Offset asymmetrical double cutaway solid body. This absolutely mint Candy Apple Red Stratocaster weighs 8.40 lbs. and has a nut width of just under 1 5/8 inches and a scale length of 25 1/2 inches. Solid alder body, contoured on back and lower bass bout, one-piece maple neck, and veneer rosewood fretboard with 21 frets and pearloid dot position markers. Single "butterfly" string tree with nylon spacer. Large headstock with 'Transition' logo with "Fender" in gold with black outline, "STRATOCASTER" in black beside it, "WITH SYNCHRONIZED TREMOLO" in black below it, and two patent numbers "2,741,146", "3,143,028" and "DES 169,062" below that. Individual 'double-line' Kluson Deluxe tuners with oval metal buttons and "D-169400 / Patent No." stamped on the underside. On the back of the headstock is a rectangular silver label - most probably from the original supplier. The label reads "Music House / 6837 Loch Raven Blvd, Baltimore, MD. / 360 Harundale Mall, Glen Burnie, MD." For fun, we researched the two addresses and found that the first one was a Music Store in the fifties and sixties. (It is now a Hunan Szechuan Chinese Restaurant) and the second one in Glen Burnie was in one of the first enclosed shopping malls which opened in 1958. Four-bolt neck plate with serial number "118998" between the top two screws. Three single-coil light grey bottom pickups with staggered polepieces and nicely matched outputs of 6.20k, 6.32k, and 6.03k. The undersides of the pickups have "12-21-66  16", "12-22-66  8" and "12-22-66  3" written in ink. Three-layer plastic pickguard (white/black/white) with eleven screws and full-size aluminium 'shield' on the underside. Three controls (one volume, two tone) plus three-way selector switch, all on pickguard. White plastic Stratocaster knobs with greenish gold lettering. Fender "Synchronized Tremolo" combined bridge/tailpiece. The neck is stamped "13 OCT 66 B"; the potentiometers are all stamped "137 6610" (CTS March 1966). There is one tiny chip (the size of a matchhead) on the on the lower edge of the treble bout. The original frets show some very slight wear - this guitar has been played - but certainly always babied! With this miniscule triviality said, this guitar is so mint - it is unbelievable. The color is rich and vibrant and shows no sign of fade whatsoever. By far the finest Candy Apple Red Stratocaster of any year that we have ever seen - A 9.50 rating does not do this guitar justice! Complete with the original tremolo arm and black leather Fender Guitar Strap. Housed in its original Fender black hardshell case with black leather ends and dark orange plush lining (8.75).

There are two letters "ES" stamped into the body between the middle pickup cavity and the bridge pickup cavity (only visible when the pickguard is removed) which signify that this guitar was "Enter Special" as with many other 1966 Fender guitars. This is an exceptional example of a very rare custom-color 1966 Stratocaster -- and the first that we have ever handled.

1966 and the "ES" Stamp. "The two-letter "ES" paint code means "Entered Special" for a special order or a show guitar. This does not indicate a factory refinish job, but was instead used by the factory to tell the finish booth to paint this body special order. Stamped number codes and letter codes mean different things... In 1966, Fender used the "ES" code a lot on their custom color instruments. At least for 1966, the ES code was used as some sort of default for custom colored instruments (be it Teles, or Strats or Jazz Basses). This two letters ("ES" for "Enter Special") seems to denote a special order, at least for 1966. Again this is has been seen lots of times on 1966 documented original custom color instruments." (http://www.provide.net/~cfh/fenderc.html)

