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Post subject: Authenticity questions about reissue stratocaster
Posted: Tue Jul 09, 2013 8:29 pm
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Hey all,

So I recently picked up what I thought was a used '57 reissue strat from a guy in town. When I got the guitar home and had a closer look, I started to question whether or not it was indeed a 57 reissue and if so how old was it.

The guy I brought it from was hazy on the age of it - he bought it from a music shop a few years ago, he said he would put it around a 2007. I asked if it had been modified in any way and he said no.

So now that I've had the guitar home and had a good opportunity to check it out, I've noticed some odd things. First of all, the pickguard is a 3-ply pickguard with 11 holes instead of the 1-ply 8 hole found of the 57s. This at first made me think it was mistaken as a 57 and is actually a 62. But then I realized the majority of the 62 reissues I have seen have a rosewood fretboard. The neck does not feel as V-ish as it should, but I could be wrong on this.

I took the neck off to have a look and it's penciled with what appears to be '7-23-97'. Underneath the neck is stamped 'AUG 19 1997'. So right away I am wondering if this neck did not originally come with this guitar or vice versa (since it's supposed to be a 2007). However on the body the neck pocket is stamped with a bunch of things, including "AUG 20 2007". So I'm thinking this seems to match up but I can't say for certain. I'm also wondering if this is even legitimate since I have heard that Fender did not put the day, only month and year on the necks.

The frets are definitely vintage and aside from measuring I can say with some certainty that it's a 7.5" radius fretboard. I compared against my 52' reissue tele and they seem the same. The bridge sure looks like a vintage bridge but is awfully rusted for a supposedly 6 year old guitar.

I did not take off the pickguard to investigate that deep, but if necessary I will do so. I know sometimes the pots can be used for dating purposes.

The neck plate has a serial number engraved into it, V0XXXXX. A quick search indicates this is a U.S. vintage series made in the Corona plant. This makes sense based on the supposed age of the guitar. I have contacted Fender about this serial but am still waiting on a response.

So anyway I have provided about as much info as I can on this for now. The guitar sounds and feels amazing, I am not disappointed with it in anyway. I am basically just trying to figure out exactly what this guitar is, and trying to rule out the unfortunate possibility that this is some partscaster and I got ripped off. Or perhaps I have come across some sort of frankenstein of reissues that have come together to create a great guitar. If there is any more info I can provide I certainly will do my best. Any help is greatly appreciated. Pictures below.

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Post subject: Re: Authenticity questions about reissue stratocaster
Posted: Tue Jul 09, 2013 9:32 pm
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To me, it seems the body is stamped 1997.

As a two-tone sunburst, I bet it is from a 57 reissue.

The only thing modified may be that 11 screw pickguard. You'll have to peek under it to see what dates are on the pots and if the body has the right routing.

The original 1-ply pickguard may have warped and the owner liked the looks of that 60s pg.

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Post subject: Re: Authenticity questions about reissue stratocaster
Posted: Tue Jul 09, 2013 10:08 pm
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orvilleowner wrote:
To me, it seems the body is stamped 1997.

As a two-tone sunburst, I bet it is from a 57 reissue.

The only thing modified may be that 11 screw pickguard. You'll have to peek under it to see what dates are on the pots and if the body has the right routing.

The original 1-ply pickguard may have warped and the owner liked the looks of that 60s pg.


+1

You'll need to carefully examine the body beneath the pickguard. If an authentic '57 Fender re-issue, there will be evidence of an 8-hole pickguard being installed from the factory. As well, there will be no "shoulder" within the control-cavity rout which was added when the 11-hole type was adopted "back in the day" (that extra "meat" was required for one of the additional pickguard screws). You should also see a worm rout within the bridge pickup cavity.

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Authenticity questions about reissue stratocaster
Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2013 5:34 am
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The position marks 12 key does not fit for me.
are not in the right place

Isdi

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Sorry for my english, not good, i am of the country of Molière, Hugo, Zola ...


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Post subject: Re: Authenticity questions about reissue stratocaster
Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2013 9:13 am
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isdi wrote:
The position marks 12 key does not fit for me.
are not in the right place

Isdi


That should be okay for a 1997-dated neck. Fender didn't fix the dot spacing until 1998 (when they officially became the "American Vintage" series).

