To identify the maker of a guitar, you first look at the logo on the head. You can tell the age of a guitar by looking at the logo of its maker.
Fender's original logo was the "spaghetti logo" (a.k.a. "spaghetti logo") from the '50s to the '64s, featuring thin, spaghetti-like letters.
There are some differences among the spalogos, such as patent numbers. Nowadays, 70's Fenders have become vintage, but in the past, vintage Fenders were known as "Spaghetti logo".
For example, the current Fender has a lineup of "year XX" models, but basically, the logo of that year is used!

Fender "tiger logo" isTransition LogoFender "Tiger Logo" is a transition logo! The word "tiger" is often mistaken for the word "traditional", but it means "transition" (I used to be mistaken)! (I was mistaken in the past.)

The tiger logo started to be changed from the spaghetti logo in the mid-1960s, and each model has a different transitional period.

Jazz basses were changed in 1961 (from the start of production!), Precision basses in mid-1964. ), Precision Bass in mid-1964, Stratocaster in late 1964, Telecaster in early 1966, and so on, so it's just like a transitional period.

The letters are thicker and more powerful than the Spa logo!

In 1965, Fender was acquired by CBS and reached a turning point. Various models underwent various specification changes, and the logo is one of them.

CBS Logobut also known as the black logo or modern logo! The black letters with a gold border have improved visibility.👀

On vintage Fender guitars, there are two types of dot position marks on the Rose fretboard.
One is Clay Dot and the other is Perloid Dot.
Clay dots are a little brownish without luster and have a clay-like color!
Clay dots are made of vulcanized fiber, a very hard cardboard-like material made by compressing layers of chemically treated pulp.
The photo shows clay dots; another feature is the narrowing of the position mark at the 12th fret from around 1963. (Stratocaster, Telecaster)

Strat around 1965.Clay DotFrom.Perloid Dotposition mark.

Compared to clay, it is more translucent and whitish. By the way, pearloid is a man-made material that imitates a pearl.

Pearloid material is also used for pickguards, and is also used for inlays by Gibson as well as Fender.

Fender, which was acquired by CBS, reached a turning point around 1965, and changed the specifications of inlays as well as the logo.
Block inlays started to be used on Jazzmasters, Jaguars, and Jazzbasses in 1966, and were also used on rare models such as Coronado and BassVI!
The material is pearloid. It is made of celluloid that imitates a white butterfly shell.

Jaguar was made in 1965~6, the beginning of the Fender CBS period.Neck side bindingThe position marks were changed from dot inlays to block inlays.

Incidentally, the Jazzmaster, Jaguar, and Jazz Bass all follow the same pattern of change!

It is interesting to note that at this time, the appearance of the models changed in an easily recognizable way in late '65, mid '66, etc., and even the same year models have different specifications.

Prior to '67, Fender hadCrewdson Companys pegs. While Crewdson pegs have changed little in construction over the years, they have changed slightly in appearance.

The one area that has changed is the line of KLUSON DELUXE letters!
(1) No letters (54~56)
Single line (57~63)
Double line (64~67)
*The figures in parentheses ( ) are for Strat.

And each has a plated knob and a white knob. White knob is used on Duo-Sonic, Music Master, Mustang, and Swinger!

Fender in the CBS period wasF keyand this was a complete change from the Crewdson pegs that had been used up to that time.

The six F-keys are of the same design, and can be easily reassembled for left or right hand use by changing the cover. The F-keys are now more streamlined than before, as they do not require any modification to the base plate, whereas the Crewson pegs required modification to the base plate when assembled.

There are three types of F-keys.
(1) Early type, manufactured by Reiss & Ohmsted. The tuning knob is slightly rounded and the shaft is chrome plated.
② Second version from the early 70's. The knob is slightly more angular than the early type. The knob is slightly more angular than the early type, and the shaft has been changed to nickel.
(3) Schaller made in the late 70's. All exposed parts are chrome plated. All exposed parts are now chrome plated.

Deluxe tuners made by Crewdson were not originally designed for Fender's 6 per side, so Fender had to shorten the base plate after purchasing pegs from Crewdson and install them.