"The Stratocaster was launched during 1954 [and was priced at $249.50, or $229.50 without vibrato]...The new Fender guitar was the first solidbody electric with three pickups [Gibson's electric-acoustic ES-5, introduced five years earlier, had been the overall first], meaning a range of fresh tones, and featured a new-design vibrato unit that provided pitch-bending and shimmering chordal effects. The new vibrato -- erroneously called a 'tremolo' by Fender and many others since -- was troublesome in development. But the result was the first self-contained vibrato unit: an adjustable bridge, a tailpiece, and a vibrato system, all in one. It wasn't a simple mechanism for the time, but a reasonably effective one...Fender's new vibrato had six bridge-pieces, one for each string, adjustable for height and length, which meant that the feel of the strings could be personalized and the guitar made more in tune with itself...The Strat came with a radically sleek, solid body, based on the outline of the 1951 Fender Precision Bass. Some musicians had complained to Fender that the sharp edge of the Telecaster's body was uncomfortable...so the Strat's body was contoured for the player's comfort... Even the jack socket mounting was new, recessed in a stylish plate on the body face...the Fender Stratocaster looked like no other guitar around especially the flowing, sensual curves of that beautifully proportioned, timeless body. The Stratocaster's new-style pickguard complemented the lines perfectly, and the overall impression was of a guitar where all the components ideally suited one another. The Fender Stratocaster has since become the most popular, the most copied, the most desired, and very probably the most played solid electric guitar ever" (Tony Bacon, 50 Years of Fender, p. 18).

Offset asymmetrical double cutaway solid body. This first generation, large headstock Stratocaster weighs just 7.10 lbs. Solid alder body, contoured on back and lower bass bout. One-piece maple neck with a nut width of just over 1 5/8 inches, a scale length of 25 1/2 inches and a quite wonderful thick neck profile. Veneer rosewood fretboard with 21 original medium-jumbo frets and pearloid dot position markers. Single "butterfly" string tree with nylon spacer. Large headstock with 'Transition' logo with "Fender" in gold with black outline, "STRATOCASTER" in black beside it, "WITH SYNCHRONIZED TREMOLO" in black below it, and two patent numbers "2,741,146", "3,143,028" and "DES 169,062" below that. Individual 'double-line' Kluson Deluxe tuners with oval metal buttons and "D-169400 / Patent No." stamped on the underside. Four-bolt neck plate with serial number "171813" between the top two screws. Three single-coil light grey bottom pickups with staggered polepieces and nicely matched outputs of 6.41k, 5.90k, and 5.75k. The undersides of the pickups have "12-9-66", "12-9-66  11" and "11.28-66  1" written in ink. Three-layer plastic pickguard (white/black/white) with eleven screws and full-size aluminium 'shield' on the underside. Three controls (one volume, two tone) plus three-way selector switch, all on pickguard. White plastic Stratocaster knobs with greenish gold lettering. Fender "Synchronized Tremolo" combined bridge/tailpiece. The neck is stamped in purple "13 MAR 66 B"; the potentiometers are all stamped "304 6610" (Stackpole, March 1966). The top two corners of the white plastic tremolo cavity cover have broken off. There are a few small surface marks, mainly on the edges of the body. There is a surface chip measuring one inch by half of an inch on the edge near the jack input. There is some slight varnish wear/loss on the back of the neck, mainly behind the first seven frets. The original medium jumbo frets have been professionally dressed and the guitar plays exactly as it should. When we purchased the guitar from the previous owner (who had owned it for over forty years) we noticed that the bridge pickup was not reading correctly. We sent the guitar to our master luthier - Scott Lentz who has successfully recovered the pickup coil. The guitar looks, plays and sounds like a dream... In summary this wonderful first generation, large-headstock á la Jimi Hendrix Strat, is in exceptionally fine (9.00) condition. Complete with the original tremolo arm. Housed in its original Fender black hardshell case with black leather ends and dark orange plush lining (8.75).

