Fender Catalina Acoustic

The guitar isa very pretty black, not sure where it was made or when it was made.

My catalina has a beautiful sound, better than any other guitar I'v ever played.

The action is great considering how old the guitar is and the finish is very pretty although it does have many scratches and dings.

It is very reliable, it was my fathers when he was a teenager. My aunt found it in the basement and sent it so me (UPS). I didnt have to pay a dime for it and its my favorite guitar I own to this day. I'm sure it sat in that basement for about 15 years (without a case) before my aunt found it.

N/A.

This guitar is basically the ****. If you have found one for sale, I recommend buying it before someone elsehas the opportunity to do so before you.

She was built somewhat in the late eighties. I learned from other reviews that she is Corean. Being labelled just "fender Catalina", first I thought she is American not Asian. So what! I was attracted immediately by her shape when I first saw her in the local guitar shop's window: She was all in black with a rosewood fingerboard, shaped like dreadnoughts but a bit smaller, an acoustic guitar without any pick-ups but with a nice looking headstock like the strats use to have, coloured black as the body.
I played her in the shop just for a few minutes, was astonished about the sound and I felt just like home when touching her neck: It just felt like playing an electric Strat. Great!

As just said. The sound is tremendous for a "small" dreadnought body: Warm and rich, clearly depending from the type of strings used. In the long years she is with me, I tried all sorts of acoustic strings. Currently I am using bronzed Martin acoustic strings which give a even warmer but bright sound.

Being a Corean, her finish is of excellent quality.

I can't complain at all. She is in use since about twenty years and didn't see a case or gig bag nor a guitar stand for this entire period. She has moved with me from flat to flat, has been played only a few times live, more often just at home.
No wonder she now has some dings and dongs on the back of the neck and the edges of the hadstock. But this doesn't influence the sound when playing.
Last year I decided - getting aged - that she deserves a shelter and I bought a brand new case for her. Although being a 6-string she only fits into a case for 12-stringers because of her Strat-shaped headstock. The guy from the shop where I bought her so long ago said that she is still in a good shape referring to her age. And as a thank you for coming back to buy a "garage" for her in the same shop, he decided to sell me the 12-string guitar case for the price of a 6-string guitar case.

No repairs necessary to date. Therefore any experiences with fender's customer support is n/a.

Everything has already been written:
She is some 20 years old
If she should be stolen I would like to have one of her sisters instead
If she should break, hope they could get it fixed.
By the time I was looking for a metal string guitar and simply fell in love when I first saw her.
The only thing I'm missing is a pick-up. Once I asked a dealer if it was possible to build-in a modern pick-up system. But than I refrained from realising it, because I feared that this possibly could influence too much her acoustic sound qualities. So - what the hell! If I really should like some day to play through an amp, I will buy a second guitar. But maybe I don't and will stick to my Catalina for the forthcoming years

I bought my Catalina from a Guy who was selling a very ordinary Les Paul copy. It caught my eye and it looked like it had been through Hell. It is made in Korea and is black with ivory features and chrome tuners. It has a nice thin neck and a beautiful action considering the life it has had. I have a couple of good acoustics and bought this one th travel with, and mate it has travelled.!!

The sound of this guitar is excellent and it has a real resonance.
I have put a Duncan soundhole pickup in that doesn't really do it justice.. No matter which guitar I pick up, I always end up playing this one..!!

I don't know what condition this one left the factory with...but it has so many finish flaws in it now I wont begin to list them.

Reliability?..Durability ?? You should see it .. The guy I bought it off had thrown it in the back of his truck ( without a case ) and driven to too many parties etc..,. It has numerous scratches, chips, dings ,marks and dents . That was what attracted me to it.. lokks like it has been around the world 15 times! Doesn't seem to mind it though.. Holds its tune better than any other guitar I own.. and doesn't mind athmospheric changes etc..

This one could keep a luthier busy for 3 years....so no...no customer support..

I take it everywhere.. I think it appreciates being in a good hard-case these days. At least if I scratch it, it doesn't show up...
The hardiest guitar I have ever seen ....!!

