I first came across this wonderful Black Guard in the very early 1980's, must have been 1981. At that time the local gang of Pre CBS Stratocaster collectors all scratched their heads (including myself). The guitar had a Fender Telecaster decal that was added I would say in the seventies. We had never seen an early fifties Black Guard before, how do you tell what's original? Well that was over a quarter of a century ago!

1981 - Sold for $1,000



Today we have had the opportunity to educate ourselves with the benefit of having seen these beautiful Black Guard Tele's, Esquire's, Nocaster's plus a couple of rare Broadcasters (to which we believe this to be one!) which have come into the store. The reason we say believe is due to the fact that the decal is not the original and maybe (being pinpointed to 1950), could it have been a 1950 Esquire? Which would then make it much rarer than a Broadcaster from that era!

1998 - Sold for $6,500

Until the "Black Guard Book" by Nacho Benos (which is the most comprehensive and detailed look of the Black guard era of Fender) We thought the dates had been lost to the thirty plus year old refinsh. The book clearly shows that most of the early Black Guards from 1950 were without dates. It was also near impossible to date these instruments via pot dates, as the solder was (in nearly every case) placed over the codes in the centre of the pots. This Guitar when I first saw it had the original pots and were replaced some twenty years back.



First style 1950 Bushings  -  The peg head had the original PAT APPLD for tuners to which we inadvertently sold to a US dealer around ten years ago (As they floated into the store separately) and we didn't know they were off this guitar until it's return a fair while later. However, the original machine head screws together with the first style 1950 string post bushings still remain.

First style Truss Rod Screw - The neck features the first type flat truss rod screw, that changed to a double (Star - Phillips) in 1951.

First style 1950 String retainer - The guitars show a slightly different 1950 string retainer, compared to the 1951 style that gradually dishes in on the top rim.



2003 - Sold for $12,750

First style 1950 Fender Knobs - The guitar still carries the original first series knobs which have a taller dome than later versions. The original control plate is showing plenty of character as it has had much use in its 58 year history.

First style 1950 Ferrules - these are found on the rear of the guitar for which to feed the strings through. These are the original first version 1950 ferrules on this guitar.

First type Strap Button '50 - 51 type - The guitar still has the original "Steel Rod" nickel plated with the shaper top edge and flat base. These of course are also showing their age.



Bridge Saddles from November 50 Broadcasters onwards - The saddles are the original second series Brass with flat bottom that appeared on Broadcaster and Esquires from November 1950 onwards.

First style Bridge plate - The bridge plate is the original and has the early mat lower half as all the earlier Black Guard models have. Interesting to note is the rear of the bridge has a small hole drilled in the rear. We will come back to that later.

Serial number – One of the reasons I always thought this guitar was later (all those years ago) was due to the serial number being #1803. Once again after reading the fabulous Black Guard book, it reveals that Leo Fender exaggerated with higher numbers in the serial numbers being used and made the production of guitars look much higher as he jumped forward in sequences, to suggest Fender had made many more instruments than they had at that point in time.



First series Jack Cup - This Jack Cup fitted here is one of the three early 1st versions made for these guitars.

First version rear pickup - Elevator Plate - The first versions of these 1950 - 1951 Black Guards had a zink plated Elevator plate as does this guitar. The pickup was weak and open circuit and has been rewound with original type wire by Martin Kell and sounds fantastic. The original Rope was replaced in the same position and looks like the pickup has not been touched. The front pickup appears to be original and I will keep researching that .... Back to the Black Guard book!

First series Switch Lever - The book states the first examples of the Broadcaster have a two PAT Number Switch that ran up intil early 1951 when they switched to a three Pat Number switch. Pictured here is the original first version switch. Attached is also the first series original Capacitor. The switch like most old Tele style guitars has had the wiring converted to the conventional Tele pickup selections. The switch tip is a type two PAT number which may have been replace early on, as like the bridge cover, it was easy to lose or possible brake.



Original Pickguard - The Black Guard on this guitar is original. To quote the Black Guard book " .....  Most Broadcasters come with the Straight-Edged pickguards"  This guitar has the Straight-Edge (Non Beveled) pickguard. The Characteristics of these early guards have traces or polish on the bridge end of the pickguard as does this one! Under the guard shows the factory original 5" paint can ring. On close inspection, this guitar shows the traces as stated, on the bridge end of the pickguard.