"The Stratocaster was launched during 1954 [and was priced at $249.50, or $229.50 without vibrato]...The new Fender guitar was the first solidbody electric with three pickups [Gibson's electric-acoustic ES-5, introduced five years earlier, had been the overall first], meaning a range of fresh tones, and featured a new-design vibrato unit that provided pitch-bending and shimmering chordal effects. The new vibrato -- erroneously called a 'tremolo' by Fender and many others since -- was troublesome in development. But the result was the first self-contained vibrato unit: an adjustable bridge, a tailpiece, and a vibrato system, all in one. It wasn't a simple mechanism for the time, but a reasonably effective one...Fender's new vibrato had six bridge-pieces, one for each string, adjustable for height and length, which meant that the feel of the strings could be personalized and the guitar made more in tune with itself...The Strat came with a radically sleek, solid body, based on the outline of the 1951 Fender Precision Bass. Some musicians had complained to Fender that the sharp edge of the Telecaster's body was uncomfortable...so the Strat's body was contoured for the player's comfort... Even the jack socket mounting was new, recessed in a stylish plate on the body face...the Fender Stratocaster looked like no other guitar around especially the flowing, sensual curves of that beautifully proportioned, timeless body. The Stratocaster's new-style pickguard complemented the lines perfectly, and the overall impression was of a guitar where all the components ideally suited one another. The Fender Stratocaster has since become the most popular, the most copied, the most desired, and very probably the most played solid electric guitar ever" (Tony Bacon, 50 Years of Fender, p. 18).

Double cutaway solid body with rounded horns. This lightweight guitar weighs in at just 5.80 lbs. and has a nice, fat nut width of just over 1 11/16 inches and a standard Gibson scale length of 24 3/4 inches. Double-cut solid mahogany 'slab' body with two rounded horns. One-piece mahogany neck with a very fast medium-to-thin profile. Brazilian rosewood fretboard with 22 original jumbo frets and inlaid pearl dot position markers. Headstock with gold silk-screened "Epiphone" script logo. Three-layer, black over white plastic dome -shaped truss-rod cover with two screws. Serial number "29436" impressed into the back of the headstock in black. Three-in-a-row single-line Kluson Deluxe strip tuners with white plastic oval buttons. Single P-90 pickup with black plastic cover (stamped on the underside "UC 450-1 / 2") with a very strong output of 8.16k. Three-layer, white over black plastic pickguard with Epiphone silver 'epsilon' (a little faded) and four screws. Two controls (one volume, one tone) on the lower treble bout. Black plastic bell-shaped knobs with metal tops. The pots are stamped "134 929" and "134 6023" (Centralab July 1959 and June 1960). Wrap-over stud bar bridge and Epiphone 'Maestro Vibrola' tailpiece (stamped on the underside "VMB-1-2  12810") with flat metal arm.  This fine little Epiphone Kalamazoo version of the Gibson Les Paul SG Junior is in exceptionally fine (9.00) condition with just some fine finish checking, a small amount of belt-buckle scarring on the back (nothing through the finish) and a few small and fairly insignificant surface marks on the sides and top. The cherry color is rich and unfaded and the original frets show very little sign of wear. A wonderful looking, playing and sounding example of this rare bird. Housed in its original Epiphone three-latch shaped tan softshell case with brown felt lining (8.50).

The Coronet was Epiphone Kalamazoo's version of the much loved Gibson Les Paul SG Junior, which was also produced between 1961 and 1963 - but in far larger numbers (6,864 examples compared to 1,972 Coronets). The 1961 Epiphone price list shows the Coronet SB-533 at $132.

Many players 'discard' the Maestro Vibrola and use the stud-tail as a wrap-over bridge. In our humble opinion this 'conversion' greatly enhances the playability and the sound by increasing the 'sustain' and keeping the guitar in tune.

