Fender '62 Reissue Stratocaster

I have had my 1989 Fender Japan '62 re-issue for 10 years now and I can't imagine having any other guitar as my main unit. It plays like a dream and stays in tune better than any guitar I have ever had, and I've owned approx. 25 guitars over the course of my 26 year playing career. I installed a Seymour Duncan JB junior pickup in the bridge position to make it more versatile. The other 2 are the stock staggered pole single-coil pickups.

This thing sounds GREAT- pro-quality all the way.

The workmanship and quality-control used in the construction of this guitar is the best I have ever seen.

This guitar and all the hardware on it are tough as nails. I have literally abused this guitar(it is now a true relic) and have never had any problems whatsoever.

I wouldn't know-

This is an exact identical copy of the 1962 stratocaster- the most desirable electric guitar on the planet. It has aged well- it's 20 this year and if it weren't for the "crafted in japan" sticker on the back of the neck you would never know it wasn't a real one.
This guitar is an outstanding instrument-and that's not even close to giving it justice. I love it.

Early 90's I'm guessing 1992 or so. It was gift from my uncle that had a music store at the time. It came to me stock and it has gone through many changes since then. I changed the 3 way selector to a 5 way, routed out the bridge pickup to fit a humbucker (Seymour Duncan Distortion) and I traded the vintage nech and middle for Fender Lace Sensors (Blue in the neck and Gold in the middle) I have also since added a small toggle in the pick guard to change the phase of the humbucker and also make it into a single coil. I also changed the original mint green pick guard to a pealoid white one.

After the changes it works real well with a Laney GH50 half stack for classic rock and hard rock, but then again not much is original on this anymore

When I got it it was professionally set up so all was well and set up for my style. Over the 20+ years ive been playing it ive had to change a few tuning machines but its never let me down.

Great gigging guitar, the finish is starting to show some wear after 20+ years of banging on it but it just adds character

This is my ultimate guitar, if I lost it i dont know what I would do. Ive been playing it for so long its an extension of my playing.

I have a late 1985 3 color sunburst I bought new from a Dallas Texas music store. Fender was just making about 5 American Strats a day at the time. The salesman called me when this one came in because he was only getting one Strat a week at the time. He told me to get down there and buy it because it was the best playing and sounding one he had seen come in yet. He was right, it had that beautiful bell tone that my friends 1963 strat sounded like. I have now had this guitar for 24 years and it still plays and sounds beautiful. I have owned a 1986 62 Vintage Lake Placid blue that just never had that tone of my sunburst strat. It had a real nice rhythm tone but if just faded out in the top frets.

This is the ultimate early 70's rock guitar. I play it through two Fender Super Champs run in stereo with a ADA rack delay . You will get some hum from it but only when you are not playing , so who cares. I just always turned the volume off on the guitar when I was not playing it. It has a rich bell tone that cuts like a knife. I am a big Rory Gallagher fan and so I play alot of slide guitar on it. You can nail his tone with this guitar. There is nothing I don't like about my sunburst strat. It is the perfect electric guitar.

My 1985 Vintage 62 was set up perfect from the factory. My 86 Vintage needed the neck aligned and the last fret would catch the high E string every once in a while.

I used my 1985 Vintage on stage for 20 years and never had a problem even after knocking it off it's stand a couple times and even dragging it across a cement floor when my foot caught the guitar cord and yanked it off the stand after having a feww too many drinks. It now looks alot like the Rory Gallagher model, haha. Maybe it is now worth more money. :)

Never talked to Fender

Best electric I have owned . One of the best I have ever played. It beats my Jeff Beck Strat hands down.

2003, olympic White, mint green pick guard, 57/62 pickups, medium thick C-shaped neck, 7.5(?) radius...standard features

Well, this sounds exactly as you would expect. Low output but sweet sounding pickups. Not as twangy as a 50's type strat, more tight sound that sounds better the more you drive your amplifier. All pickups sounds great, the bridge pu not very strong but if you adjust the pu height you'll get can get perfect balance between them. Perfect for what it's supposed to be, 62 reissue, very clear balanced sound

Second hand, traded it against a Tele 52 RI, both were in mint condition. I think the olympic white is the most beautiful, even though this one has yellowened a bit (already), adds even more character. Adjusted the string height to my liking and it bends great despite the small radius

I've had no problems and I expect no problems

Been playing for a long time and had lots of guitars, lately I realized that Strats are my favorites, I have three, this is the only vintage style I have, the only one I didn't change pickups. I wanted vintage style and the they sound perfect for that. It's something about this neck shape that I love, played my friends real 62 in the seventies and I can still recall that feeling when I play this guitar.