The rare cavity rout -  The rare cavity rout on this guitar has the early “gully way” for the wiring to pass through the bridge pickup cavity to the neck pickup cavity. This early wire feeding system proceeds the Diagonal rout that followed on later bodies. The cavity also shows the earlier router entry circle off the the right rather than the centre found on post 1950 bodies.

Early 1950 Control Cavity Rout  - Early Broadcasters had handmade enlargements to the pickup cavities ... as this guitar has! The post 1950 guitars had a flat lower end. The Control cavity also has the punched hole on the bass side of the control cavity found on most Broadcasters.



Back to the hole in the Bridge .... An interesting thought ... We were looking at pictures of the "Bill Carson" playing a Broadcaster and we noticed the way Bill played with the Bridge cover slid back on the bridge with the rear pickup exposed. This guitar (when I first saw it) had the bridge cover attached with an original bridge screw so one could slide it back with an original spring on the inside, to stop the cover from moving away from the bridge (in the slid back position). Also when being refinished back in the seventies, the top horn had a little more attention with the sanding than anywhere else .... Right where a name may have been!

Secondly, the headstock has a unique circle with a factory type fill with almost matching timber that does not go right through. The circle is around the same size as the top dish of the original string retainer. A factory second given to an Artist? If anyone can shed some light, that would be appreciated.



Over all ...  playing this guitar one can see what all the fuss is about with these early Black Guard Fenders. It is super light weight, warm, colourful and takes you back to the time pre the Stratocaster, when Fender were like a big custom shop. One could almost see
the thoughts going into these guitars!

Thanks to the Black Guard book, researching these early Fenders has become much easier. I suggest anyone that has an interest in the Black Guard or the history of Fender, read this wonderful book more than once!

These books are numbered and I was fortunate to get the matching number to this guitar #1803 which the picture on the cover supports. The book comes with the guitar.

2008 - Yours for $75,000

Vist our main web site to see more of this guitar.



Steve Jackson talks about this guitar on 2001’s The Guitar Show TV series

Tags: Esquire,Telecaster,Blackguard,Broadcaster,Fender Guitars

In 1981 as Bill Shultz started to influence the day to day operations of Fender, they needed to come up with something new and the result was in June 1981, the announcement of the Gold on Gold Stratocaster, which was part of the Collector’s Series of guitars issued by Fender and therefore has a serial number of CAXXXXX. (There was however only one other guitar in that series, the Walnut Stratocaster)



The guitar required no retooling as it was based on the Strat and used that guitars one piece maple neck and body, with a regular Stratocaster 3 ply pick guard and pickup assembly, with I believe an X-1 Pickup in the bridge position. This is not mentioned elsewhere that I can find, but every Gold on Gold Stratocaster I have measured has a hot bridge pickup measuring 7.5 ohms, when the other two pickup measure around 5.8 ohms.



The bridge assembly was from the ‘Brassmaster Series’ introduced in 1980, and used a jewelry grade 22k gold plating that was 100 microns thick. It is widely believed that Fender lost money on every guitar sold due to the expensive gold plating.



Like the Strat, it was available with the smaller (incorrect) headstock and with a four bolt neck joint without the ill fated micro-tilt neck adjustment. One colour was offered, Aztec Gold.



Although it is widely believed that Dan Smith turned Fender around with his development of the Standard Stratocaster (aka Dan Smith Stratocaster), I believe the Gold on Gold Stratocaster was his model for the Standard. The only difference between them is the removal of the expensive Brassmaster parts and gold plating. The two models share the same pickup assembly, the same headstock and decal.

From the images above, you will notice the neck sits down in the body, almost flush with the pickguard, this is one obvious change that Dan Smith made on the Standard Stratocaster, which sits about 3 mm higher in the pocket.

It is said that the Dan Smith Stratocasters were made in rather small numbers, it would be safe to assume therefore that the Gold on Gold Stratocaster made between 1981-1983, would be even rarer. One for under the bed? I think so!

Recommended Reading for more information on Fender Stratocasters

Tags: Fender,Stratocaster

In the last 12 months, American made 80's Stratocasters have started to climb in value, and it would seem that most have gone underground as collectors quietly tuck them away for that day when it becomes official: 80's Stratocasters are the new collectables!

