Fender Stratocaster 1964 Fiesta Red Refinished

No sales tax for customers outside California.

Here we have another player's grade Fender Strat - this one is a 1964, L Plate model with a body-only refin, clay dots, and a transition logo.

The neck on this one is so, so good.  The neck's finish is original with just a bit of wear to give some feel.  The frets are in excellent shape.  The neck's condition matches that of the hardware, plastic, tuners, and pickups.  

I asked myself why someone would refinish the body on an otherwise gorgeous Strat.  I then asked the friend and longtime customer I bought it from.  It turns out that he bought it from a common friend who owned a small music store in the 2000s, about an hour south of here.  Our mutual friend has sadly passed since then, but he knew this guitar since the time before it was refinished.  The guitar has passed from father (the original owner) to son.  The son was one who wasn't graced with the best judgement.  He thought the body, with some dings and light wear, looked worn out, so he had the work done.  After making bigger, bad life decisions, he sold the guitar to our friend who owned the local music store.

Upon retirement, my friend moved to Idaho where he found Eric Daw.  He had Eric rewind the middle pickup and install the replacement switch, which appears to have the original tip.

Going completely through the guitar, I found that the backplate is a reproduction, as are the screws that hold it on the guitar. 

The pickguard is original.  Shrinkage has made it hard to get the bridge pickup out and back in.  The neck pickup hole in the pickguard was altered slightly in the past as it had similarly shrunk and squeezed the pickup some.  The pickup height springs have replaced the original surgical tubing that Fender used in the period. 

The tuners are original and no other tuners have been installed on the guitar.  The string tree is original, as is the metal spacer.  There are no new holes, repairs, or issues anywhere on the neck. 

During the refin process, whomever did that work lightly passed a router over the edges of a couple of the pickup routes.  I can only surmise that the shrinking pickguard and some paint build-up in these areas perhaps made the fit of the pickups tight, requiring a little room to be made.

The original case is included.

• Color: Fiesta Red refinished
• Weight: 7lbs 13.8ozs
  
• Body: Alder
  
• Neck: Maple
  
• Neck Date/Code: 2 JUL 64 B
• Neck Profile: See pictures
• Fretboard: Brazilian Rosewood
• Inlays: Clay dots
• Frets: Original
• Fret count: 21
• Nut: Bone
• Nut width: 1 5/8"
• Scale: 25 1/2"
• Radius: 7 1/4"
• Neck thickness at 1st fret: 0.79"
• Neck thickness at 12th fret: 0.97"
• Action 1st String at 12th Fret: 2/32"
• Action 6th String at 12th Fret: 5/64"
• Total length: 38 3/8"
• Lower bout: 12 1/2"
• Waist: 9"
• Upper bout: 11"
• Body depth/thickness outside edge: 1 3/4"
• String gauge: .010-.046"
• Hardware Color: Nickel and chrome
• Bridge Pickup/Brand: Fender
• Bridge Pickup Reading: 5.14k
• Pickup Original?: Yes
• Middle Pickup/Brand: Fender
• Middle Pickup Reading: 5.49k
• Pickup Original?: Yes rewound
• Neck Pickup/Brand: Fender
• Neck Pickup Reading: 5.60k
• Pickup Original?: Yes
• Pickguard: Original
• Bridge: Original
• Tuners: Original
• Switch: Changed
• Pots/Codes: Original 137 6422
• Case: OHSC
• Notes: Back cover plate is a reproduction, middle pickup is rewound

Shipping policy:

Three day UPS air shipments will be automatic for buyers including these states and those to the east of them: Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas.  Shipments will require signature on delivery, no exceptions.  If there is damage, the buyer must retain all packing materials intact and picture them immediately and send them to sales@maharsvintageguitars.com.  Less than 1% of our shipments are damaged in transit, and we are committed to making sure your item arrives safely, but we are taking these additional measures to make sure you are happy with your purchase.