Fender Strat, sunburst, made in USA 1978. Well, this one is quite the tale of redemption. I bought this from a private seller in Japan, and it arrived in quite a sorry state. The frets were dead, the non-original bridge was non-functional, the electronics hardly worked, and the finish on the front was so worn and covered in grime that the black outsides appeared more like a light grey colour. Enter Mark, our handy store tech, and now we have a beautiful vintage guitar once more. First, here's what's still original: the finish on the body and neck, the body and neck themselves, the jack plate, strap buttons and string tree bushings. Everything else has been replaced, either by us or previous owners over the decades. Mark did a full re-fret with vintage correct Fender nickel silver wire, cleaning up the fretboard as he went, as well as installing a new nut and polishing up the neck finish. It's had a full re-wire with top notch parts, as well as quality new F-key tuners and a deluxe Gotoh steel block bridge installed. The pickups were interesting: one mystery alnico single coil in the middle, as well as a pair of Fender 'grey bobbin' '57/62 American Vintage pickups with an '82 code on them in the neck and bridge... those are pretty valuable sold separately if you go diving for them. The sound is awesome: snappy and bright, but with plenty of weight throw the low end adding a percussive fullness. The bridge pickup has heaps of midrange punch and an angular kick to it, while the neck and middle are beautifully hi-fi and smooth. Many late 70s Strats are heavy, often weighing in around 4.5kg, but this one is relatively light at 3.8kg. The neck is a fat, rounded U style shape, with plenty of meat in the back, which feels reassuring in the hands. After all that work, this really is playing beautifully, it's extremely enjoyable. It's one of those guitars I find myself losing track of time while playing, it has a way of drawing you into it's universe. Obviously this is no mint-condition-glass-cabinet piece and is priced accordingly... but, it's only a couple of hundred more dollars than the new AVRI-ii reissue model, and I'll let you guess which one will be worth more in 2028. If you're after a very fun Strat with a tonne of history and mojo, this one really has a lot of presence about it. Life is good!

Model: Fender Stratocaster
Made: USA, 1978, Fullerton factory, neck date 38th week 1978
Serial: S918538
Finish: three tone sunburst, gloss urethane
Body: swamp ash
Neck: maple, maple fretboard, 25.5" scale, 7.25" radius, fairly fat U shape
Weight: 3.785kg
Mods: tuners, string trees, nut, frets, pickguard, knobs, pickups, switch, capacitors, wire, output jack and bridge all replaced, some minor touch ups to the neck finish applied
Pickups: Fender USA '57/62 Stratocaster single coil x2 dated 1982 (neck and bridge), unknown alnico single coil (middle)
Electronics: CTS USA dish back pots, Oak Grigsby 5-way switch, Switchcraft output jack, vintage braided cloth wire, orange drop capacitors
Accessories: new hard case, tremolo arm

Cosmetic condition notes: minor finish wear. The headstock has scuffs and dimples on the top edge, rub wear and dents on the end, some minor chips, scuffs and dents on  the bottom edge, dimples on the back, chips on the front on the bottom edge as well as some yellowing. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands, it's got minor dimples and rub wear on the back. Our tech filled and smoothed a couple of spots on the fretboard before installing new frets, so the neck finish is original, but it's been a little tidied up here and there and rubbed up to a smooth feel. The back has some chips in the clear coat between the cavity and back edge, some dents in the elbow area, a scratch and some scuffs in the bottom corner, dimples on both horns and widespread light scuffs around the whole body. The sides have dimples on the top horn, dimples, dents and scuffs in the elbow area, minor chips near the rear strap pin, dimples and scuffs near the jack and some scuffs on the bottom horn. The front has some small dents behind the bridge, in the elbow area and along the top edge, scuffs along the back edge, in the elbow area and around the bridge and some play wear on the guard and horns. The finish on the front of the body has faded, so the red is only visible in certain sections.
Overall: good condition (7/10)

Playing condition notes: Action is low, neck is straight, intonation is good, truss rod works. All electronics tested and working properly. Wearing fresh 10/46  strings.
Fret life: 10/10, brand new frets installed using Fender Vintage Nickel Silver fret wire