Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar 

Comments about Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar:

This is a great guitar I got it in Daphne Blue, looks great, awesome single coil pick up tone and I absolutely LOVE the maple neck. Hands down one of my favorite guitars out of the 7 that I own. However, there are some annoying aspects as well.
First, it comes with a flimsy 1 ply pick guard that doesn't match the "aged" looking volume knobs, pickup covers, pickup switch tip and whammy bar tip. Payed a fair sum to get a 3 ply pearloid pick guard and all new matching knobs covers and tips.
Second, I have an issue with the intonation on the high E string. Despite multiple professional adjustments and new strings it always ends up about a quarter tone flat by the 12th fret.
Third, just so you know, you can't really tell from the pictures on this site but the truss rod access is not in the head of the guitar but actually at the base of the neck. you have to take off the whole pick guard and what not to get at it if you need to.
Fourth, and finally, The tuning knobs are smaller and comfortable but it is a giant pain to attach the strings to the pegs. You have to wrap the string around as usually but then you have to wrap the string up and into the center of the peg instead of pulling it through the top of the peg like most modern guitars.
Again other than these issues this an outstanding guitar. I have been playing for 14 years and would recommend this guitar to any strat loving player.

Comments about Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar:

The workmanship and finish is excellant the sound and playablity are the same . It has a nice feel to it easy to play , really nice guitar. Stays in tune
And the deluxe gig bag is nice to.

Comments about Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar:

I'm just a hobbyist that enjoys learning and playing music I love. I put a lot of thought into which guitar I wanted to buy, I just feel at home with the Fender Stratocaster and knew I wanted another one. I also own a Classic Series '70s Strat which is great. I tried the more modern series of strats but I just keep coming back to the vintage, old school vibe.

I love the soft V shape, it doesn't fight me as much as my other strat's chunky U shaped neck, I love that neck but the soft V feels a little more sleeker or something. Great for thumb over neck (Hendrix-style)chords. One vintage feature that some players don't care for is the 7.25 fret board raduis. I had to raise the action a little bit to cure fretting out issues but it's still relatively low and buzz-free. Many legendary players back in the day such as Jimi Hendrix played strats with this radius and they still got by.

As for the stock pick-ups, that's subjective to the individuals' ears. My Marshall solid-state amp doesn't bring the best out of this guitar so I'm not in a rush to change the stock pups yet like many do with their stock MIM Fender guitars but they're good enough for the kind of music I play (blues/classic rock). They're not noiseless though so you can't crank the distortion up too high.

Overall, this guitar has me satisfied and lives up to all my needs and expectations. Like I said earlier, I put a lot of thought and time into buying another guitar and this was the one. Don't believe the hatred agaisnt the MIM Fenders you see spewed on the internet. Fender Mexico makes great and durable instruments. The right guitar is the one that feel and sounds right to you regardless of country origin, the tone comes from the fingers,heart, mind and soul. Henry Garza from Los Lonley Boys plays a MIM Classic '60s strat and can make it sing. This guitr will stick with me for the long haul.

Comments about Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar:

Great guitar, nice balance, tons of sounds, maple neck is one of a kind finish

Comments about Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar:

I can't find ONE thing wrong with this axe. Usually I can find some piddly/diddly fault but cannot do it this time. I just LOVE this guitar!!
Well,Fender really surprised me this time! I am almost speechless ! I said ALMOST!!
The guitar was actually in tune right out of the box.I kid you not. In perfect A-440 pitch!
The fit and finish were perfect,and the neck was straight and true. It played like butter out of the box as well.Action was very good no adjustments needed.Playing it sans amp was proof of a nice resonant tone when I did plug it in.The Strat magic was there in the second switch position and the 4th as well.These pickup really get good tone for what they are.(i am not sure what they are.) Anyways they really wail on distortion settings and the chime is there on clean settings!
A real price leader in the Fender MIM line,I don't care if they made them on the MOON!!
You cannot beat the value you get for the short $$ you spend. Super well crafted and this does NOT happen by accident.

Comments about Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar:

I bought this guitar for a surf/beach/party/Buffett/oldies style band I have, and it is a perfect fit. It plays like my "58 Strat, and is a virtual duplicate. I'm pretty darn satisfied.
I own a '58 Strat that I don't play out anymore for obvious reasons, and this 50's issue Strat is as close as you can get.
The only beef I have is the fret ends need to be dressed. The neck needed to be tweaked, but that's normal for whatever feel you prefer.
A great deal on a surprisingly good guitar!

