80s Fender Stratocasters - Short history and five 80s Strats

[@OneForTheNorth]

I just picked up a Japanese Strat from 85 yesterday. I am blown away with it and can’t put it down. That system 1 tremolo on them is a work of art!!

[@bahed1]

... and I also bought a 1985 MIJ "Blackie", just 5 days ago. I'm mostly an acoustic guitar player and had a couple of cheapy electric guitars that did not inspire me to play them. This Blackie plays and sounds great! If I wasn't working 12-hour days right now, I'd be playing the H out of it! Not totally sold on the "Contemporary" bridge and nut lock.... yet. Maybe I'll come around soon!?

[@93greenstrat]

Still love my '93 American Standard after all these years. Do want to mention a couple of things; "The Strat" when first introduced actually had a mis-shappen small headstock. This was apparently due to the worn out equipment they had used but was subsequently fixed before it was discontinued. There is another model that came out around '83 which was the Elite (not to be confused with the recent American Elite....yeah; too many models). This was a high-end, deluxe version of the Stratocaster that featured a dummy coil for hum cancellation, an active mid boost circuit (MDX; this would find its way into the Eric Clapton model) and the passive Treble/Bass eXpander (TBX; carried over to the American Standard).. The American Standard as you mentioned spawned many new models and went through its own evolution and is effectively still with us today in the form of the American Professional II.

[@neverenoughstrats]

Sounds like a plan. I'm going to try that.

[@SchafferShokai]

This is a great video. Fascinating. Thanks for posting.

[@neverenoughstrats]

Thx man. Great to hear. Keeps me going!!!

[@erestube]

I've got a 1980 Strat with the silver tuners. Like your Anniversary model there, the Lake Placid Blue finish has greened over the years!

[@neverenoughstrats]

Really nice when that happens! Love the greened Lake Placid Blue.

[@joelkratzer4065]

My 1988 American standard is the best Strat I’ve played.

[@jimir68]

Interesting fact about The Strat the gold plated hardware only appeared on The Strat’s with a G 0**** serial number and the gold Fender logo. Prior to that the Strat had an E0***** serial number and a silver Fender logo and was only available in LPD and CAR they were fitted with brass hardware from the Fender Brassmaster parts series. During the transition from the E0**** to the G0***** serial numbers some of The Strats had S 9**** serial numbers on the headstock. Interesting video I’m old enough to remember all these versions of the Stratocaster appearing on the scene.

[@peoplepowerpodcast]

Thx, great addition!!!

[@steelysam7189]

Thanks for posting! I'm a strat guy who can't get enough of strats

[@macchinastella2307]

Love my 79' 25th anniversary! It's one heavy mother weighing in at 11lbs. It's starting to turn green which I love and some of the original white paint is coming through around the edge of the body where your arm rests. The neck has some serious checking which looks awesome, but most importantly it sounds amazing!

[@denbodg9311]

Nice to see some of the old Strats featured, good or bad. I had a ‘79, very heavy, paint cracked for fun. I think the 25th anniversary was built using up old stock. I had a Smith #2 in ivory, free flyte bridge & 2 knobs. Good sustain but the Jack socket was a pain. Hated it. In 2008 I bought a Fullerton ‘57 AVRI in 2 tone burst. I still have it & it’s been my main guitar since then. The vintage reissues saved them. Thankfully common sense prevailed and they gave up on gimmicks for a while. The American standard brought them back. My son still has his ‘93 & I had a 40th Anniversary Olympic white/RW for quite a while. So I still have the ‘82 AVRI, an Am Pro 2 in Dark Knight, & a new Vintage 2 ‘61 in Fiesta Red. Fender is now on a roll. The Am Pro 2 is the best players Strat I’ve ever had.

[@brianmackinnon5050]

What do you like better the pro 2 or the vintage 61?

[@denbodg9311]

@@brianmackinnon5050 Between the two Ive bonded with the Vintage ‘61 more. I’m very comfortable with it. Probably my age, I’m 72 😊 & I’m very used to my ‘57 AVRI. However, if I were gigging the Pro 2 would be better, & for modern music & younger players it would be a great workhorse.

[@WilliamBennerJr]

What about the Elite Stratocasters which were made in 1982 and 1983?

[@OneForTheNorth]

You will hear a lot of people knock them but only because they can’t set them up properly. The elite is an amazing model

[@BobSperber]

That’s what I was looking for when I searched and found this video, I want to know about those pickups!

[@malcolmhardwick4258]

I just snagged a 1987 vintage reissue strat from the early Corona plant. Its everything a strat should be.

