Fender American Vintage 65 Stratocaster 3-Color Sunburst

General

Original classic Fender guitars have that special factor that you usually don't find on new guitars. Some call it 'mojo' and others call it 'vintage vibe'. Whatever you call it, fact is that fifties and sixties Fenders sound better, look better, and play better. This is why Fender created the American Vintage series. This series comprises guitars that were built like they were used to, with the same materials and by original specifications. The American Vintage '65 Stratocaster is an accurate copy of the 1965 original. From its authentic 3-colour Sunburst nitrocellulose lacquer to small details like its Pat.Pend. stamped bridge saddles, this guitar looks like it dropped down from the sixties. The included case and accessories were also given the Fender vintage treatment and are identical to those that came with the original guitar.

American Vintage '65 Stratocaster: distinctive features

1965 was the year that Fender gave the Stratocaster its thick neck back, only this time it had a more comfortable rounded C-profile. Its thick rosewood fretboard was replaced with a thinner one that was laminated with the radius and also features larger mother-of-pearl position markers. The American Vintage '65 Stratocaster is equipped with three Grey Bottom single-coil pickups that have the period-correct grey underside and were especially wound to sound like the original ones. For these pickups, Fender also used the original enamel-coated wire, which was a new feature in 1965. Other characteristic features of this guitar include its lightweight alder body, its 11-hole, three-layer white pickguard, its truss rod access at the bottom of the neck, and the slightly aged knobs and pickup covers.

American Vintage series: more accurate than ever before

Along with the American Standard series, Fender decided to give the 2012 American Vintage series a massive update. It has been expanded with new, iconic '50s and '60s models that have a minute vintage accuracy. To get to this point, the guitar giant tracked down and studied specs and details of numerous original vintage guitars. Fender even brushed off the tools of the period to make the result as authentic as possible. Every model has been fitted with new pickups, especially wound after the specifications and sound of the vintage reference models. There's a good reason that these new models represent Fender's famed, 60-year long history in music.

• this guitar is also available in Olympic White and Dakota Red
• this guitar is also available as a left-handed 3-Colour Sunburst edition
• Please note: pictures 4 to 7 show the Dakota Red version and are for illustration purposes only. This is the 3-colour Sunburst version.