Comments about Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar:

Excellent craftmanship, playability and color. I play on stage and no longer take high end instruments to gigs. This one is built to not only look and sound good but if damaged will be easy and inexpensive to repair. I will add a new pickguard and locking tuners but other than that a great bargain.
Excellent player except for the pickguard which is era accurate but still cheap by todays standards. I really like the 7 1/4" neck radius as I own a 1965 L-Series Stratocaster and essentially grew up on the narrow neck size. PUPS are good but its a Stratocaster and if U dont like the PUPS swap them out to Noiseless, Texas Specials whatever fits the type of music your playing!
Very well built and easy to play set up out of the box.
Compared to other "reissues' a great item. I have owned three Road Worn 1960's Strats 2 arrived with bowed necks and the third had dead spots on the neck. They felt nice but if the necks warped or has dead spots whats the point ? No issues on the 1950's maple neck straight and true!

Comments about Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar:

The 7.25 radius neck is very comfortable with V-shape near top end, chording is facilitated. Pickups actually have a good sound to my ears, bridge pickup OK a low volumes, but spikes when turned up. Finish is very good looking not sure how it will age or fade. My axe weighs in at about 7 lbs 12 oz, a decent weight. Has lots of sustain, I have the tremolo set quite low and that causes the saddles to be at a height that provides great action with a set of 9-42s and allows the guitar to really sustain. Good overall quality.
Agree with most of the players here, this guitar usually needs a good setup when the neck is adjusted with truss rod, the nut slots filed, bridge saddles proper height and intonated, it all depends on the particular instrument. Usually the truss rod needs to be firmed up, but here's a trick. Coax the neck by bending it in a backbow direction, carefully but firmly. This is a thin neck, if you hold the guitar sideways between your knees, with one hand on each side of the neck about 5-6 inches from the headstock, carefully apply firm pressure and bend it in a backbow direction. You will feel the neck bend. Don't overdo it. If you have previously adjusted the truss rod and found it maxed out, doing this simple fix will help set the neck. You may need to do this a few times and I found it works. Or remove the neck and do this fix, it may allow you to tighten up the truss rod a bit more, giving you great action with no fretting out once the neck really straightens out. Set the pickups fairly low, they sound better. My instrument is the Daphne Blue model, nice fit and finish, overall very good quality for a MIM Fender.

Comments about Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar:

I bought my first Strat new in 1963...This guitar is pretty much the same..I own a dozen guitars...Overall quality is good..Its came setup pretty close..But they all require tweaking to your personal preference..My only negative was sharp extending fret ends...But again, even the most expensive have some of this...With a maple finger board, its pretty common..
A good buy for the price... And its all traditional STRAT...

Comments about Fender Classic Series '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar:

Overall, I really like this guitar. The vintage tuners are solid and smooth. The guitar staed in tune reasonably well with tremolo use, but I blocked the tremolo because I don't really use that feature. With the tremolo blocked this guitar stays in tune as solid as a rock.

The soft V neck is fast and comfortable- very easy to play. The tinted maple fretboard looks great too.

As I said earlier, I just bought another one in the two-tone color scheme as a gift for my son. I have a bunch of different electrics- several Les Pauls, SG, Epiphone, Schecter, Ibanez, American Strat, and the Mexican Surf Green Strat Reissue) and he thinks this one has the nicest feel. I'm more used to the flatter LP fretboard feel, but I can see where he's coming from. Anyway, I wouldn't have bought it for him if I didn't think it was a good guitar.

This is a very nice guitar. I recommend it without reservation.
I bought the Surf Green version about a year ago. The neck is tinted maple, maple fretboard. Vintage pickups and tremolo. Just bouth another one (two-tone) as a gift for my son.
The finish was flawless. No scratches, no drips, etc. The action was just a bit high for my taste, but I put on some good Elixer strings and adjusted the action a bit and in 15 minutes it was perfect for me. Intonation was almost perfect right out of the box.

The pickups give that classic, clear, Strat sound and are not bad at all, but are a bit low in output. That's not a bad thing though, as it's just the nature of the vintage pickups used in this model. I did replace the pickups with Texas Specials for more output, but I could live with the stock pups with no problem. Don't be afraid of this guitar being made in Mexico. The fit and finish is excellent.
This guitar is a very good value for the money. I own several Les Pauls, and although they are really beautiful and precice instruments, this guitar is really a much better value for the money.