-
Les Paul Forum Member
We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

From left to right, my 1984 Fender '52 reissue Telecaster, 1983 Precision Bass, and 1984 '57 reissue Stratocaster. The Strat and Tele were featured in my November 2004 Vintage Guitar article on Fender's first reissues.
Got an '80s Fender? Show 'em off here!
-
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)
Here's another early 80's Fender model that is a great instrument and often overlooked, the THE STRAT's. This model has been owned and used by Clapton, Page, Knopfler, and the Edge but remains somewhat obscure. They are probably the most versatile Stratocaster ever made !
Part I
https://youtu.be/n8C9La_63es
Part II
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GxDGdL50R8
Part III (Tele tones)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XW-e5sJXPes
Last edited by MightyMouse; 03-20-18 at 04:23 PM.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)
I remember the Strat, with its painted headstock. I don't know if he played it on stage, but I believe Page had his at the London ARMS concert to benefit Ronnie Lane. Fender built that near the end of the CBS era, right?
-
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)
They were made 1980, 1981, and 1982. The 1981-82 STRAT's feature much higher quality materials, and craftsmanship than the*mass-produced 1980 Fender STRAT model. The 1980 models were built before arrival of Bill Schultz who shut down mass production assembly lines and returned to quality instead of quantity methods and subsequently the 1980 models are far inferior to the later version 1981-82 STRAT models ! The later version of STRAT can be identified by the presence of the gold tuners and switch tip which the 1980 version is missing. The later models also feature a GO prefix serial number instead of the E0 (for Eighty) prefix from 1980.
Last edited by MightyMouse; 03-20-18 at 07:06 PM.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)
Those look brand new, too shiny, put it back in the case, my eyes!!!!
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
Ed Driscoll
I remember the Strat, with its painted headstock. I don't know if he played it on stage, but I believe Page had his at the London ARMS concert to benefit Ronnie Lane. Fender built that near the end of the CBS era, right?
I don't recall seeing Page playing a Strat at the RAH on the ARMS show.
Page's blue Strat was not a post-CBS guitar, if you're referring to the one he played at Knebworth:

I believe it was a '64 in Lake Placid blue with an unpainted headstock. If memory serves, he got in in 1975 and used it in the studio on Presence.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
deytookerjaabs
Those look brand new, too shiny, put it back in the case, my eyes!!!!
I got one of the first "'52" Tele reissues.
After a relic job on the fingerboard and a body swap with a '68 plus Seymour Duncan's finest, it was much better.
-
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)
Actually Page's sold at the 2004 Clapton Crossroads auction for 21k :
https://www.christies.com/lotfinder/...4-9a59acb7ed41
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
Xpensive Wino
I don't recall seeing Page playing a Strat at the RAH on the ARMS show.
Yeah, I just recall reading an article in Guitar World, Guitar Player, or Musician listing Page's guitars backstage at the ARMS show and mentioning the Strat, in addition to the Lake Placid Blue Stratocaster he used at Knebworth.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
Xpensive Wino
I got one of the first "'52" Tele reissues.
After a relic job on the fingerboard and a body swap with a '68 plus Seymour Duncan's finest, it was much better.

