One owner, 1964 Fender Stratocaster in Olympic White with a secret under the paint…

In the mid-60’s, Fender went through a phase of experimenting with other body woods, some say due to Leo Fender finding a cheap supply. These woods included Mahogany and African Limba, also known as Korina. Though not common, these do come up from time to time and this is one of them. This one came to us from South Africa where it had been with the same owner (pictured) since new.

We are pretty certain this is korina, it may be mahogany but everyone who has looked at it says it is korina and it is a lot less red than the original mahogany body Duosonic we have in stock. One thing we are sure of, it is not alder.

It's a fine example. The original and only owner of this amazing guitar bought it from C. Bothners & Sons Ltd, in Johannesburg SA, in 1964. He said it was not especially ordered, it was just hanging in the store and he had no idea it was one of the rare Korina examples and neither did the shop. The finish has faded and worn in places but is in otherwise great condition. You can see the grain of the korina body through where the finish has chipped and in the neck pocket. 

The neck, dated May 1964, is great too. There is some wear to the fretboard which you can see in the pictures. The back of the neck has worn comfortably and the original frets have some life left in them.

Plastics and pickguard are well preserved. These nitrate guards are particularly prone to warping and cracking so its always nice to find one that hasn’t. In fact this guard hasn’t faded very much at all.

There is some corrosion on the saddles and the hardware is worn too. 

Electrically all is as you’d expect and most solder joints are undisturbed. The middle pickup has been repaired by Monty’s as it arrived to use with a fault. The other pickups are untouched.

The guitar comes with its correct black Tolex hardshell case 

Sonically we run the gamut from smooth neck to biting bridge that never gets too spikey or harsh. The neck feels very comfortable  and all three, original black bottom pickups are strong and evenly balanced with classic pre-CBS black bottom, bell like tonal qualities.

These guitars don’t come on the market very often and to have one that hasn’t been refinished and in this condition is quite a thing. Grab this one while you can…