Like any period the eighties has certain periods which are more sought after than others, so here is a timeline of the models, and what to look out for.

1980 Stratocasters

Strat or (The Strat as it is often referred to) featured modified wiring which allowed for nine different tonal configurations, 22K gold electroplated brass hardware (which it has been revealed was as good as what you would get on quality jewelry), and a hot bridge pickup called the X-1. This was Fender's first use of its trademarked name, "Strat" on a guitar.

Although officially only available in Candy Apple Red, Lake Placid Blue, and later, Artic White, several other colors and variations of the original three official colours are known to exist, including "Stratoburst", Black (Cathay Ebony), Candy Apple Green, Sienna Sunburst, Gold, Natural Ash, Olympic White and Sapphire Blue.

1980 also saw the introduction of 25 Jimi Hendrix inspired, reverse headstock Stratocasters. These guitars are quite possibly the first "artist-related" Strats and featured a four bolt neck.

1981 Stratocasters

Gold on Gold Stratocaster Originally named the Gold Stratocaster, and it eventually became known as the ‘Gold on Gold’ Stratocaster due to the Aztec gold color body being fitted with gold hardware. It is a member of the very short-lived early '80s Collector's Series and as such has a special serial number: CAXXXXX.

The ‘Gold on Gold’ Stratocaster shares some design elements with the Dan Smith Stratocasters, such as a smaller headstock, no Bullet, CBS-style headstock logo and the 4-bolt neck attachment.


A rare Gold on Gold ‘Smith’ Stratocaster from 1982

Walnut Stratocaster The Walnut Strat incorporated all the custom hardware and electronics of the STRAT in an instrument crafted entirely of selected solid Black American Walnut. The rock-hard finish and extra density of walnut gave the Walnut Strat all the great playing qualities of the Fender STRAT, plus a unique custom look. The main problem with this guitar is it’s weight, as a solid Walnut guitar is very heavy compared to a standard STRAT, and even they are heavy!

International Color Stratocasters Special custom colors: Arctic White; Morocco Red; Monaco Yellow; Maui Blue; Capri Orange; Sahara Taupe; Cathay Ebony; Sienna Sunburst; and, Cherry Sunburst. Note: unlike the other eight, the Sahara Taupe has a four bolt neck and non-bullet headstock, considered by many to be made from left over parts of the Anniversary Stratocaster..

Standard Stratocaster Now unoffically known as the "Dan Smith Strat", first introduced mid-to-late 1981 and features the smaller, pre-CBS headstock and the return to the four bolt neck with body-end truss rod adjujstment. The headstock "bullet" is also abandoned as is the "Micro Tilt" adjustment. Although it uses a narrower black headstock logo some logo exceptions do exist. This guitar is basically the forerunner of the American Standard introduced in 1987 by Fender-FMIC.

1982 Stratocasters

1957 and 1962 Vintage Reissues
This was the first year Fender produced the American Vintage Reissue series and the first guitars had some unique idiosyncrasies that clearly distinguish them from later models. After the bodies were routed and finished, during assembly the completed pickguards would not fit the routing in the body. Fender used a fine router in the assembly area to cleanly route out the electronics cavity, generally 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, as no one could have done this except the factory. Only 2-3mm of the wood was ever removed. They also used plastic wiring and only switched to cloth in the very late '82 to early '83 models. FInally, red bobbin pickups were used in some of the very early models, with later models using the standard black bobbins.

Features of the ’57 reissue included a 21-fret one piece maple neck, vintage size frets, alder body, white pickguard, 3 American Vintage single coil pickups, 3-position pickup selector switch installed (5-position replacement was included), and vintage style bridge.

Features of the ’62 reissue included a 21-fret maple neck with rosewood fingerboard, vintage size frets, alder body, white/black/white pickguard, 3 American Vintage single coil pickups, 3-position pickup selector switch installed (5-position replacement was included), 7.25" neck radius, and vintage style bridge.

According to the 1982 Fender Catalogue, these guitars were available in 2-Tone Sunburst as standard, but these other colours options were available: Black, Candy Apple Red, Lake Placid Blue, Fiesta Red and Vintage White.