Double cutaway solid body with rounded horns. This 1967 Kalamazoo made Epiphone Wilshire weighs just 6.30 lbs. Thirteen inch wide, one and a third inch deep solid mahogany body, contoured on the back bass-side. One-piece mahogany neck with a nut width of just over 1 9/16 inches and a standard Gibson scale length of 24 3/4 inches. Brazilian rosewood fretboard with 22 original jumbo frets and inlaid pearl dot position markers. Black faced headstock with gold silk-screened "Epiphone" script logo. Serial number "000956" stamped in blind on back of headstock. Two-layer black over white plastic, dome-shaped truss-rod cover with two screws. Six-on-one-side 'double-line' Kluson Deluxe tuners with oval metal buttons (secured by four screws). Two 'patent-number' mini-humbucking pickups with black plastic surrounds and outputs of 6.72k and 6.84k, each with a rectangular black label on the underside with "Patent Number 2,737,842." Four controls (two volume, two tone) plus three-way selector switch, all mounted on pickguard. The potentiometers are stamped: "137 6630" (CTS July 1966). Black plastic bell-shaped knobs with metal tops. Three-layer white over black  plastic pickguard with ten screws. Gibson Tune-O-Matic retainer bridge with metal saddles. Epiphone Maestro Vibrato tailpiece secured by three screws. This fine little guitar is in exceptionally fine (9.00) condition with just a small amount of belt-buckle scarring (nothing thru the finish) on the back and a few small surface 'dings' on the top and sides. The cherry finish is rich and unfaded and the original frets show very little sign of wear. A really nice example, housed in the original Epiphone dark gray hardshell case with blue felt lining (8.75).

The Wilshire, Epiphone Kalamazoo's equivalent of the Gibson SG Special, was added to the Epiphone solid body line in 1959 at around $195.00, but by 1962 the price tag had risen to $235.00. Originally it had two white P-90 pickups, no doubt left over from the Gibson Les Paul's conversion from P-90s to metal covered humbucking pickups. The white P-90s were replaced by black P-90s (which were still in use on some Gibson's) in 1961. In mid 1962 the p-90 pickups were replaced with patent number mini humbuckers. Later in 1963 the Wilshire's body shape became asymmetrical with the upper bass horn slightly longer than upper treble, and the headstock received six-on-a-side tuners. The price in 1967 was $285.00...

Thinline double cutaway with rounded horns. This super guitar weighs just 7.90 lbs. and features a mahogany body with a solid wooden block inside. Three-piece mahogany and maple neck with a nut width of just under 1 11/16 inches, a scale length of 24 3/4 inches and a wonderful medium profile. Single-bound rosewood fretboard with 22 original medium-thin frets and inlaid pearl block position markers . Headstock with inlaid pearl "Guild" logo and pearl 'Chesterfield' inlay. Specific shaped black aluminium truss-rod cover with "Starfire" in silver, secured by two screws. Serial number "EN 1444" stamped in blind on back of headstock. Individual Grover RotoMatic tuners with half-moon metal buttons. The top and back edges are bound with three-ply white and black ivoroid. Two Guild HB-1 (full-size) humbucking pickups with outputs of 7.11k and 6.45k. The pickups are positioned to achieve maximum bass on the neck pickup and maximum treble on the bridge pickup. Transparent acrylic (or Lucite) stairstep pickguard painted black from the underside after a "Star" and "Guild" logo have been silk-screened in gold. Four controls (two volume, two tone) plus three-way pickup selector switch and one master volume control (on the treble horn). Guild black plastic control knobs with "G" logo on a silver disc (the master volume control is just plain black plastic). Height-adjustable aluminium bridge with pre-set compensating aluminium saddle and Guild Bigsby Vibrato tailpiece. All hardware nickel-plated. Inside the bass 'f' hole is the oval white Guild, Hoboken, New Jersey label with model "Starfire V Ch." and serial number "EN 1444" written in black ink. There are a couple of small blemishes on the top and the back and one on the bass side of the body. There is some light belt-buckle scarring on the back (nothing through the finish) and a few very small surface marks on the edges of the headstock. Overall this forty-seven year old, rare Cherry Mahogany guitar is in exceptionally fine (9.00) condition. Housed in its original Guild five-latch, shaped black hardshell case with dark blue plush lining (8.50).

"In late 1963 two new models were added to the Guild line [the Starfire IV and the Starfire V]. They were similar to the double-cutaway models that the Gibson company had come out with in the late '50s and which were becoming extremely popular. At the suggestion of Mark Dronge Guild came out with their version of a thinline semi-hollowbody guitar. Apart from the double cutaways, they were also different in construction from the single-cutaway version in that they had a block of wood on the inside of the body. This block that connected the top and the back of the instrument, ran from the neck to the tailblock. It was put there to reduce feedback and to give the instrument more sustain... The Starfire V, launched shortly after the SF-IV, was similar but had a few extras like a Bigsby, a master volume and the more deluxe Kolb tuners... The instrument had an all-maple body, usually with very attractive grain, although some instruments with mahogany bodies have been reported." (Hans Moust, The Guild Guitar Book, pp. 87 and 89).

