Fender Stratocaster with Gold Hardware Solid Body Electric Guitar (1964)
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Item # 10784
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Fender Stratocaster with Gold Hardware Model Solid Body Electric Guitar (1964), made in Fullerton, California, Olympic White lacquer finish, alder body, maple neck with rosewood fingerboard, period white tolex hard shell case.
This guitar is a really a stunner, a truly beautiful example of a special and solidly Pre-CBS Custom-Color Stratocaster, well played but never abused or altered. While not the rarest, Olympic White is in many ways one of the classic solid-color Stratocaster finishes, particularly when paired with the rarely seen gold hardware option. It was one of the earliest non-standard colors Fender began offering in the '50's and seemed to particularly suit the futuristic Stratocaster, showing off its outrageous curves to perfect advantage. Among an entire generation of English players from the 1960s the red Strat was the ultimate object of desire, but the whites were next in line. Just ask Vic Flick! In the US Olympic White was one of the more popular Fender colors with an iconic appeal, from the Beach Boys (hi Al!) on down. And the gold hardware -- a catalog option at extra cost but in practice rarely ordered -- adds another dimension of both cool and rare.
This original Olympic White Stratocaster would have been assembled in late 1964, the apex of the Pre-CBS era. Both the color and the gold were additional cost options at the time, the person who ordered this guitar was looking at a pretty hefty $349.50 price tag, plus $52.50 for the case. That was a $60 upcharge from a standard sunburst Stratocaster and the same price as a sunburst Jazzmaster, the next higher up instrument in the line. This really was somebody's dream guitar at the time!
Apart from the custom ordered finish and gold plating this Stratocaster shows with typical appointments for the period. The rosewood-faced neck is ink stamped 2 SEP 64 B on the heel, indicating a fabrication date of the 9th month of 1964 with the standard "B" nut width. The early grey-bobbin pickups are all hand dated to 1964 in pencil. The date codes on the potentiometers indicate two were made the 20th week of 1964 while the lower tone is stamped 6426 dating to a few weeks later. The neckplate carries a middle L series number, again typical of this period.
The neck sports the Pre-CBS style small headstock with the bolder "transition" style Fender logo at this point recently added to the Stratocaster. The thin-lam rosewood fingerboard has the "clay" dot inlay that would also be phased out at the end of 1964. The pickguard is lovely greenish nitrocellulose, another classic Fender feature that would disappear around the turn of 1965 replaced by plainer white plastic. This amazing looking (and great sounding Strat) has all these now-classic Pre-CBS touches in about as cool looking a package as it gets, a real gem of the Pre-CBS era built just before "things started a-changin" in Fullerton after January 1965. This Strat is a rare and truly superbly unmolested example of the best of the final glory of Leo's tenure at Fender, played in but still as fine an instrument as ever with the ringing voice typical of these late Pre-CBS examples.
Overall length is 38 3/4 in. (98.4 cm.), 12 5/8 in. (32.1 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 3/4 in. (4.4 cm.) in depth at side. Scale length is 25 1/2 in. (648 mm.). Width of nut is 1 5/8 in. (41 mm.)., 8 lbs.
The guitar has been well played over the years but also well cared for, and shows no alterations beyond standard wear from use. It retains the completely original Olympic White finish on the body which shows numerous dings, dents and chips from play but has never been touched up or oversprayed. These 1960s Olympic White bodies have often yellowed and/or checked heavily; this one does have some ambering to the overcoat but has retained its white hue better than many; it still shines despite decades of use. Many examples were stripped and refinished in the 1970s and '80s; This guitar has a fantastic "Natural relic" look that is often artificially re-created today.
All of the hardware remains original with varying amounts of wear to the gold plating. On these instruments every visible piece of hardware was plated, including all screws and even the truss rod nut. Only the trem block and springs were left natural metal. The lovely "Green" nitrocellulose pickguard is original and in very good shape for the period, slightly shrunken overall but with no cracks at the screw holes. This 'guard shows less shrinkage than many; there is some wear at the truss rod adjustment notch. The gold pickguard screws are original if worn down on the heads of some. The pickup covers and knobs have ambered just slightly and show very minor wear.
The tremolo bridge unit and saddles are completely original; there is some wear to the gold but the instrument may have been played for some time with the gold-plated bridge cover on, which is still present with the plating worn off the top edge. The trem is set up with four springs, the coverplate is older but possibly aftermarket with none of the corners cracked off. Even the gold-plated arm is original.
Internally the pickups, pots, covers, 3-way switch and wiring are all original; the solder joints appear unmolested except the grounds to the volume pot may have been re-done decades ago. The masking tape wrapped around the pickup wires is still intact, if a bit ossified. All three pickups sound fantastic and the in-between settings are superbly "Stratty" without being too thin-toned.
The frets are still the original small wire; they and the fingerboard show some wear and the frets have been crowned down a bit from the original height but remain quite playable. The bone nut is original. The back of the neck has some typical wear mostly along the bottom edge but a somewhat surprising amount of the original finish is still intact and not worn through. There is more checking on the headstock than the rest of the finish. The original Kluson tuners have some minor corrosion on the gold-plated casings, shafts and bushings. The decal is somewhat darkened but apart from a small part of the lower section of the "F" worn off is decently preserved. There is a TINY split in the wood under the string tree mounting, completely inconsequential.
This is simply one of the coolest looking and finest sounding 1960s Stratocasters we have ever had, period. The combination of the off/white body, perfect green-tinged pickguard and gold hardware is simply stunning. It has a fantastic patina showing the effects of decades of use but really no excessive wear, and still plays as expected and handles effortlessly. At 8 Lbs. exactly (with the bridge cover ON) it is medium-weight for this era, and lighter than many later Strats. It is housed in a clean original period white Tolex Fender case that once held a Telecaster but is otherwise correct, with an original period Fender strap. Cowabunga! Surf's up at Retrofret! Overall Excellent - Condition.