1984 Fender Stratocaster '62 Reissue

1983 Stratocasters

Elite Stratocaster featured push-button pickup selectors, active circuitry, distinctive pickup covers (which are similar to Lace Sensor covers though the pickups are Alnico), and a new bridge-vibrato mechanism, known as the "Freeflyte" tremolo. Also the Gold Elite Stratocaster was introduced. The Elite was offered in some interesting finish colors, including Pewter, Mocha Brown, Sapphire Blue, Ruby Red, Emerald Green, Candy Apple Green, and, Stratoburst.

Standard Stratocaster Revision The Standard Stratocaster undergoes radical, cost-cutting changes with a new jack plate that is flush with body causing one tone control to be dropped.

1984 Stratocasters

Bowling Ball Stratocaster also known as the "Marble Strocaster", approximately 100 Strats are made with this distinctive finish that featured red, yellow, or blue marbled streaks. Only 250 of these guitars were made: 108 in the red-black-white swirl; 105 in the blue-black-yellow swirl; and, 37 in the gold-silver-white swirl.

1985 Stratocasters

In January of 1985, Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (FMIC) buys Fender from CBS for US$12.5 million, US$500,000 less than what CBS had paid for Fender in 1965! The FMIC purchase is accomplished by a group of ten Fender employees and foreign distributors led by then Fender-CBS President and now Fender-FMIC CEO, William (Bill) Schultz. However, the sale does not include equipment or manufacturing facilities.

In October, Fender-FMIC opens its first manufacturing facility in Corona, California. Original floor work force numbers approximately ten, and produces only five guitars a day and all of them were Vintage Reissues. (Fender instruments manufactured in Japan account for an estimated 80% of Fender sales from 1984 through to 1986).

1986 Stratocasters

1957 and 1962 American Vintage Reissues were the first guitars to leave the new Corona factory in October 1987, and were essentially a re-introduction of the models first introduced in '82-'84, with some design and construction changes. Firstly, the nitrocellulose finish of the earlier models was replaced by polyurethane and some body/headstock/fret marker changes are made in an attempt to more closely recreate the originals.

It needs to be said however, that it is THESE guitars that were made is extremely small numbers, five guitars a day in fact, as the total number of factory staff at this ealry time was just ten. Other places on the web claim it is the earlier 82-84 models which were made in extremely small numbers, but according to the book “The Fender Stratocaster’ by A.R. Duchossoir, they are wrong!

(The first Corona-made American Reissue was a 1962 Fiesta Red with serial number V000001, which was presented to Bill Schultz, the second is a 1957 Fiesta Red with serial number V000002 presented to Shadows guitarist, Hank Marvin).

1987 Stratocasters

American Standard Stratocaster Although production began in 1986, the American Standard Stratocaster was formally introduced at the Winter NAMM Show in January of 1987. This was certainly influenced by the 1981/82 "Dan Smith Strat", and Dan Smith was most likely behind the 1987 American Standard concept, its final engineering design is credited to Fender R&D's Geroge Blanda, who was hired by Fender in 1985 to institute a "Custom Shop", but became a leading force in Fender's R&D department.

It features 22 frets, a 9.5 fingerboard radius, "swimming pool route" to accomodate after-market modifications (in place of the usual three pickup routes), and a re-designed bridge/tremolo unit.

Fender Custom Shop is founded by John Page and Michael Stevens (the first Fender Custom Shop instrument is built by Michael Stevens: a double-neck Strat/Esquire with serial number 0001)

Eric Clapton and Yngwie Malmsteen sign "Artist Series" contracts with Fender, though their signature guitars will not be introduced until 1988

Strat Plus Featured the first use of Lace Sensor pickups in a Fender Stratocaster, roller nut and locking tuners.

1988 Stratocasters

Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster (prototypes by George Blanda) and the Yngwie Malmsteen Signature Stratocaster released.

1989 Stratocasters

Deluxe Strat Plus similar to the Strat Plus but with two Blue Lace Sensors and one Silver Lace Sensor

Fender Custom Shop 35th Stratocaster Anniversary Limited Edition first Custom Shop "anniversary" model with a total of 500 being made.

Homer Haynes Limited Edition (HLE) first non-anniversary, numbered, limited edition Stratocaster made by the Fender Custom Shop with 500 being made.

Contemporary Stratocaster featuring a TBX tone control, 12" fretboard radius.

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Which models to collect?
It is sometimes hard for those of us who started collecting in the early 80's to come to terms with the fact that the early 80's guitars are now older than most of the 50's and 60's guitars we started collecting way back then, but it is fact.