These Guild HB-1 pickups are what the Guild afficionados lust for... they have that perfect rich humbuckin' blues tone that cuts through the mix with powerful depth and biting attack...

Buddy Guy, Lightning Hopkins and Jerry Garcia all played a Guild Starfire V at some time...

According to a November 1966 Guild price list, the Starfire V retailed at a huge $495.00

Offset asymmetrical double cutaway solid body. Another great and all original 1965 'L-Series' Stratocaster - it weighs just 7.40 lbs. One-piece alder body, contoured on back and lower bass bout. This pre-CBS Strat has a nice fat nut width of just under 1 11/16 inches, a wonderful medium-to-thin neck profile, and a scale length of 25 1/2 inches. One-piece maple neck with 'veneer' Brazilian rosewood fretboard with 21 original medium frets and clay dot position markers. Small headstock with 'Transition' logo with "Fender" in gold with black outline, "STRATOCASTER" in black beside it, "WITH SYNCHRONIZED TREMOLO" in black below it, and four patent numbers "2,573,254", "2,741,146", "2,960,900" and "3,143,028". Single "butterfly'" string tree with small metal spacer. Individual "two-line" Kluson Deluxe tuners with oval metal buttons (stamped inside "D-169400 / Patent No"). Neckplate with four screws and serial number "L12521" at the top. Three white plastic-covered staggered-height pole pickups with outputs of 5.92k, 6.09k, and 7.60k. Three-layer white plastic pickguard (metal shield underneath) with eleven screws. Three white plastic Stratocaster knobs with ribbed sides (one volume and two tone) plus three-way selector switch. Six-pivot bridge and tremolo unit with through-body stringing. The end of the neck is stamped "2 JAN 65 B". Two of the light gray bottom pickups are dated & signed in pencil "EP 2-12-65", the treble pickup is signed "IL" in pencil and all three of the potentiometers are stamped "137 6501" (CTS, January 1965). This all original pre CBS Stratocaster is in exceptionally fine (9.00) condition. The only thing that has been altered is that the original three-way pickup selector switch has been changed out (probably in the seventies) for the later-style five-way version. There are a few very small and jnsignificant surface marks on the sides and a very small amount of belt-buckle scarring (nothing through to the wood) on the back.The three-tone sunburst top is remarkably clean. There is some light wear to the original frets and the guitar plays perfectly. Complete with the original tremolo arm and bridge cover. Housed in it's original Fender black hardshell case with black leather ends and dark orange plush lining (9.00).

The Stratocaster was launched in 1954 -- samples around May and June were followed by the first production run in October - and it was priced at $249.50 (or $229.50) without vibrato. This new Fender guitar was the first solid body electric with three pickups (Gibson's electric acoustic ES-5, introduced five years earlier, had been the first overall). The Stratocaster also featured a newly designed built-in vibrato unit (erroneously called a "tremolo" by Fender and many others since), to provide pitch-bending and shimmering chordal effects for the player. This was the first self-contained vibrato unit: an adjustable bridge, tailpiece, and vibrato system all in one. Not a simple mechanism for the time, but a reasonably effective one. Fender's new Stratocaster vibrato also had six bridge-pieces, one for each string, adjustable for height and length. The Stratocaster came with a radically sleek, solid body, based on the shape of the earlier Fender Precision Bass, contoured for the player's comfort, and with a yellow-to-black sunburst finish. Even the jack socket mounting was new, recessed in a stylish plate on the body face. The Fender Stratocaster looked like no other guitar around -- and in some ways seemed to owe more to the contemporary automobile design than traditional guitar forms, especially in the flowing, sensual curves of that beautifully proportioned, timeless body.