You can see the statement that the first thing Fender did after being acquired by CBS was to develop F keys, so you can see that they were trying to be more rational as a company through their products.

With the exception of the upper side for the first string and the lower side for the sixth string, the adjacent bass plates were machined off at the center position of the screw holes.

Fender Stratocaster and Telecaster's first period (until about '59), the fretboard and neck specifications were1 piece maple(It will appear again in the 70's). (They reappeared in the '70s).
Maple 1-piece means that the neck and fingerboard are made of one piece of maple without a fingerboard material!
Until then, there were no guitars or violins that had a one-piece neck and fingerboard, but Fender created a one-piece maple neck by using a very hard material called hard maple, which broke away from the norm for stringed instruments.

The back of the neck has a buried wood, which isSkunk StripeThis is called a skunk stripe.
Since the fingerboard is not attached, the truss rod is installed from the back of the neck, which is blocked by the koa wood.
Similarly, the head also has a truss rod hole, so the wood filling in the hole is calledHead plugThe head plug is called a "head plug.

on Stratocasters from about 1959~62,Slab rosewood fingerboardwas used for Stratocasters from 1959 to 1962.
The slab fretboard is characterized by a flat gluing surface to the neck and a thick fretboard. You can recognize a slab-applied fingerboard by its glued surface over the truss rod hole, or by the rounded bulge on the head side when viewed from the front!

Stratocasters have had rosewood fingerboards since mid-'62.Round FingerboardThe fretboard is now rounded.
The bonding surface with the neck is curved along the fingerboard's radius, and the fingerboard material is thinner than that of a slab fingerboard.
This has made it possible to prevent deformation caused by moisture and other factors due to the difference between the fingerboard and neck woods.
The round fingerboard is distinguished by the fact that the gluing surface does not cover the truss rod and is straight when viewed from the front of the head!

Due to the revival of the maple 1-piece neck since 1971,Brett nutis now available.
It is said that the name was given because of its bullet-like shape, and it is one of the typical specifications of Stratocaster in the 70's!
With this nut, the truss rod can be adjusted from the head side with an Allen wrench.
Besides Stratocaster, it was also used on Telecaster Thinline, Telecaster Custom, Telecaster Deluxe, and Starcaster!

The neck shape of 50's Strat has been improved little by little, and changes can be seen every year.
Thick and slightly rounded.Soft V-shape '54。
The most in the 50's.Fat U-shape '55。
From there, the left and right sides were graduallyThe sharpest V-shape in '57(Eric Clapton's signature is this one!) The V-shape was gradually shaved off from the left and right sides.
After '58, it gradually rounded out and becameC shapeC shape of the 60's.

60's neck shape is more rounded than 50's V-shape.C shapewas adopted.
The '63 is characterized by its thicker grip.
In the '60s, there was a big specification change in the fingerboard (from slabbed rosewood fingerboard to round fingerboard), but the neck shape did not change as drastically as in the '50s.
The thickness of the neck became slightly thicker in the late 60's and continued into the 70's.

String guides also change with age.
In the case of Stratocasters, up to early '56.round type.

Since then, it has beenFeather, seagull, and butterfly shapesand so on,
iron plate.PressingThe head and guide are made of steel plate. Depending on the age, there may or may not be a spacer between the head and guide, and they may be made of steel or nylon.

Starting in late '72, string guides were installed between the 1st and 2nd strings and also between the 3rd and 4th strings. This was done because the number of light gauge strings was increasing, and it was thought that it would be better to secure the tension of the 3rd and 4th strings as well!

Stratocasters areSmall HeadandLarge headare available in two head shapes.
Small head from 1954 to 1966. In other words, models before the CBS period are small heads.
There are many Stratocaster fans who think that the original Stratocaster is a small head. There are many Stratocaster fans who prefer small heads.

From the middle of 1965 (officially from 1966 shipment)Large headis adopted.

This head shape was adopted except for the Telecaster, which is considered to be the unification of the trademark head shape.
It also seems to have been a part of rationalization, as it was possible to cover Stratocaster, Mustang, Jaguar, and Jazzmaster by manufacturing them in different scales.
As in the case of the F-key mentioned earlier, the "Rationalization" seems to be the key word for Fender in the CBS period.
After that, the large head was established as the head shape of Stratocaster, and it was adopted in the 70's as well.