To the OP - are you sure you're reading the body stamps right? The "Aug 20" is very smudged, but one of the other smudged stamps looks like it ends in "997". Also the pickups don't appear to have the beveled polepieces (i.e. the top of the polepiece is flat), which was also correct for a pre-1998 US Reissue Strat. I'm thinking this is really a 1997 US '57 Reissue (with the changed pickguard) - which might also explain the rusty bridge.


Last edited by John C on Wed Jul 10, 2013 9:24 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Post subject: Re: Authenticity questions about reissue stratocaster
Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2013 9:23 am
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Thanks for all the replies folks, I really appreciate it. In order to find out for sure I will have a peek under the pickguard. What are some definitive things to look for inside? I have seen mention of a 'wormhole' route which suggests it's authentic, as well as the holes for the pickguard as mentioned above.

Hopefully Fender can provide me with some info on the serial number, at least to find out which guitar it originally belonged to. I will report back when I get underneath the pickguard.


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Post subject: Re: Authenticity questions about reissue stratocaster
Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2013 9:30 am
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John C wrote:
isdi wrote:
The position marks 12 key does not fit for me.
are not in the right place

Isdi


That should be okay for a 1997-dated neck. Fender didn't fix the dot spacing until 1998 (when they officially became the "American Vintage" series).

To the OP - are you sure you're reading the body stamps right? The "Aug 20" is very smudged, but one of the other smudged stamps looks like it ends in "997". Also the pickups don't appear to have the beveled polepieces (i.e. the top of the polepiece is flat), which was also correct for a pre-1998 US Reissue Strat. I'm thinking this is really a 1997 US '57 Reissue (with the changed pickguard) - which might also explain the rusty bridge.


Thanks for the tip about the dot spacing and pickups, I did not know that!

I had a very hard time reading the body stamps...myself and my girlfriend tried to decipher it but it's pretty smudged like you said. There is a definitive '...97..' on the body, amongst other things. I am also leaning towards the fact that this is legit, aside from the pickguard.

What do you folks reckon the value of a guitar like this is?


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Post subject: Re: Authenticity questions about reissue stratocaster
Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2013 10:35 am
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Just heard back from Fender, this pretty well confirms the conclusion we have come to:

Serial: Manufacture Date:
V096709 09/05/1997

Model Name: U.S. Vintage ‘57 Stratocaster®
Model Number: 010-0908-(Color#)
Series: U.S. Vintage Series
Body: Alder
Neck: One-Piece Maple
Fingerboard: Maple (7.25” Radius/184 mm)
Frets: 21 Vintage Size
Scale Length: 25.5” (648 mm)
Width @ Nut: 1.650” (42 mm)
Hardware: Chrome
Machine Heads: US Vintage Style
Bridge: US Vintage Style Tremolo
Pickguard: 1-Ply White
Pickups: 3 US Vintage Single Coils
Pickup Switching: 3-Position Blade:
Position 1. Bridge Pickup
Position 2. Middle Pickup
Position 3. Neck Pickup
Controls: Master Volume, Tone (Neck), Tone (Mid)
Colors:
(803) 2-Color Sunburst *add $50.00,
(806) Black,
(808) Ocean Turquoise, (Disc. 1997),
(809) Candy Apple Red,
(840) Fiesta Red,
(841) Vintage White, (Disc. 1997), added back in 1998,
(844) Shoreline Gold, added 1997
Strings: Fender Super 250R’s (.010 to .046) Nickel Plated Steel pn# 073-0250-006
Other Features:
Source: U.S.
Accessories: Tweed Case, Strap, Cable, (5-way Update Kit)
U.S. MSRP: $949.00 (1982), $1,499.99 (1998)
INTRODUCED: 1982
DISCONTINUED: 7/1998
DISCONTINUED COLORS:
WRENCH SIZES:
COMMENTS: First appears in the Dec. 1981 price list, however, they did not begin shipping until toward the end of 1982.
Changed from U.S. Vintage Series to American Vintage Series in 7/1998
NOTICE: Product Prices, Features, Specifications and Availability Are Subject To Change Without Notice

Thanks again for all the input!


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