Many collectors have firmly placed their faith in the Custom Shop models which started to leave the Fender factory at Corona in 1987, particularly these early models with low serial numbers and again, time will tell if this is a wise move. With the quality of the instruments they turn out, it is unlikely to be a fruitless endevour. Certain ‘Master Builders’ such as the late John English are also well and truly on the Collectors radar, and John in particular is responsible for some of the finest guitars to come out of Fenders Custom Shop, as the stunning ’63 replica below shows.


Fender Stratocaster '63 Replica Master Built by John English

What has really started to take off in the last 12 months however, are the 1982-84 American made '57 and '62 Vintage Reissues, even though they are less accurate than the later models reintroduced after the take over of FMIC. With even a casual look at the guitars for sale around the world, you will see prices being asked which are two to three times the value stated in the Vintage Guitar Buyers Guide 2008. As well, there is a massive shortage of stock on the market, a clear sign of investors having 'got in early' and stashed away the stock for that next big surge in value.


1984 Fender Stratocaster '57 Reissue

One strange aspect of the collectibility of these guitars, is the fact that the most sought after models are the very early models which have extra routing, post finishing, and plastic wiring instead of the normally preferred cloth wiring of true vintage Stratocasters, and Red pickup bobbins instead of black. It is purely the rarity that makes these so desirable as there are no sonic benefits in the extra routing or wiring.

These guitars, if they continue on the path set in the last twelve months, will pass all seventies Stratocasters in terms of collectibility and price. The operative word however, is 'if'. Of course, I would not look past the Dan Smith models either, as they are great guitars in their own right and do not suffer the fate of being 'not quite right' when compared to their original counterparts, as happens with the '82-'84 vintage reissues.

We would also have to be looking strongly at the '86 early 87 Vintage Reissues as well, as these guitars are all hand made, and at a rate of only 5 per day, all of which translates to rare and well built, just like custom shop models. If you are really lucky, you may find one of the very first guitars off the line at Corona, when in October 1985 they started to make five Reissue guitars a day, so just three months production of hand built guitars!

Strangely, while the ’86 to ’87 reissues are increasing in value, they are not increasing as much as the earlier 82-84 reissues, which in light of the fact they are better guitars in terms of build quality and accuracy, is unusual. Personally, I think these are a bit of a sleeper that will certainly pay off for the keen speculative investor.

If you do your sums, five guitars a day, five days a week, translates to only 1300 guitars a year, which would make these early Corona guitars very rare. Of course they would have ramped up production from five a day to much greater numbers after the first year of production I am sure, so in reality there are probably 2000-3000 of these guitars made in the first full year (1986) of production at the Corona factory, which in itself is still low numbers and is certainly lower than the output of the last years at the Fullerton plant which had an output of 200 guitars a day in July 1984! (it also took 135 people to achieve that output!)

The '87 American Standard Stratocaster is, literally, the instrument that resurrected the Fender brand and this growing awareness of the significance of the American Standard is leading to an increased interest in its forerunner, the 1981-82 Standard Stratocaster, commonly referred to as the 'Dan Smith' Stratocasters.

These guitars still have some CBS traits which for me holds them back a little, such as the extremely thick lacquer on the necks and bodies. However they are the guitars that signaled change at Fender and at the very least look much better than the large headstock seventies guitars they replaced.

And let’s not forget the Gold on Gold version released in 1981, a truly beautiful looking guitar with the same jewelry grade gold plating as the Strat, surely the best of the Dan Smith guitars?

Finally, there is the Strat, with it's expensive jewelry grade 22k gold plating, and custom colour finishes (Blue, Red and later White) it may finally have it's day. And last of all, let's not forget that these instruments along with the 82-84 Vintage Reissues, are the very last to come out of the Fullerton factory which Leo Fender started so many years before.

Well, with all of this excitement over 80's Stratocasters, it once again feels like the late seventies/early eighties when the frenzy over early Fenders began, this is going to be an exciting time for guitar collecting, yet again!

NOTE: This article is the authors opinion, not necessarily that of Jacksons Rare Guitars, and does not guarantee the value or future value of any instrument in any way.

