Corona Facility
The sale of Fender to a group of Fender-CBS employees and investors is accomplished in 1985. However, the new owner, Fender-FMIC (Fender Musical Instruments Corporation) did not receive a manufacturing facility in the purchase. The new Fender would establish manufacturing in Corona, California, and in an effort to push its line of guitars to the top of the market, pay strict attention to detail and quality. The early American Vintage Reissues from the newly established Fender facility in Corona display excellent craftsmanship and superb overall quality, hallmarks that would build the Vintage Reissue Series into one of the flagships of the Fender brand.
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| Early American Standard Stratocaster (1986 - 1988) |
In 1985 an agreement was made for CBS to sell Fender to its employees headed up by Dan Smith and Bill Shultz. Fender's Fullerton plant was not included in the sale and temporarily the manu-facture of guitars was suspended. It took the newly formed Fender company about 10 months to find a facility and set up manufacturing.
Production at the new Corona plant began around November 1985 with only 10 people on the manufacturing floor. Guitars were limited to only four or five a day. At first the only guitars being made were the reissues of the 1957 and 1962 models. After several months the new Fender company decided to make an upgraded version of the Reissue guitars or, better said, a new guitar modeled after the classics of the early 60s with some modern improvements.This led to the new "American Standard" first introduced at the 1987 NAMM show. These first early years 'American Standards" were hand made and quality was second to none. After all, this was the guitar that was to bring Fender back from the ashes. Play one and you'll never put it down. |
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Coming Soon
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| 1989 - Present, Fender Stratocasters |
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| Other Fender Instruments (Bass, Jaguar, Jazzmaster, etc.) |
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