Fender AVRI 57 Strat, black made in Corona USA 1992. Oh boy, what a machine. The American Vintage line was launched in the eighties and marked a return to form for Fender; they were finally building guitars with precision and care like they were in the 50s. This one hails to early 1992, a couple of short years into the Corona era; in a couple of years it will be thirty. This one showed up after a long journey wrapped in bubble wrap, so it was suffering from 'bubble wrap burn' in the nitro. Our local luthier has buffed the marks out and given the finish a polish, leaving all the play wear and dimples from several decades of riffs and feelings on show. Black guitars always look better with miles on the clock; that worn black nitro finish looks exceptionally tasty now and pops perfectly against the golden maple neck. The neck is what makes these magic: it's arrow-straight, a tasty moderate round profile with vintage style frets and radius, and it's made from a knockout piece of maple... it's just effortless in the hands. Plugged-in, this has that trademark Strat-spank, but there's heaps of bite and complexity in the midrange and a juicy, thick natural low end... through the Bassman combo in the shop, it's what dreams are made of. We've included a quality new hard case, as it came in without a bed to sleep in. It won't be doing much sleeping though: you'll be up all dang night playing it. Why pay triple for a Custom Shop relic when you can get something with real stories to tell?

Model: Fender American Vintage '57 Stratocaster
Made: Corona USA, neck date 20 Jan 1992 (serial V058838)
Finish: black, original nitro, 1-ply white guard
Body: alder
Neck: maple with maple board, 25.5" scale, 7.25" radius
Weight: 3.550kg
Mods: back cover removed, 5-way switch installed, extra springs added, Graphtech nut installed, finished polished to smooth but still original
Pickups: Fender American Vintage alnico single coils
Case: new Crossfire tweed style hard case

Cosmetic condition notes: moderate finish wear. Headstock has some minor marks on the end and bottom edge and a mark on the decal. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands, just some play wear on the edges and minor dimples on the board and back. The back has widespread dimples and light scuffs, plus some rub wear on the bottom edge and belly carve. The sides have a lot of rub wear and dimples around the whole body, see the extra pics. The front is more tidy, just some widespread dimples and rub wear, a blacked-out mark on the top horn and some standard play wear. Overall: good condition (7/10).

Playing condition notes: Action is low, neck is straight, intonation is good, truss rod works. All electrics tested and working properly. Frets have some normal wear but are in reasonable shape, 7/10 for fret life left. Wearing fresh 10/46 Moonshiners strings.