Recommended Reading for more information on Fender Stratocasters

Tags: Fender,Stratocaster

Back in the summer of 1979, I placed an ad in a local magazine for a guitar player. I got one call, from a guy named Steve Jackson. After some discussion on the phone we realised we had a common passion, Fender Guitars.

At the time I had a 1960 Candy Apple Red Stratocaster, and Steve had a 1959 Sunburst Stratocaster. We regularly got together with friends to compare our collections and discuss vintage guitars. Amongst us we had a variety of sixties Stratocasters and Telecasters, but no one had a maple neck fifties Stratocaster.

In late 1980 I had a discussion with my father about my 1960 Stratocaster, and he recalled the very first Stratocaster he had ever seen. "My cousin Johnny Wade used to have a brown one" he said, which confused me at first, but he continued, "It sorted faded from black to brown". I asked, "Like a sunburst you mean?", "Yeah like a sunburst", he said. "Any red in there Dad?", "no" he said.

It occurred to me that this had to be a 50's Stratocaster, so I went through every 'Wade' in the phone book until I found 'the' Johnny Wade. (who incidentally was really Charlie Wade, 'Johnny' was his stage name and he was very well known in the 50's as a 'Hawaiian' style Jazz guitarist/singer)

He was glad to hear from me and agreed to have me come down to look at his guitar, which amazingly he still had. I arranged a time and then called Steve Jackson and told him what I had possibly found.

We ventured down to Ashfield in Sydney's inner west, met Johnny Wade and upon entering his unit, we were struck by the collection of vintage guitars and amplifiers all over the apartment, from a Gibson L-5, to a Gretsch guitar amp with speaker grilles on all sides and bulls horns painted on the grille, stuff we had never seen before basically.

However, there was no Stratocaster any where, so we asked cautiously, "Where is the Fender?". "Down the back in the garage" he said. We were amazed, it was the most valuable of all of his guitars and it was unused in the garage.

We went down to his garage, opened the door and walked to the far wall where a work bench was stacked to the ceiling with box after box of old sheet music. "It's under there somewhere" he said. Yes, it was crushed under the weight of boxes of sheet music...

After ten minutes, we had cleared the workbench to reveal a 'tweed' case, the first we had seen at that point. We knew we were onto an old Stratocaster! We carefully laid it on the floor of the garage and slowly opened the case.

Right there in front of us, was the first ever maple neck fifties Stratocaster we had ever seen, and likely, the very first in Australia. It was all there, totally original and in pretty good shape.

It was well played of course as Johnny used it for many years after selling his Gibson Les Paul Goldtop because he did not like the way it dug into his ribs, and the appeal of the contour body was just too tempting. It features bakelite pickup covers, tone and volume knobs.

(At the time, Johnny had a friend who played on a cruise ship which sailed between Sydney and the U.S.A. He asked him to pick up a Stratocaster for him on his next trip, and he brought this guitar back to Australia for him.)

One peculiar thing about the guitar, was the lack of paint on the top horn of the body which was out of place considering the condition of the rest of the guitar. When asked, Johnny replied: "I had a residency at the Brighton Hotel and left the guitar leaning against the wall in the Manager's office next to the Hotel's safe. Every time the manager opened the safe, the door would bang against the guitar, and over time it removed the paint."

"I am going to get a friend to French Polish it" he says. "No!" I said, for obvious reasons, and thankfully he did not. I asked if he would sell me the guitar, but he refused and offered to leave it to me in his will. Sometime later I asked to bring another friend to see the guitar, and on that second visit he asked me if I still wanted to buy the guitar. After a short negotiation, I bought the guitar for $1500

I played the guitar regularly around the Sydney circuit for a couple of years, until that day when Steve Jackson rang me to say he had a collector interested in obtaining a fifties Stratocaster. Needing money at the time, I sold the guitar for $6500. It's new owner kept it for a couple of years, and then sold it on to Midnight Oil.

This guitar is now known as the 'Johnny Wade' Stratocaster, and in retrospect it is amazing to think of the Australian music history this guitar has been a part of. Recorded many times with both Johnny Wade (Pictured at left, who recorded over 70 records!) and Midnight Oil, it has appeared all over Australia at various gigs, and it must surely be the only Stratocaster with it's entire history known, right down to how it's paint was scratched off!