[@julianbosawe1843]

Me too. A 62' 1988 u.s vintage reissue john Cruz Neck in vintage white. Love her

[@sallhame]

I have an all original Strat, the serial number says 1979, but the pots say 1980. Grey bottom pickups. I also have an Internatilnal Series (Sahara taupe) wich also is an eighties Strat. Both of these guitars have three bolt necks, wide headstock and bullet trussrod adjustment. Both of these guitars are eighties Strats, even if the serial number starts with S 9xxxxx. The Sahara Taupe has X1 pickups.

[@Annunaki_0517]

No Elite Strats? They were the most interesting and collectible of the 80’s Strats. The first to feature the MDX/TBX active preamp tone controls that gave Ty Tybor of Kings X his incredible tone.

[@neverenoughstrats]

I only acquired one some time later. And have sold it by now. But pics are here: neverenoughstrats.com/en/product/fender-elite-stratocaster-1983-sienna-sunburst-gold-hardware-mint/

[@Annunaki_0517]

@@neverenoughstrats Wow, nice guitar, but yours doesn't have the locking nut either. I look at these all the time, and I NEVER see any with the locking nut that mine came with. I always wonder why all these are out there without the locking nut, which was admittedly rather difficult to restring. I always thought that people removed them but I don't see any screw holes in the headstocks on the ones on reverb, or yours, for that matter. Maybe you know, was this an option? Or maybe only on the 84's but not the 83's? I bought mine new at Sam Ash on 48th Street in 1985.

[@jochemjonker3362]

​​@@Annunaki_0517,a locking nut makes only sense,ifthe tremelo unit has finetuners to adjust the tune hight of the strings,but all these versions hadn't these kind of tremelos.So maybe this neck came from the R&D departement and put on a regular production guitar.

[@lordofthemound3890]

Very cool. I have an American Standard E4 from ‘88, also. Though mine is red with a rosewood fingerboard. It was my first “good” guitar. It changed hands a few times, but ended up back with me.

[@neverenoughstrats]

Great to hear your story! Never sell it!

[@GogOtHeCaT15]

I have a E4 too, I haven't been able to figure out the year just yet. On day ill check what the neck says ... But that guitar is amazing

[@michaelweinman9051]

Love that '79!! Silver baby

[@zz-.-]

Great video. What about the 83/84 reissues, do you have any info on those?

[@neverenoughstrats]

Hi, thx for your comment. I made this video about the 1982 Reissue Strat kzbin.info/www/bejne/oIi9kIhvZrplmZI

[@LochNessAnthony]

Hi could you clarify when you said that the 82 did not have the x1 in the bridge? I thought that model had an x1 only in the bridge.

[@neverenoughstrats]

Hi, I do say that the 82 Standard (Dan Smith) has the X1. Check the link: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rKrYpZeth5Wbd9ksi=jFW93H5rfifYDcNO&t=385 The 1983 Standard Second Edition does not have the X1 pickups!

[@davidstock2713]

Ask schon, he knows just a couple aspects within strats, extraordinary runs age-14, riffs well much prior age.

[@DaveDeAndrea]

What color is the ‘88? Arctic White?

[@neverenoughstrats]

Correctamundo! You can find it here: neverenoughstrats.com/en/product/fender-stratocaster-american-standard-1988-arctic-white/

[@neverenoughstrats]

Yep, Arctic White it is!

[@MarkTurner-vs7uc]

Junk. In 1982, when I picked up my first Kramer, I was blown away at what a guitar could be. 80s fenders were a joke. Until 89. Then, to save the company, they gave us a 9.5 radius ,locking tuners, those great lace sensor pickups, that killer clapton preamp, the awesome wilkenson nut, they actually started paying attention to fret work. The TBX, the trem setter. Good woods and attention to detail. I hated 80 strats, I just love the 89 to 93 strat plus models. . But really ,my 83 ,84, and 85 Kramers just beat everything.

[@neverenoughstrats]

Thx for your candor comment.

[@kcsvantasticvoyages9729]

can't hear ya...audio

[@jrsoper6524]

You left out the bullet strats

[@neverenoughstrats]

My first electric guitar. But not a Strat!

[@julianmclean3869]

What a shame!; your sound volume must have been on 1 !!!! could hardly hear you or the Guitars !

[@neverenoughstrats]

Hi Julian, sorry for that. Learned a lot since than! This video was recorded with just my iPhone. Now I have a Rode NT2a in front of the amp and a Rode Wireless Go II to record my speech.

[@julianmclean3869]

No probs and thanks for replying; are you able to overdub a higher volume? (I have tried everything to get a better sound!) only interested as I am selling an early 80s FujiGen left handed Squire @@neverenoughstrats

[@wogzcok6104]

Bad guitarist

[@peoplepowerpodcast]

Yes I am. To quote Michael Jackson: "You know I'm BAD! I'm BAD."

[@badger8800]

So is your mother