1983 Fender Stratocaster '57 Reissue Fullerton American Vintage Fiesta Red w/ohc, Hangtags

Up for sale, a 1983 Fender Fullerton-era '57 reissue Stratocaster in excellent condition and in perfect working order. This is a well documented guitar that should delight both collectors and serious players alike, complete with the original hangtags, case candy, sales receipt, and tweed case. Boasting a very rare Fiesta Red over Black custom color nitro lacquer finish, there is plenty to love about this Strat and it's a particularly soulful and lovingly played example.

The Fullerton era of Fender reissues is a very brief and early period lasting only from 1982-84, where Fender was still manufacturing their guitars on the same machines that made the originals back in the '50s and '60s. This marked the birth of the American Vintage line of instruments that's as popular as ever today. While Fender would later move to a new factory in Corona, CA in 1985, the Fullerton guitars are prized for their rarity, tone, and connection to the origins of the Fender company.

In terms of tone and playability, this Stratocaster has a crisp, authoritative, and bell-like acoustic tone that rings out very clearly and evenly across the strings. The guitar weighs in at 7lbs 14oz with an alder body, and balances well on a strap too. Outfitted with a trio of original black bobbin single coil pickups and an untouched wiring harness (aside from the installation of the factory-provided five-way switch), everything from snappy twang to middle position quack to singing lead line girth is at your fingertips. We've had this guitar professionally setup here at Mike & Mike's Guitar Bar and strung with 10-46 strings, optimal intonation, and low action.

The neck has a fairly slender C shape indicative of the Fullerton years, although the fretboard edges have been lightly rolled and smoothed out from years of honest use. The gloss amber tinted nitro lacquer finish is still smooth and intact on the profile and the fretboard shows wear down to the bare maple, mostly on frets 1-9. As such, the guitar has been partially refretted from frets 1-12, with fretwire that perfectly matches the original wire seen further up the neck. These slender vintage-style frets have perfectly rounded crowns and plenty of height left, currently showing only light wear beneath the plain strings on frets 1-4. On the headstock, the original Kluson-style nickel tuning machines are intact, turn smoothly, and hold pitch as they should. The original Stratocaster decal is also present on the headstock, and the neck heel is blank, which is not uncommon in this era of production (as confirmed by the Fender reissue website, the hub for all things Fullerton related).

All of the electronics work as they should, with original pots that date to the 30th week of 1983, and untouched solder joints aside from where the factory-supplied five-way pickup selector switch was installed (original three-way included in the case too). While the serial number is in the early 11,000 range and could be representative of late '83 or early '84, the exact date of the pots is the most conclusive date on the instrument. Furthermore, the included original sales receipt shows that this guitar was purchased brand new in late 1984, so it likely took its time moving from factory to retailer before finding its first home.

The hardware is completely original, including all of the plastic parts, and the body routes are untouched. In terms of the finish, it would be difficult to find a more alluring and vibrant example of classic Fender Fiesta Red, and this finish is 100% original with no touchups or overspray, sporting a black base coast and white primer coat beneath the custom color which has been documented on other Fullerton custom color examples. The finish has notable lacquer checking across the entire body, as well as a touch of wear down to the white undercoat where the forearm crosses the top of the guitar. There are a few tiny nicks around the edges of the body where both finish undercoats can be seen, and a few spots behind frets 7-9 on the neck profile where the finish has chipped off down to the bare maple (not affecting playability in the slightest).

This Fullerton Strat is a rare custom color example, 100% stock aside from a clean partial refret, and dialed in here at Mike & Mike's Guitar Bar to play its best!

The original tweed hardshell case is included, as well as the original manual, hangtag, factory wrapped bridge "ashtray" cover, original three-way pickup selector switch, Fender strap, unopened polish cloth, and original sales receipt.