When Midnight Oil eventually off loaded the guitar it was back at Jacksons Rare Guitars, and offered to me by Steve. So I bought it back again for a considerably larger sum than I sold it for! Again I kept it for a few years but as I was not playing and thought that guitars had reached their peak in terms of investment value, I sold it again....yes I regret that decision for more than the obvious reason. This is a very special guitar, and those who play it fall in love with the sound as it is one of the best sounding Stratocaster's you're ever likely to hear, and then, there is all that history....

Tags: Fender,Stratocaster

(American Made Guitars Only)
All Fender guitars prior to 1977 have a serial number on either the bridgeplate or the neckplate (Very early Stratocasters however had a four digit serial number on the tremelo back cover plate). Serial numbers are basically chronological, but there is some overlap amoung years. The definitive way to date a pre-CBS Fender guitar is to look at the dates on the body, neck, and the tone/volume pots. The serial number should only ever be used as a guide.

Fender Esquires, Broadcasters and Telecasters from 1950 to 1954 (number on bridgeplate) use a system of serialisation which is unique to these three models, until around early summer of 1954 when Fender switched to a universal neck plate serial number system for all models.

Fender Telecaster with numbers on the bridge plate
0001 to 0999 = 1950 to 1952
1000 to 5300 = 1952 to 1954

Fender Precision Basses from 1951 to 1955 (number on bridgeplate) also used a unique system of serialisation until about 1955, even though Fender went to a universal neckplate serial number system on all instruments in 1954. However some old style Precision Bass serialised bridges were still left over and used until 1955.

Fender Precision Basses with numbers on the bridge plate
100 to 400 = 1951 to 1952
0001 to 0999 = 1952 to 1954
1000 to 2000 = 1953 to 1955

All Fender models from the summer of 1954 to mid 1976
All Fender models from the summer of 1954 to mid 1976 have the serial number on the neckplate. During 1957 and 1958 some serial numbers started with a minus sign ("-"), or had a "0" prefix before the number. Also in 1959 and 1960 some serial numbers were at the bottom of the neck plate instead of the top as is the norm. Double stamped serial number plates were also produced (number on both front and back of the neck plate) in late 1957 to early 1959. It is not unusual to find that there is some overlap in serial numbers between the years.

Fender Guitars with 4 to 6 digit neck plate serial numbers
There should be no other letters or markings on the neck plate, except for the rare "-" or "0" prefix, which is noted above.
0001 to 6000 = 1954
6001 to 9000 = 1955
9001 to 16000 = 1956
16001 to 25000 = 1957 (some numbers with a "0" or "-" prefix)
25001 to 30000 = 1958 (some numbers with a "0" or "-" prefix)
30001 to 40000 = 1959
40001 to 58000 = 1960
55000 to 72000 = 1961
72001 to 93000 = 1962
93001 to 99999 = 1963

Fender L-Series guitars from 1963 to late 1965
Serial number on the neckplate preceded with an "L". Even though CBS bought Fender in January 1965, these guitars are considered Pre-CBS. Keep in mind it is not unusual to find an "L" serial number on a late 1962 model.
L00001 to L20000 = 1963
L20001 to L55000 = 1964
L55001 to L99999 = 1965

F-Series Fender guitars from late 1965 to mid-1976
Known as the CBS era, these guitars feature a large script "F" on neckplate just below the serial number.
100000 to 110000 = Late 1965
110001 to 200000 = 1966
180000 to 210000 = 1967
210001 to 250000 = 1968
250001 to 280000 = 1969
280001 to 300000 = 1970
300001 to 330000 = 1971
330001 to 370000 = 1972
370001 to 520000 = 1973
500000 to 580000 = 1974
580001 to 690000 = 1975
690001 to 750000 = 1976

Fender Guitars with the serial number on the peghead decal
American made Fenders, starting in mid-1976 have the serial number on the peghead. Note the following numbers could be off by as much as two years. In rough terms, an "S" prefix equals the 1970's, "E" prefix equals the 1980's, and "N" prefix equals the 1990's.