US made in late -99. Great three tone sunburst, two piece alder body. There are two things i don't like with it. 1. The backside cutting, it's slobby and not done in the right way. 2. The bridgeplate is also sloppy and cut crocked. The wood is of good quality.

I liked the pickups on this one, very true to the original. But put on Texas specials now (they suit my style better)

Got it when it was 2 years old, and it was in mint condition. I always adjust my guitars so i don't bother about the setup. But i guess it would pass as ok.

As i said i got it in mint but now it would go as a heavy relic. I use it everyday (even take it with me to the toilet sometimes) i guess you could call it REAL LOVE! It's made like the old ones, nothing fancy.

Never been in touch with Fender.

I play in a blusey-style. Love SRV, Clapton, Knopfler etc. Been playing the guitar for about 18 years. I used to play with a Tubescreamer all of the time, but i've started to appreciate the real simple tone more and more.

My 62??vintage reissue Strat is from the first run of production in late 1982. Unlike the reissue Strats and the CS Strats of todays production it has a real extreme shaping. Its a very light one, wich has a natural relic finish now after 25 years of use. Usual slab board and tt sunburst. The neck width is a little bid smaler than now. I read that original vintage strats with such a neck were made from late 59 to early 60. So it has all the features I prefer from a Strat.

With the stock PUs it used to sound very nice but they begann to feedback at higher volumes or gain settings so I changed them with A.Y. masterwound PUs No 173 from 300. These are the best Strat PUs I??ve ever heard. Nice balance from neck to bridge pu and lovely ringing tone. With my 1972 Twin Reverb and a little help from a good OD you can get every trademarksound you know from Strats.

can??t remember the factory setup. But since I service my guitars myselve it is exactly how I like it.

I expect this Strat to be alive after the next 25 years. I??ll never sell it.

never dealt with them.

It??s everything you??d expect from a Strat

Since the technical information is available from the Fender web site and from previous HC reviews, I???ll try to focus on the features that become apparent only after you???ve played one for a while.

You can bend strings all day on this guitar. Between 1954 and 1983, all Strats had a 7.25 inch neck radius, and Clapton, Harrison, Garcia and millions of others played them without anyone complaining that the radius made string bending too hard. Now, the so-called experts insist that we need a 9.5 inch neck radius or our bends will fret out. This is hogwash, and the 62 Reissue proves them dead wrong.

It stays in tune. The tuners are quality reproductions of the original split-post Klusons. No wrapping the string over itself, no guesstimating the proper string length, no trying to cut the end when the string is wrapped around the post, no sharp ends, and no slipping, all of which helps keep it in tune. If a good Strat has tuning problems, check the entire set up, including the truss rod relief.

It has nitrocellulose lacquer over a urethane basecoat, which gives it a glossy, vintage look. The back of the neck does not get sticky, even when humidity is a factor.

The 60 cycle single coil hum is an urban legend. Fluorescent lights, cell phones, and similar appliances will sometimes produce a slight hum or hiss through this Strat. However, it can be heard only when you are plugged in and not playing, and no one should listen to what they are not playing. In other words, you can???t hear it unless you listen for it, and it disappears once you start playing.

There are a few nit-picky details that might bother collectors, but that are of no real concern. For instance, the headstock decal does not have the patent numbers like an original 62 Strat, the 12th fret position markers are a hair farther far apart than on an original, the Kluson Deluxe logo is not on the tuner covers, etc. Overall though, the authenticity is really close to a real 62 Strat on things that count.

It includes a G&G case that has bad balance, and falls on its side a lot. I replaced it.

The ???57/???62 pickups are designed to sound like the original handwound Strat pickups, and sound great. The tone is balanced between the trebles and basses, and the neck and even the middle pickup will give you that great Fender growl if you play hard. The three position switch works fine and is tight, which means that you can set it to the in between positions (positions 2 and 4) pretty easily.

I am part owner of a pre-CBS Stratocaster (June, 1960, serial number 49166) that was purchased as an investment. Tonewise, the 62 Reissue has a slight edge because the notes are clearer, and because it can get a lot punchier. The 47 year old original pickups are less distinctive, with a softer sound that is prone to early break up.