This guitar is a really a stunner, a truly beautiful example of a special and solidly Pre-CBS Custom-Color Stratocaster, well played but never abused or altered. While not the rarest, Olympic White is in many ways one of the classic solid-color Stratocaster finishes, particularly when paired with the rarely seen gold hardware option. It was one of the earliest non-standard colors Fender began offering in the '50's and seemed to particularly suit the futuristic Stratocaster, showing off its outrageous curves to perfect advantage. Among an entire generation of English players from the 1960s the red Strat was the ultimate object of desire, but the whites were next in line. Just ask Vic Flick! In the US Olympic White was one of the more popular Fender colors with an iconic appeal, from the Beach Boys (hi Al!) on down. And the gold hardware -- a catalog option at extra cost but in practice rarely ordered -- adds another dimension of both cool and rare.
This original Olympic White Stratocaster would have been assembled in late 1964, the apex of the Pre-CBS era. Both the color and the gold were additional cost options at the time, the person who ordered this guitar was looking at a pretty hefty $349.50 price tag, plus $52.50 for the case. That was a $60 upcharge from a standard sunburst Stratocaster and the same price as a sunburst Jazzmaster, the next higher up instrument in the line. This really was somebody's dream guitar at the time!
Apart from the custom ordered finish and gold plating this Stratocaster shows with typical appointments for the period. The rosewood-faced neck is ink stamped 2 SEP 64 B on the heel, indicating a fabrication date of the 9th month of 1964 with the standard "B" nut width. The early grey-bobbin pickups are all hand dated to 1964 in pencil. The date codes on the potentiometers indicate two were made the 20th week of 1964 while the lower tone is stamped 6426 dating to a few weeks later. The neckplate carries a middle L series number, again typical of this period.
The neck sports the Pre-CBS style small headstock with the bolder "transition" style Fender logo at this point recently added to the Stratocaster. The thin-lam rosewood fingerboard has the "clay" dot inlay that would also be phased out at the end of 1964. The pickguard is lovely greenish nitrocellulose, another classic Fender feature that would disappear around the turn of 1965 replaced by plainer white plastic. This amazing looking (and great sounding Strat) has all these now-classic Pre-CBS touches in about as cool looking a package as it gets, a real gem of the Pre-CBS era built just before "things started a-changin" in Fullerton after January 1965. This Strat is a rare and truly superbly unmolested example of the best of the final glory of Leo's tenure at Fender, played in but still as fine an instrument as ever with the ringing voice typical of these late Pre-CBS examples.
Overall length is 38 3/4 in. (98.4 cm.), 12 5/8 in. (32.1 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 3/4 in. (4.4 cm.) in depth at side. Scale length is 25 1/2 in. (648 mm.). Width of nut is 1 5/8 in. (41 mm.)., 8 lbs.
The guitar has been well played over the years but also well cared for, and shows no alterations beyond standard wear from use. It retains the completely original Olympic White finish on the body which shows numerous dings, dents and chips from play but has never been touched up or oversprayed. These 1960s Olympic White bodies have often yellowed and/or checked heavily; this one does have some ambering to the overcoat but has retained its white hue better than many; it still shines despite decades of use. Many examples were stripped and refinished in the 1970s and '80s; This guitar has a fantastic "Natural relic" look that is often artificially re-created today.
All of the hardware remains original with varying amounts of wear to the gold plating. On these instruments every visible piece of hardware was plated, including all screws and even the truss rod nut. Only the trem block and springs were left natural metal. The lovely "Green" nitrocellulose pickguard is original and in very good shape for the period, slightly shrunken overall but with no cracks at the screw holes. This 'guard shows less shrinkage than many; there is some wear at the truss rod adjustment notch. The gold pickguard screws are original if worn down on the heads of some. The pickup covers and knobs have ambered just slightly and show very minor wear.
The tremolo bridge unit and saddles are completely original; there is some wear to the gold but the instrument may have been played for some time with the gold-plated bridge cover on, which is still present with the plating worn off the top edge. The trem is set up with four springs, the coverplate is older but possibly aftermarket with none of the corners cracked off. Even the gold-plated arm is original.
Internally the pickups, pots, covers, 3-way switch and wiring are all original; the solder joints appear unmolested except the grounds to the volume pot may have been re-done decades ago. The masking tape wrapped around the pickup wires is still intact, if a bit ossified. All three pickups sound fantastic and the in-between settings are superbly "Stratty" without being too thin-toned.
The frets are still the original small wire; they and the fingerboard show some wear and the frets have been crowned down a bit from the original height but remain quite playable. The bone nut is original. The back of the neck has some typical wear mostly along the bottom edge but a somewhat surprising amount of the original finish is still intact and not worn through. There is more checking on the headstock than the rest of the finish. The original Kluson tuners have some minor corrosion on the gold-plated casings, shafts and bushings. The decal is somewhat darkened but apart from a small part of the lower section of the "F" worn off is decently preserved. There is a TINY split in the wood under the string tree mounting, completely inconsequential.
This is simply one of the coolest looking and finest sounding 1960s Stratocasters we have ever had, period. The combination of the off/white body, perfect green-tinged pickguard and gold hardware is simply stunning. It has a fantastic patina showing the effects of decades of use but really no excessive wear, and still plays as expected and handles effortlessly. At 8 Lbs. exactly (with the bridge cover ON) it is medium-weight for this era, and lighter than many later Strats. It is housed in a clean original period white Tolex Fender case that once held a Telecaster but is otherwise correct, with an original period Fender strap. Cowabunga! Surf's up at Retrofret! Overall Excellent - Condition.