I have purchased a few 80's and 80's Stratocasters new. I kept all of my paperwork in a folder and my wife theew it away thinking it was "trash". Can anyone help me determine exactly which model I have??

Here is what I know from the serial numbers -

#3 84-88

#4 91-92

#7 vintage 57 reissue?

#9 96-97

#13 95-96

#14 91-92

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dennydenal ... 0427162138

I'm not sure how to add photos but the link above is to my Flickr account.

Thanks for any help!

Denny

Send the complete serial numbers to:

consumerrelations@fender.com

The Strat didn't come out until 1954 so there is no such thing as a "52 Reissue". Tele, yes. Strat, no.

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Bill

You are correct. That should be a '57 reissue I think.

Nice set of guitars! Looks like mostly Plus/Deluxe models to me.

the 12th fret dot marker spacing on the black one is too narrow for a 57 reissue I think.

Hi Denny; here's my take on these. Regarding contacting Fender Consumer Relations their database only goes back to 1993 so that would only help on some of these.



That one looks like an American Standard. I'm assuming it has an "E4xxxxx" serial number from your post. FMIC used those "left-over" decals on the early American Standards; the American Standard line was officially launched at the January NAMM show but based on neck and body dates Fender started production in the fall of 1986 - either they did a "soft launch" and shipped them out to a few select dealers or they just wanted to have stock on hand to fill the orders they got in January. Unfortantely Fender doesn't have completion/shipping data going back that far so the only way to tell the exact date is to take it apart and look for body and neck dates. It will, however, be from anywhere between say October 1986 and mid-1988.



This one is a Strat Ultra - very nice maple veneer top on that one. Again, pinpointing the date can only be accomplished by taking it apart.



Yep - a '57 reissue (I believe these were called something like the "U.S. Vintage Reissue" series back then). It should have a serial number starting with a "V" on the neck plate, but you can't decode these for a date. You could check with Fender just in case you got it in 1993 or later, but it looks like an early one to me. One of the inaccuracies of these early ones was the 12th fret dot spacing - Fender didn't widen that out to the correct spot until the American Vintage series came out in 1998 (Fender changed the name of the series when they did that round of updates).



Another American Standard - Fender's Consumer Relations should be able to give you some more details on this one since it's post 1993.



This one is a Strat Plus Deluxe - that was a unique color only on that model, plus it has the locking trem. Fender could give you a more exact date for this one as well.



This one is either a Strat Plus or a Strat Plus Deluxe - I can't quite read the color of the printing on the Fender-Lace Sensor pickups. If the printing on all 3 is gold then it is a Strat Plus; if the printing is blue on the neck pickup, silver on the middle pickup, and red on the bridge pickup then it is a Strat Plus Deluxe - I believe you could get both in that trans finish with an ash body. It would be older than Fender's database so you would have to check the dates.

You didn't post any info on #6 (the grey one) but it also appears to be a Strat Plus - I don't believe the Strat Plus Deluxe came in that grey color. Again you could verify by looking at the color of the printing on the pickups.

John you are correct, the silver does have 3 gold Lace Sensors and should be a Strat Plus. I really appreciate the effort you went to in getting such detailed explanations for each guitar. This is a big help on both the Strats and the Teles.

John C, might the silver one be a Clapton Strat? Did they come in that colour so early? I have seen one recently in that silver/pewter colour with the Lace pups that was close to that year.

No, Denald's guitar has a roller nut and the satin locking tuners (you can't see the back of the tuners but the only satin finish tuners Fender ever used were locking tuners) so it's a Strat Plus; a Clapton would have a regular nut and vintage tuners.

The Clapton's original colors were the pewter, red, and the 7-up green. Also, if I'm remembering correctly the silvery on the Strat Plus was slightly different from the pewter used on the Clapton. The two colors are fairly close; depending on the lighting of the photo you would almost have to see them side-by-side to see the difference.



You're welcome; glad to help.

The Plus uses a 3-ply 11-hole pickguard while the Clapton sports a 1-ply 8-hole.