I play blues and 60s and 70s rock, but play music of all types, and it all sounds right-at-home on this Strat. I am definitely ???old school,??? and use no reverb, sound effects, or picks.

I use class A amps (like the Emery Sound Superbaby and Microbaby or the Fender tweed reproductions by Clark Amplification) because of their absolutely amazing, overdrive drenched, sounds-as-good-as-sex-feels tone, and because class A amps make the strings on good guitars incredibly responsive to playing dynamics. If you love Strats but haven???t played one though a good class A, you are not yet fully alive.

The set up on the Reissue was fine, with medium action and no buzzing. It came with 10s, which I use. I set this one up the way I like it though, as it???s easy to do with a Strat, although some guys want to pay for a pro job.

I never use tremolo, so I hardtailed it by tightening the anchor plate against the body, and adding the two extra springs that were included. There is no reason to put a piece of wood behind the trem block, although some people swear that the world will end without one. If anything, a piece of wood should go in front of the trem block to help hold the bridge up. I readjusted the string height, intonation, and truss rod according to the users manual, and adjusted the pickups somewhat lower. It sounds and plays great in tune in standard tuning, or when tuned a step down.

A Strat, especially a high end one like the 62 Reissue is a lifetime guitar.

I take care of my guitars (and amps, etc.), and wipe them down after playing, keep them in cases when I???m not playing, and will not use a guitar stand, especially one with foam rubber. I change my strings one by one to help preserve the adjustment by keeping the neck tension close to constant, and check all adjustments every few months.

The Fender Relic series with intentionally dinged up bodies, fake wear marks on the necks, man-made hardware rust, and high prices amazes me, just like the story about Tom Sawyer whitewashing the fence.

I jam regularly, but rarely gig. However, I gigged a few hundred times between about 1970 and the mid-1980s and except for a few precut strings, never once brought or needed a backup.

I have never needed it. If you buy a good Strat and take care of it, you wont either.

I have played Strats for 38 of the past 40 years. Some have been good, and a few have been great. The 62 Reissue is really a great guitar. Even after critical thinking, I am unable to suggest anything that needs improvement. To sum it all up, this guitar looks great, you can play it all day without your hand getting tired, and it will sound great the whole time.

I hope my comments have been helpful. If you buy a 62 Reissue, I hope that you are as happy with it as I am with mine.

Yeah looks very nice. Vintage and all that. Looks aint everything... 4 way pickup selector included....

Very nice tone... at least as good as a marshall MG50 can make it...

Don't know if this was just my signature bad luck, but I think the neck is warped.... I get constant string buzz on the low E string and a bit on the A string.... I also get horrible fret outs when bending the high E and B strings... Ruins my playing. I play Hendrix.... Tried raising the action past my liking and still the same.... NOT what I expected from a 'well crafted' reissue that costs more than the average strat... Not done yet... I also get sqweaking sounds whenever I bend.....

So neck warped, and im stuck with it like this. Not an expert so can't fix it... Payed 1400EU for a damaged guitar. Brilliant...

I don't think I can gig with the guitar in this state. Can't bend the strings an inch without fretting out...

Havent dealt with support.

Very dissapointed with this instrument which I was once so excited about. Although I havent noticed any other owner of this guitar with the same problems as me so I guess it's just my one ffs!!!

NOT HAPPY.

mine is a 1994-5 japanese 62 'premium' strat in an aged white with rosewood figerboard obviously..the premium meaning it gets an alder body unlike the normal one which gets basswood, it recieves amerian texas special p/ups and aged white parts...pretty much your average strat and that means it is very versitile!

I play alot of different styles...blues, jazz, country etc. i play alot of dire straits and mark knopflers later music and alot of my own compositions. I also play alot of steve vais music.When i bought this i didnt really know what to expect...the only strats i have played in the past are strats with emg's...but oh wow what a beautiful sound!!!it is very bright which is to be expected. I play through a VOX AD50 and a marshall. I really do like the strat on any p/up it is very mellow on the neck and middle and really bites on the bridge p/up. but im not sure if it is meant to be like this but the bridge p/up isnt wired to the tone circuit???? ive checked all the wiring and it doesnt look like it has been tampered with so im not sure (i am a les paul man so i dont know much about the strats wiring) but none the less it isnt to hard to get around.....any downsides? well it is bright and that means vvveeerry bright...i think it is becuase the texas specials are wound more for that "hot" vintage single coil sound but on the whole it is quite a nice sounding guitar. alot of people say that american strats are the go but i dont know about that..i tend to disagree..i played 3 american standard strats, an american deluxe strat and a american highway 1 strat and i settled for this guitar because the sound was just so much better and the pickups (and i know this is not really important) seem to look much better made even though they are american pickups...it counfused the heck out of me!