I can't say enough about my Fender Catalina. Everything already said about it by the other owners seems pretty much dead on. Even though I only paid $150.00 Canadian for it (incl. case and one of those crappy mail order Markley pickups), it is the best all-around guitar I have ever owned. I have really long and thin fingers. BUT even though the rosewood neck is very thin and electric-like (feels a bit like a Strat) my fingers don't get bunched up and the reach I get on it is amazing. With that said, I'm not sure that you would like the Catalina if you had fat finger-tips??? I'm a strummer, picker, grinner, smoker, bedroom, beach, party, and holiday player and it is well suited to being bumped around. It was thrown over the couch by my 5 year old nephew a few weeks ago and it survived well (even though he almost didn't. I thought about throwing him over the couch). It pretty much stays in tune and for some reason the strings seem to last a really long time on it.

I really love the sound of this guitar. I'm not sure what it is but when I play other people's guitars (and even my Ovation) there seems to be something missing. The only complaint that I have is when I fingerpick the low E string . . . it tends to be a little dull in contrast to the crispness of the other strings. It suits both strumming and picking and although I don't play a lot of lead, I feel comfortable doing so. It has good action up and down the neck but I do find that it starts getting really tight around the 13th and 14th fret.

I can't complain at all about the finish etc on my Catalina because I restored it myself (about 8 years ago). I should have mentioned earlier that when I bought it, the bridge had been ripped off and someone had really done some heavy tightening on the truss rod. I went to my local music store (shameless plug for The Arts in Newmarket) and they showed me exactly how to fix it and didn't charge me anything for the advice. They ordered in a very similar bridge and I matched the saddle up myself. When the bridge was back on, there was some exposed wood where the old one had been so I took some black car touch up paint and filled in the cracks. You can see it if you look close but I've grown used to the "scars." I'm sure that the re-sell value has gone down (from the $150.00 Canadian I paid for it ha ha) but I never intend to sell it anyway. Anyway, the fixup job was a good learning experience. I took my time and I haven't had a problem with it since. I generally use medium strings but would hesitate to throw heavy ones on knowing the history.

As far as the reliabilty/durability category goes, most of what I said above covers it except that I have to say something about the finish. I have never owned a guitar with a finish like this. I don't know what they put on this, but the top is virtually scratch free. With a little cleaning, the shine comes up nice and almost new looking. This thing has seen the beach, the bar, the basement, beer, banging, dropping, bumping, and some heavy picks and the finish still looks great.

Overall rating? Well, another owner said that if it were ever stolen, he would sit down and cry. I agree. I noodle around on a lot of guitars in stores and it would take me long time to find something that felt this comfortable to play. The only thing that I wish it had was a pick up. I've been meaning to put one in for years but I haven't managed to actually get around to do it. Suggestions would be nice if there are any other Catalina owners who have put a pick up in theirs. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the novel . . . happy playing.

My Fender Catalina was my really first guitar. I bought her new on August 20th, 1987 - more than 15 years now. She was made in Korea, and was built from 1983 to 1992. In 1989 I wrote a letter to Fender Musical Instruments asking informations about the instrument. They told me that there is no way to date Catalinas by serial number (mine is A6622433, I still got the original Fender Card) and suggested me to use Fender Medium strings (which were the original ones when I bought her). I like her thin neck (my hands are quite small) and the rosewood fingerboard.

The sound is thin and very clear. It is not very warm, maybe because of the mahogany body. Very definite and with crystal clear chord voicing: good low sounds, typical fo a dreadnought. Despite of her laminated top (non-solid spruce), she has kept a good voicing through the years. Great for fingerpicking.

Quite good set-up, I just lowered the saddle a little bit. Maybe a good fine-tuning by a luthier, with nut and tilt neck regulations, would improve the action, but it's quite good anyway. The finish is great for an economic guitar - all black, with white bindings. Some small imperfections on the middle biding of the bookmatched back and at the end of the rosewood fretboard are more than forgivable.

She has kept a good finish quality: I am not a professional player, but I carried her in many "dangerous" situations, including many nights on the beach, and she looks almast new. Keeps good tuning, execpt for B string - which is not of great relevance anyway.