FenderThe initial Stratocaster was in the vein of the Telecaster, with a body made ofAshwas used for the body material.1956In the middle of 1949, the wood was changed to alder (with some exceptions),72Ash wood will be revived in 2006.
Ash wood is characterized by its hardness, and has a strong low and high sound!
However,70Ash in the 1950s was50from the 1950s is different from that of the 1960s!
There are different types of ash,1954~56The one that was used in 1949 wasSwamp ash(which was also used in the Telecaster),70of the 1950s.White Ashis lighter in weight and tends to sound a little more hip than that of

1956Since the middle of the year, the body material of Stratocaster has beenAlderand the body material was changed to1972Alder body continued to be used until 1949. (TheThere are exceptions such as the blonde-colored model.）
Alder wood is relatively soft, and its sound has a peak in the low to middle range, and the highs are more subdued than those of ash wood.
FenderRed Alder is used by Fender, and is said to be lighter and more balanced in resonance because the wood is not as dense.

In Stratocaster1967The body was painted until the middle of 1949.completely lacquered from undercoat to topcoat.from undercoat to topcoat.
Since the lacquer coating is very thin, it is easily affected by temperature and humidity, and the parts that come into contact with the body may peel off.
Lacquer paint dries very slowly and changes rapidly over time. The later change to poly coating is thought to be mainly due to the long drying time required. (See below).
There is a reason why there are still many people who say, "Lacquer is the only way to paint! There is a reason why there are still many people who say, "Lacquer is the only way to paint!
The thin coating makes the wood sound better, and the paint cracks (weather checks), scuffs, and changes in color appear as the instrument ages. It is interesting to see how what was once thought to be a disadvantage gradually becomes an attractive feature of the instrument.

1967The body paint has been used since 1949.Polyesterwas first used for body coating.1969In 1949, the necks were also coated with poly, and the playing comfort changed dramatically.
The advantage of the poly coating is that the paint hardens quickly and the sound is exactly as the manufacturer intended it to sound at the time of shipment. It is also resistant to scratches and changes in temperature and humidity.
Poly coating is generally considered less expensive than lacquer coating, but in terms of the cost of the paint itself, there is no significant difference. However, the drying time is very short compared to lacquer, resulting in lower cost.

1967The body is poly coated from 2006,1982However, not all of them were painted poly until 1949,The undercoat is polyester,polyester undercoat and lacquer for color and topcoat.for the color coat and top coat.
At the time, this use was calledsix-skin finishand was actively promoted as an upgraded coating.

The standard color for Stratocaster isSunburst。
The word "sunburst" has different characters depending on the age.

1954~7Black on yellow2tone
1958Year~Red added3tones, and consistently since then.3tone sunburst(1960around the years and1967~9The red color tends to fade easily in models made around 1949 and2tones.)
1964Year~The yellow color of the substrate changes, and the paint and painting method becomes less transparent to the grain of the wood.
1968Year~The texture has changed considerably due to the change to poly coating.
1979Year~Up to now3In addition to tone sunburst, tobacco, cherry, and other sunbursts are introduced as standard colors.

1st '58 Stratocaster (3tone sunburst)
2nd '66 Stratocaster (3tone sunburst with faded red)
Third one is a '66 Jaguar. The topcoat has peeled off to expose the yellow groundcoat which does not allow the grain to show through.

FenderThe neck plate ofsquareandtriangleThere is a
In the Stratocaster1954~71square until 1949.4point stop。1972year and after is the triangular3point stopThe year 2000 and after will be the year of the triangular

Each has its own type within the plate, and the transition is as follows.
Early 1954 Square/no engraving
1954~65 Square/Serial
1965~71 Square/Serial + F Logo
1971 Triangle/Serial + F logo + PAT.PENDING
1971~76 Triangle/Serial + F logo + PAT.
1976~82 Triangle/F logo + PAT.No.

Stratocaster pickguards were made of 1-ply vinyl chloride from 1954 to 1959. It was changed to 3-ply celluloid in 1959 when rosewood fingerboard was introduced. It is called "green guard" because of its three-layer white/black/white structure, and the middle layer shows through the yellowish white and looks greenish.