this is the section that the japanese guitars really shine through. The quality is second to none..i know it says in the instructions not to glorify your instrument in this review but it is literally the best made guitar i have ever owned. i cannot find fault and i seriously do mean nothing is wrong with it...it was 12ish years old when i bought it and it was in immaculate condition!..the action was just right and there was basically no buzz..but because i bought it off a respected musician in my area i cannot judge the factory set up

so far so good..nothing is wrong with it...it is light so i havent bothered with a locking strap mechanism and though i have really worked it hard since i have bought it nothing has gone wrong with it so far..the bridge and the trem do creak a bit though....im not really concerned about it but will watch it closely...i think it could just be the springs.....i always bring backup guitars so it isnt a matter if a string breaks but that hasnt happened yet.

i havent had to worry..my guitar technition does all the repairs for me :)

I really do like this guitar...it is a solid performer...as i said earlier i played 5 american strats before this one and never even thought twice about buying this one over the american strats. Also as i said before i have played les pauls most of my playing career and my first guitar was a 78' fender telecaster(and yes i think this plays better than that as well!). I am really suprised i didnt buy strat earlier because they are versitile, comfortable and sound magnificent!...but i will have to eventually get my techy to wire up the bridge p/up to the tone circuit. i cant really think of a downside and my descison is final, i am a japanese guitar collecter for sure now. I have also just purchased a japanese orville les paul standard which for those who dont know is gibson japan (which later went to epiphobe japan then later to korea) and it surpasses my american les pauls easily...oh and i thought i might just say so this review isnt ditched for glorifing jap guitars...i am not japanese i am actually australian!! and this strat is a top guitar!

Not really much to say that has not been said. Three tone sunburst finish with a rosewood fingerboard. Three pickups, three way switch. Nitro finish. Vintage style hardware.

The instantly recognizable Fender sound is all over this guitar.

Neck Pickup is woody and full sounding, fruity and musical. Makes up for a pleasant darkish clean tone or a colossal overdriven lead sound. No wonder this is traditionally Stratocaster?s strongest position.

Bridge pickup is weaker in comparison. Clean sounds do easily become trebly and harsh if the amp is set too bright, but can be tamed with the right amp and settings. Distorted they retain definition and perform well actually. All of this is to be expected from a Stratocaster so no disappoints here. Any telecaster bridge pickup will put this to shame.

Middle pickup is a highly usable compromise between bridge and neck.

In between sounds, especially the neck and middle combination, are beautiful and add a great contrast to the other positions. A five-way switch is provided, but I preferred to keep the original three way switch and archive these sounds the old-fashioned way. Keep in mind that for gigging this could be a drag.

Comparing this guitar in the sound department with a Fender American Standard is a sensitive matter. Whether if someone will prefer the output of modern pickups is really up to personal estimation. I believe that vintage ones are true to what single coils should be

Hum is present, as it is in all single coil guitars, only in a healthy degree. The guitar handles volume and gain decently without extreme feedback.

In conclusion, sound wise this guitar does deliver what it is supposed to, a great solid vintage Stratocaster sound. Besides the pickups, what sets this guitar apart is the nitro finish; it indeed lets the wood come trough the pickups.

The guitar fit and finish was flawless. It was indeed set-up properly. Nitro finish is more delicate, but it will surely age beautifully.

This guitar will withstand abuse. Replacement parts are available. The supplied Fender cases are always extremely reliable.

I would gig without a backup without fear, even thought I could break a string, but since I have never in this guitar it does not seem as a problem.

Fender designs have been confirmed thought time as effective.

It is not a perfect guitar, but it is a really great sounding guitar. It does capture the entire feel of a sixties guitar, and mojo will grow on it as time passes.

I believe this can only be compared to a G&L guitar or something of the kind. In my personal opinion, going for a Custom Shop is sort of an overkill. Fender guitars were clever pieces of engineering back in the beginning, but they were production guitars, not pretentious or upscale.

Fender has had it heights and lows, and their production is labeled as somehow inconsistent, but after finding this guitar faith has returned to me as I was reconverted.

A great price cost relationship investment that will surely end your Stratocaster needs.