I am not a professional player: I began playing, alone or with friends, in 1986. If she were stolen (or, to put it like it is, kidnapped)... I just would sit down and cry: I could not replace her. She may not be the best guitar in the world, but she was my first.
I choose her... well, because I was attracted by the classical Fender headstock (LOL). I was not a great expert at that time, but I'm still glad of my choice: I could hardly have made a better purchase on a budget (at that time, 1987, Itl. 390.000 were about 300 US $, that are more or less equal to 334 ? in 2002)

I bought this guitar 2 years ago from a pawnbroker in Adelaide Australia. I already own 14 guitars and I paid $70.00 AUS for it. I wasn't in the market for another guitar, but I just happened to pick it up and thought WOW!
I can honestly say that I have never played another elec/acc with such fast action and great sound. I was shocked to learn that it was Korean. Mine is black with the standard Fender headstock. Lots of ivory detail. Great Guitar. I'm sure that theses will be quite collectable one day.

Overall I am totally happy with it. I have 2 Ibanez Destroyers, a Washburn A20v, Black Fender Japan Elec, with 2xHumbuckers (Factory Standard) 2x Tele,s , another elec/acoustic, a few nylon acoustics and a 1800 Louis Panormo Parlour Guitar. This one is one of my fave's. Big bright sound both acousticaly and with my Line 6.

Gets banged around heaps and still stays in tune and keeps playing. Very robust. Great action (maybe from factory?)

You can definatly depend on this guitar. So reliable. Strings stay in tune and last longer than my other acoustics, live. AAA+

Playing all over Australia and overseas for 17 years. Supported bands like Cheap Trick, The Sweet, Slade and have used it in the studio.

I got this guitar a little while ago, and I assume that it is of fairly recent make, sometime within the last five years or so. It was manufactured in Korea, and sounds superb. The classic Strat headstock really adds some flavor to it's already slick look, and the ivory trim around the body and sound hole don't add a bad touch, either. It has a somewhat narrow neck, but it doesn't bother me at all. The bridge and nut were replaced by the dealer to be strung left-handed, but I took care of that. I'm not overly fond of the pickguard's look, but one can't have everything. I might've liked more frets than the supplied 20, but as there's no cutaway the top few are difficult to reach anyway. There was only one strap peg, so any straps that I might use would have to be tied to the end of the neck, but I don't use a strap anyway.

Some other reviewers speak of the diminished sound as a negative aspect, but it's fine with me. I live in a basement anyway, so I can't play very loudly, lest the people upstairs hear it and run away. And if I ever do need to play loudly I'll just pick up an electric and crank up the amp. But I digress. I don't do gigs at all, although sometimes I'll play for small groups of people. In that situation, though, there's no need to play very loud. I rarely use a pick, and this guitar works much better for finger picking than many other guitars I've used. I play it clean, without pickups and amps and effects and whatnot; it sounds rich enough as it is. When I got it, the low E string was a tad muffled, though, due to the aforementioned left-handed nut/bridge. I'm terrible with replacing strings; I'll leave them on until they snap, but I replaced them the other day, and I must say that I almost forgot how nice it sounds with new strings.

The guitar has great action. I might just be a little bit biased, since my last guitar had about eight feet of action, so switching to this one really feels light. The finish is nice, especially right after polishing it.

My own personal model probably won't ever see a gig, but if I did I would rely on it not to break down. It's a fairly durable instrument; it's capable of taking a few bangs and blows. The finish does have one tiny little scratch on it, which is really quite a good percentage, considering that it's been bumped a few more times than once. I'd imagine that the one strap peg that's there is solid, but I may never know for sure.

I've never had any occasion to contact the manufacturers, so I can't offer any insight as to their helpfulness. I do most of my own repairs (and it's needed it a few times, in this rough household...as a side note, my last guitar got a hole kicked in the side of it), so I don't know about that, either.

I can't say that I've been playing for a long time, only a few months, but I've been told that I'm pretty good at it, having taught myself. I own a small Fender amp that I rarely use, and an old Yamaha nylon guitar (the hapless fellow with an extra sound hole; oh, my heart cries for it). If the Catalina were lost or stolen, besides being distraught, I'd probably buy a new guitar. No guitar could replace this one, but I would want to try other guitars as well. Overall, I'd have to say that the narrow neck and great action are my favorite features. But it is a great guitar, to be sure. Now, if only I could play it well...

i bought my catalina in 1985 for 650.00 new
i have played it on stage and parties all over the world
it has never let me down!
it is all black rose wood finger board and of coarse the strat styled headstock which is what caught my attention in the first place.
it is too bad they only made them for a couple of years.
the neck feels great
it is a great guitar for slide work and it takes a portable pickup very well.