I replaced the neck pickup on my 52RI Tele with a Seymour Duncan Broadcaster pickup IIRC. The original was pretty microphonic.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
Ed Driscoll
I replaced the neck pickup on my 52RI Tele with a Seymour Duncan Broadcaster pickup IIRC. The original was pretty microphonic.
In hindsight, the Fender reissues were garbage. I discovered Japanese reissues and Bill Nash, and got rid of everything else.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
MightyMouse
I'd have given it away, too.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
Xpensive Wino
In hindsight, the Fender reissues were garbage.
Hey, way to encourage a guy to post photos of his guitars! 
I quite liked the Strat reissue -- it was my first Strat, I played the hell out of it, and I thought the build quality was quite good. The Telecaster, I had some buyer's remorse after purchasing it: it's heavy and the original neck pickup was microphonic. Back in my band days, I relegated it to open-G Stones songs. In 2003, I had it refretted with bigger frets, and had the bridge replaced with an old three-saddle bridge, and it's much more playable. But it's obvious that the out of the box build quality of my '98 Nashville Tele was much better.
-
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
Xpensive Wino
In hindsight, the Fender reissues were garbage. I discovered Japanese reissues and Bill Nash, and got rid of everything else.
Personally, I think a good guitar is a good guitar; regardless of when, where, or by whom it was made ! That said, most of the Japanese Fender reissues 'Ive encountered were far inferior to their American made counterparts ; and I find the relic jobs on most Nash guitars I've seen laughable (as is the whole concept)
One mans trash is another mans treasure.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
Xpensive Wino
In hindsight, the Fender reissues were garbage. I discovered Japanese reissues and Bill Nash, and got rid of everything else.
I have kept my 1982 '57 Reissue. Very nice guitar all in all. I've played some pretty nice Japanese and Nashes as well. I try to judge each guitar on it's own merits.
(Actually by far the nicest Japanese "Strat" I have ever played was an ESP Series 400.)
-
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
MightyMouse
Are you the one playing in the you tube video ? If so , mighty nice chops and your tone is to die for thru a Fender ? Wow , how did you get such a tone ? My compliments on your chops and tone !
-
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)
Greetings El Gringo and sorry for the late response
No thats not me in the video, and yes he does have some cool chops ! The tone is all "THE STRAT", I personally think they are the nicest sounding, most versatile Stratocaster of any era with the 1981 and 1982 versions much higher build quality than the mass produced 1980 STRAT model...
Cheers
-
Les Paul Forum Member
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
The Shifter
Wow, did those have a nitro finish? The wear looks almost like on a 60ies Strat.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
fakejake
Wow, did those have a nitro finish? The wear looks almost like on a 60ies Strat.
It's great to see this thread come back to life -- that '62RI looks terrific!
-
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
fakejake
Wow, did those have a nitro finish? The wear looks almost like on a 60ies Strat.
Thats A Beautiful 83 Reissue
I have the same guitar and its my favorite an 83 1962 reissue sunburst
Mine goes another step below yours in wear
it was run over by a car in the 80's and i reassembled it
It was left for dead I put it back together slowly as a project
And it is a great player and sounds Fantastic
I like the Small neck after 30 years of playing it
Now with arthritis in my left hand the smaller neck is great for me
its the only guitar i own owes me nothing and is a good ole friend
-
Les Paul Forum Sponsor
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)
I love these guitars, they have a nice, thin Nitro finish. This is my 1986 '62 AVRI. It has a two piece body and plays great. I really like the thin necks these have and even though I'm 6' 3" I find them very easy to play. My first good electric guitar was a 1987 '62 AVRI in Fiesta Red that I bought new and still own. It is so much better than the Bullet truss rod Stratocaster that it replaced. I just bought a 1985 '57 AVRI that I'm fixing up right now. The pickups in these guitars sound very good. The arm contour is very distinctive and IMHO, just right. I know pro players like Sonny Landreth like these 80's AVRI Stratocasters for touring guitars. They are one of the best deals in a vintage, collectible Fender. Absolutely top notch guitars.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
The Shifter
Good Gawd.....
If it ain't vintage....easy peasy..make it vintage the old fashioned way!
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
deytookerjaabs
Good Gawd.....
If it ain't vintage....easy peasy..make it vintage the old fashioned way!
My folks didn't drive me to gigs.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
The Shifter
My folks didn't drive me to gigs.

-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)
Unfortunately, I didn't keep my mid '80s AVRI '57 Strat long enough to see it age. I don't recall what year it was made. I bought it "new" in 1986 but it had hung on the shop's wall for a long time. I never got along with the small frets on a glossy fretboard. I replaced it with the new Strat Plus that's in the pic. I bought that guitar in late '88. The Mustang was a '66 and the Tele was a Squier that I bought new in '85. This pic was taken in early '89. I don't have any of these guitars now.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)

Originally Posted by
Don
Unfortunately, I didn't keep my mid '80s AVRI '57 Strat long enough to see it age. I don't recall what year it was made. I bought it "new" in 1986 but it had hung on the shop's wall for a long time. I never got along with the small frets on a glossy fretboard. I replaced it with the new Strat Plus that's in the pic. I bought that guitar in late '88. The Mustang was a '66 and the Tele was a Squier that I bought new in '85. This pic was taken in early '89. I don't have any of these guitars now.

At least you had the foresight to take pictures.
I've owned a bunch of Strats over the years, but didn't get an AVRI until later in the game, late '99. All around nicely built guitar and one of the few Strat's I owned that didn't need a fret file right off the bat, but I hated the V neck. Also, it (ash body/maple board) had that "plinky" tone some Strat's have that I find really annoying.
-
Les Paul Forum Member
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)
This being a LP forum, I was thinking these:
-
Re: We are the '80s! (First Fender Reissues)
This is my mid 80s Tele 62B Mij, I can't think of a better guitar that I've played.
I'm looking for one in every color now
Posting Permissions
- You may not post new threads
- You may not post replies
- You may not post attachments
- You may not edit your posts
-
Forum Rules
Scroll Down And Click On All Of Our Sponsors' Logos For Their Websites!
i