Greenguard was used until around 1964, but it was prone to discoloration and shrinkage because it was made of celluloid. From the end of 1964 to 1968, the three-layer structure was retained, but the material was returned to 3-ply vinyl chloride, which was less prone to discoloration.

From about 1969 to the end of 1975, the 3-ply vinyl continued to be used, but the edge angle was tightened (from 40° to 60°) and the back side was matted. From 1976, plastic parts, including the pickguard, begin to be unified in black. Since the pickguard was changed ahead of the others, there are strats with black PG, white PU cover, and white knobs with mixed specifications in this year. The photo shows a 1979 model. It is made of black/white/black 3-ply PVC.

The Stratocaster's control knobs are,1957By the year2Although the control knob has been changed three times※Since then, the1977nylon until the year 2000.White knobwas used until 1949.
1977Since the plastic parts are unified to black after 1949,Black knobThe black knob will be replaced by a black knob.

※54Year → Styrofoam short skirt knob
54~571949 → White Bakelite knob made of melamine
The change to nylon is said to have been made to improve durability.

FenderThe most distinctive feature of the StratocasterSynchronized tremolo unit。

1954Since its birth in 194960Throughout the 1950s, there have been minor changes in the chamfering of the screw holes, the holes in the block section, and the length of the imo screws, but there have been no major changes!

The block is made of steel. The saddle was made by press forming an iron plate.

The bridge is the key to the sound. It can be said that the parts that make a Stratocaster a Stratocaster were almost completed from the beginning!

1972From the 70'sInasha Block.is from a separate type made of steel,Zinc die-castbridge plate andIntegrated blockThe sound character of the bridge plate and the block-integrated bridge plate have been changed. At the same time, the saddle is also changed to die-cast, so the character of the sound has changed significantly.

The traditional tremolo unit introduced above is attached to the body with six screws.6-point supportThis is still the standard.

In recent years, however, the "2-point supportis also used in some models!

The greatest advantage is the wide range of motion of the arm!

It is also said to be slightly more stable in tuning, since there are only two points where the tension load on each string is applied.

The tremolo arm of a Stratocaster is1954～83up to the year 2000.2The specifications will be changed twice.

1954~64Until about the year 2000,Chrome-plated steel、1964~82The first half of the year wasStainless steeland no plating,1982~83in the yearChrome-plated iron againin 1949.

1957Until 1949, the tip of theangle is largeThe characteristic of this type is the large angle of the tip.

60Since the 1950sThe bend is small and nearly straightand straight.

(The photo shows a comparison of the difference in bends.)

1954Year~Spaghetti logo

No patent number indicated

1961Year~Spaghetti Logo

2.573.254 Telecaster bridge andPUAssembly

2.741.146 Synchronized tremolo

1962counter for years (following a number in the hito-futa-mi counting system)~Spaghetti Logo

2.573.254Telecaster bridge andPUAssembly

2.741.146Synchronized tremolo

2.960.900Contour Body

1964Latter half of the year~Trungeon Logo

2.573.254Telecaster bridge andPUAssembly

2.741.146Synchronized tremolo

2.960.900Contour Body

3.143.028Adjustable Neck

1965Mid-Year~Trungeon Logo

2.573.254Telecaster bridge andPUAssembly

2.741.146Synchronized tremolo

2.960.900Contour Body

3.143.028Adjustable Neck

2.817.261Hum canceling pickups

(This is a patent for humbucker pickups used on lap steel guitars. 1956.3.29Application )

1966Year~Transjon Logo

2.741.146Synchronized tremolo

3.143.028Adjustable Neck

DES 169062Precision Bass Shape

1968Latter half of the year~ CBSLogo

2.741.146Synchronized Tremolo

3.143.028Adjustable Neck

1971First half of the year~CBSLogo "WITH SYNCHRONIZED TREMOLO"will no longer be marked

2.741.146synchronized tremolo

1971Late in the year~CBSLogo

3.143.028Adjustable Neck

1976Year~CBSLogo

The patent number is no longer listed, and the serial number andMade in USAwill be listed under the logo.