1970 Fender Stratocaster Sunburst vintage guitar for sale

Wonderfully clean and original 1970 Fender Stratocaster in Sunburst with its original case. We sold this guitar back in 2015 and it’s a pleasure to have it back in stock in equally fabulous condition. One of the last of the four-bolt Stratocaster era, the guitar it was made in the 1970s but shares more in common with its late sixties stablemates than the guitars leaving the Fender factory as the decade progressed.

The Alder body is in great condition and upon removal of the pickguard there is very little fade to the finish. Pickup routes are the squared-off type seen post ’69, the bridge pickup cavity still has the worm route present and there are no additional holes, modifications, or repairs. The finish is in excellent condition, the three-tone sunburst is bright, lustrous, and glossy having escaped the hazing that can be present on some Fender finishes from this era. The neck is one of the fabled large headstock, Hendrix-era CBS necks with the bold Fender decal with 2 pat numbers, single string tree, four-bolt attachment, and neck heel adjustment. The neck is in equally good condition, the original frets have height and the fingerboard is in great condition too. The original nut has chipped by the G and B string slots. There is a slight buzz but nothing that interferes when amplified. An easy remedy but in the interest of originality we have elected to leave the decision to the next owner. The neck date code, like many from this era, was stamped in green ink, the code is barely legible but a 22 for Stratocaster can be read. The neck feels great with a slightly larger, rounder profile than you might expect. Measuring 21.85 at the 1st fret and 24.47 at the 12th. The guitar has the standard 1 5/8” Fender nut width.

Electronics comprise of three grey backs, stagger polepieces, single-coil Stratocaster pickups, all with matching 1970 date code. Pots are CTS all with 1970 source code. The switch is the standard CRL 3-way. The loom is clean and tidy with no evidence of broken solder. The pickups measure 5.29K, 5.21K and 5.27K from bridge to neck. The guitar sounds excellent with the original grey back pickups exhibiting the chiming bell like character they are known for. The scratchplate is one of the pearloid backed 3-ply guards seen in 1969 into early 1970 with shielding foil below the pots and switch all consistent with Fenders method during this period. The guitar has it’s original Fender ‘F’ tuners installed and the Tremolo and bridge unit are the original design, separate 2 piece steel parts rather than the single piece, cast Mazac unit used throughout the seventies.

Late sixties/early seventies Stratocaster’s are considered by many to be the last of the golden-era Fender instruments before CBS changes really took hold. 1970 saw the great Leo Fender himself cutting all ties with the brand he started in 1946 and by 1971 the Stratocaster had adopted the 3 bolt with micro-tilt neck, ‘Bullet’ truss rod adjustment at headstock instead of heel-end of neck and the 1 piece Mazac tremolo unit would replaces the 2 piece steel unit, still great guitars, but moving further away from Leo’s original vision.

This is a great, original example of one of the last guitars produced under Leo’s watch, weighing in at 7.8lbs it ships with its original Fender case.