i love it!!!!!!!!!!!!

this guitar is great sound wise great for slide work

the action is the best i had played
the black finish was a real eye catcher

i have owned and played this guitar for over 20 years now and it has never let me down
in fact the older it gets the better it sounds

i own 2 strats and a les paul standard
also an alvarez accoustic from the 70's
i have been playing for 33 years

I purchased my Catalina new in Japan in 1983. I purchased it from a dealer near the Fender factory, so I always 'assumed' it was a Japanese-made model. Seeing the other reviews here, I'm beginning to think it was Korean...
Finish was a beautiful dark teal (both body and headstock), but the back was a slightly lighter teal color (probably owing to a different wood on the back. (I say "was" because I sold it three years ago).
Finish was excellent, the body style was a 'mini' dreadnought.
The neck was very narrow -- almost like an electric. This guitar's main attraction -- its small size for portability -- was its main detractor -- diminished sound.

The sound, as I said before was dimished because of its small size, but the tone was always great, and I had a lot of lead-electric type guys wanting to purchase it from me -- it was great for playing electric-style around a campfire or whatnot.
Sound was very bright (with Martin strings). Low volume -- couldn't keep up with full-sized dreadnoughts.

Guitar came perfect from the factory. Except for some cheesy strings, it was all ready to go.
No finish flaws that I ever noticed. One thing that did bother me for years was that the action near the 12th fret was so dang high to be nearly useless. I had a luthier lower the action and adjust the truss rod and it was perfect thereafter -- one of the most even (and low) actions I ever used.

I lugged this guitar around the world twice -- through Japan, the Philippines, etc., all in a soft gig bag case. Banged it around hard enough to turn it into kindling wood, and it never showed a scratch or dent -- amazing for such a "pretty" guitar. I know this guitar is still going strong today, and I wouldn't hesitate to use it on a gig -- installing a pick-up would do this guitar wonders.

Never had a problem which required customer support.

I've been playing about 25 years now. I currently teach guitar in the public schools. I currently own an Art & Lutherie handmade 6-string, and a circa 1970 Yamaha L12-5 12-String.
This Fender was my first love, and I nearly cry when I think that I actually sold it. Other than the volume problem (which you get with a guitar this small) this was a wonderful instrument.

I've had my Catalina for about 10 years, and my mother bought it used from my cousin, so I assume it is a mid to late 80s model. It's a Korean made 20-fret model with black gloss finish and ivory trim and plain-Jane chrome tuners. It didn't come with a pickup. From what I understand it has a laminated top, but it has a very crisp, balanced sound with bright treble and warm bass. It stays in tune very well even when it is played hard. I don't know what woods it is made of because all but the fretboard is covered, but the fretboard looks like rosewood.

It is a very versatile guitar. I play mainly blues, rock, and some classical. It has a beautiful sound. I think the sound is as good as any guitar I've ever played, but it could be louder. It has a more bright sound, but the warmth of the lower notes is not overshadowed. It is nice for picking and fingerstyle because the strings are well spaced and you don't have to cramp your hand when playing with fingers, and you don't have to reach when picking.

I have made no adjustments to this guitar and I love it. I consider it my pride and joy and I have get nothing but compliments on it. It has a great feel, medium action, and a pretty wide neck. My only problem with it is the frets are thin, but that is fairly minor as far as I am concerned. The finish is pretty durable but it has a few bangs and scratches. It still looks gorgeous when I polish it up, though. The craftsmanship is pretty nice, but I well-trained eye would pick up some minor flaws in the nut and the colored fininsh along the fretboard.

This guitar will definitely take live playing. I don't do gigs except for small picnics and birthday parties, but it stays in tune nicely and sounds great. The hardware has not failed me yet and there is no wear on the fininsh from playing, just bangs and scratches. I would have a backup no matter what, but I don't think you would ever need or want one with this guitar.

I've been playing for about 12 years now, and I have a cheap Fender 12-string, an old Goya 6-string, a Toredo Classical, and a Heavy Metal Strat. My Cataline is my favorite, though. I got my Catalina as a Christmas gift, so I didn't ask any questions. If it were stolen or lost, I would definitly look for another one like it, but they are not common. I think it is the best guitar for the money out there. It looks, sounds, and feels really good and it stays in tune. I just wish it had a little more volume.