7600000 ("76" in bold) = 1976-1977
800000s = 1979-1981
1000000 to 8000000 = 1976-1981 (7 digits)
S1 to S5 + 5 Digits = 1979-1982
S6 + 5 digits = 1976
S7 + 5 digits = 1977-1978
S8 + 5 digits = 1977-1978
S9 + 5 digits = 1978-1981
E0 + 5 digits = 1979-1981
E1 + 5 digits = 1980-1981
E1 + 5 digits = 1982
E2 + 5 digits = 1982-1983
E3 + 5 digits = 1982-1984
E4 + 5 digits = 1984-1985, 1987-1988
E8 + 5 digits = 1988-1989
E9 + 5 digits = 1988-1990

In March 1985, CBS sold Fender to a group of private investors, however the serial numbers do not reflect this change. Fender continued to make instruments using existing serial number schemes. The new owners of Fender did not acquire any physical assets of the old company, just the name "Fender". Hence during 1985 to 1987, production of Fender guitars was only done in Japan, while USA Fender created a new factory in California.

N9 + 5 digits = 1990
N0 + 5 digits = 1990-1991
N1 + 5 or 6 digits = 1991-1992
N2 + 5 or 6 digits = 1992-1993
N3 + 5 or 6 digits = 1993-1994
N4 + 5 or 6 digits = 1994-1995
N5 + 5 or 6 digits = 1995-1996
N6 + 5 or 6 digits = 1996-1997
N7 + 5 or 6 digits = 1997-1998
N8 + 5 or 6 digits = 1998-1999
N9 + 5 or 6 digits = 1999-2000
DZ0 or Z0 + 5/6 digits = 2000
DZ1 or Z1 + 5/6 digits = 2001
DZ2 or Z2 + 5/6 digits = 2002
DZ3 or Z3 + 5/6 digits = 2003
DZ4 or Z4 + 5/6 digits = 2004
DZ5 or Z5 + 5/6 digits = 2005

Other Fender Serial Number Schemes
Fender has in the last 25 years introduced many different serial numbers schemes, depending on the country the Fender was made. Not all schemes are covered here, but below are some examples of letter prefixes used in recent serial number schemes.

V + 4 to 6 digits (U.S. Vintage Series) = 1982-1988 (neck date=exact year)
V + 5 to 6 digits (U.S. Vintage Series) = 1989-present (model dependant)
AMXN + 6 DIGITS = California Series electric guitars and basses, '97 and '98
DN + 6 DIGITS = American Deluxe series instruments, '98 and '99
NC(XXXXXX) = Squier Strat Bullets (dating unclear)
FN(XXXXXX) = US made guitars and basses destined for the export market
I(XXXXXXX) = Limited number of these "I" series guitars were made in '89/'90. They were made for the export market and have
Made in USA stamped on neck heel.
LE(XXXXXX) = Blonde Jazzmasters and Jaguars with Gold hardware made in 1994. Sold as a promotional 3 piece set with a Blonde Deluxe Reverb Amp
CN(XXXXXX) = Korean made Fender/Squier guitars (dating unclear)
VN(XXXXXX) = Korean made Fender/Squier guitars (dating unclear)
CA(XXXXX) = Gold Strat 1981, 82 and 83

CB(XXXXX) = Precision Bass Special from 1981, CB(XXXXX) Gold Jazz Bass from 1982
CC(XXXXX) = Walnut Strat 1981-82-83
CE(XXXXX) = Precision Bass Special from 1981, Black and Gold Tele from 1981-82
CD(XXXXX) = Precision Bass Special (Walnut) from 1982
CO(XXXXX) = Precision Bass Special (Walnut) from 1982
GO(XXXXX) = Precision Bass Special (Walnut) from 1982, Gold Strat 1982-83
D(XXXXXX) = Jazz Bass from 1982
SE8(XXXXX) = Signature Edition Strats (dating unclear, check neck date)
SE9(XXXXX) = Signature Edition Strats (dating unclear, check neck date)
SN0(XXXXX) = Signature Edition Strats 1990
SN1(XXXXX) = Signature Edition Strats 1990
SN2(XXXXX) = Signature Edition Strats 1992
SN3(XXXXX) = Signature Edition Strats 1993
3 digits of 500 = 35th Anniversary Strat from 1989-1990
G(XXXXXX) = "STRAT" from about 1980, (Gold hardware, 2 pos. rotary tone switch)
4 digits stamped on bridge plate = 1952 reissue Telecaster 1982-1988 (Check neck date for exact year)
5 digits stamped on bridge plate = 1952 reissue Telecaster 1988-present (Check neck date for exact year)

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Tags: Fender,Stratocaster,Telecaster