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Hello!
My father passed away some time ago and left his fender stratocaster behind for me. Now, the problem is that I have no idea what model it is nor what year it was made. I will write every detail I can see with the guitar.
It’s a 3-colour sunburst.
It has the “large head”.
The marking on the head says: “Fender Stratocaster” “With syncronised Tremolo” “Pat 2 741146 3143028 DES169062”
It has a pair of Seymour Duncan humbuckers.
It doesn’t have a date stamp on the bottom of the neck.
It doesn’t have a serial number, instead it says “1427611” on the back, but it’s not marked by a machine. It’s more like.. written 😕
The steel-thing (don’t know the word in English) that keeps the neck in place says “Fender Corona, California”.
The screws that you turn to tune the guitar (don’t know that word either >.<) says "Performance U.S.A" on the back. Lastly, the thing (here comes another word I don't know..) that the strings go down into the guitar from (right beside the volume/tune-knobs) says "Fender" Anyone knows what model/year it is? Thankyou very much /Unice
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Yeah 1BL, that’s why I prefaced my response with “according to the number you provided”. It will probably require a hand inspection by a knowledgeable vintage dealer to figure out exactly what this fella has and what it may be worth. Changing those pups is like sanding off a custom finish and repainting with a spray can. Well, maybe not that bad, but you are right, a good bit of value just went down the tube.
Hopefully for Unice, it is just a case of replaced pups on a 67 strat.
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A Strat of that vintage will be quite valuable; you only have to search completed listings for “1967 Stratocaster” in eBay to see that. Condition is important, of course.
I read somewhere in an auction that Fender didn’t always date-stamp the butt of the necks around this period. I initially thought “Yeah, right” and dismissed the auction as a con. However, I have a lefty Mustang bass that is genuine and it also lacks a date stamp. Those pics would be useful if you want an evaluation.
EDIT: Another thought occurs to me. Remove the scratchplate and turn it over for a look. Datemarks were often pencilled on the pickups (those three bar-things that the strings pass over) and the pots (vol, tone and tone) will be CTS-made. CTS pots were date-coded and this site tells you how to date them:
http://www.provide.net/~cfh/pots.htmlBear in mind that pots can be bought by the factory long before the guitar was manufactured and, indeed, the site mentioned that Fender guitars ’66-’69 had 1966 pots because Fender bought such a large stock. It definitely tells you the earliest the guitar could have been made.
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Hi Unice,
I’ve done a bit more research on your Strat using the Patent Number as a guide to identification.
According to the number you have provided, your Strat was built somewhere between 1966 and the first half of 1968.
These patent numbers are documented in A.R. Duchossoir’s book, The Fender Stratocaster. sb
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Hey Unice,
I think the only way you will get an accurate date is to remove the neck and check the butt end of the neck heel for a production date, which may be stamped or written there (if you’re uncomfortable doing this yourself, please refer to an experienced professional guitar tech in your area).
When you say it doesn’t have a neck stamp on the bottom of the neck do you mean you have removed the neck and looked at the butt-end?
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