Fender '68 Reissue Stratocaster

Made Japan 1999, (look in neck cutaway and on neck to date, you`ve got to take the neck off for this ). Transparent finish, Ash body, not basswood as some have said,( I looked on the internet for info on grain patterns etc of Basswood and Ash also checked lots of pictures of the grain, sad I know but I like to know what I`ve got). Maple neck usual strat features.

The stock pickups did not do this guitar justice, also I bought this guitar to "upgrade" it, Tonequest report recommends Jap re-issues for upgrading to get a good quality, not break the bank, Strat. So I put in Custom Shop Fat 50`s pickups, also changed the pots to American made 250k ones as well as .10 ceramic caps . This guitar now sounds like a vintage strat, great bell like chimes with nice bass and all tones between. Listen to Hendrix Woodstock version of Red House ,I can get these tones down to a T. If you change pickups look at the pots and caps as well they help the overall tone. When I picked up my guitar after the pickups etc were fitted the the shop assistant did not want to give it back he said it sounded brilliant. I play through a fender 112 deluxe plus amp with crybaby wah , also soon to get an Ibanez tube screamer Ts9/808mod. I (try to) play Hendrix ,SRV, Cream, Blues and am trying Jazz, guitar works with all these styles.

Guitar set up o.k. Joint at neck to body could be tighter. Overall finish and quality very good,neck is dream to play, except the frets ,I prefer larger frets. So that is the next job for this guitar a refret with yet to be decided size fretwire. At the same time I will have a bone nut cut, why?, because the imitation bone nut used is crap. It is made of plastic or nylon or some such material . The trouble is it deadens the tone, bone however is porus so sound travels through it and does not get stopped dead in it`s tracks as with the imitation one. As I said I bought this guitar to "upgrade" it. It gets an 8 because of the frets/nut. 10+ when finished.

I put straplocks on , why take a chance on dropping it for the sake of #15-00 and ten minutes work changing the buttons. Finish seems good ,I play it every day without problem , not gigging yet one day hopefully. I`ve spent money on this guitar to get it how I want it as I could not afford #1200 for a Strat in one lump sum and it`s a good base to work from. These guitars are also becoming sought after in the original form , but I`m not a collector , I wanted vintage tone and playability without a big outlay in one go.

Haven`t tried not intending to.

Playing 18 months. Also have a Gibson SG , but I prefer the Strat if I had bought it first I wouldn`t have bought the Gibson.I checked the reviews on the web before I bought it and would buy again for the same reasons. If you upgrade the guitar you get a more personal instrument than the "off the production line" models. Without the pickup change this guitar is passable, with the pickup change it`s got that extra bite, when the fret and bone nut,(saving the cash at present), are done it will be a killer. It won`t get lost, how could anyone loose a guitar ?, if it was stolen I would kill to get it back and then I would kill again because it was stolen in the first place. Thieves of all kinds are scum!!

Made in 98, purchased in 99. Crafted in Japan. Ash body with maple neck. Paid $414.00 without case from indoor storm. I'm a beginner and I thought it would be great to have a stratocaster with the old style large head stock. My advise to all you beginners...Don't by a musical instrument without playing it. I found that the neck was too small for me. Plus other things I wasn't happy about.

I like the blues. A stratocaster is the guitar played by my favorite artists. But this one is lacking. The stock pickups strink! Look a the other review for this guitar. Everyone changes them...

No major flaws, but the G string had some buzzing.

OK

I was playing this through my Johnson JT-50. I took the guitar and amp back to the place I purchased the amp from because I wasn't thrilled with the amp. The salesperson plugged in an american made stratocaster and the amp sounded great. I was considering replacing the pickups, but since I wasn't too thrilled with the thin neck and buzzing string, I traded the 68 strat for a Godin SD. Now I love my Johnson amp and I'm very happy with the Godin SD.

The features have already been adequately described by many others.

I'm currently using a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe 1-12. I get great tone now that I have replaced the exceedingly crappy factory pickups with some excellent Vintage Noiseless Strat pickups. Paired with an Ibanez TS7 and a Dunlop GCB-95 Crybaby, this guitar SCREAMS!!! I would also recommend replacing the tuners. I got a set of Fender locking tuners, and the whammy bar
is far more responsive now, plus it stays in tune.

Pickups and tuners aside, the quality is great. The three color burst is beautiful, as is the grain.

This guitar is solid. I would not hesitate to gig with this baby without a backup.

Overall, I love this guitar. I bought it because it was the best guitar for the money that I could find. Being left-handed, it is difficult to find decent instruments. I got lucky!

I ordered my 68' reissue directly from Fender in 1996. This Japanese
made strat is very nice, with a beautiful ash body in a 3 color burst.
True to the original, the 68' has 21 narrow vintage frets on a 2 pc.
round-lam maple board. Fender hardly makes any of these costly 2 pc.
maple necks any more, I think the only other one that features it is the 69' Custom Shop model. The body has a thick, nitro-cellulose finish and the neck is totally laquered. The narrow, 7.5" radius
vintage neck is really sweet and very effortless to play, especially
up in the higher registers. Stock single coils are OK, but really
don't do this axe justice. I replaced them with Texas Specials. Pick
guard discolored quickly and I swapped it for a Tortoise Shell model,
which doesn't show wear and tear like the white ones. Also chopped my
whammy bar in half so it fits in my hand while I palm mute. Other than
that, it's pure strat. I've never really played a bad strat, but this
particular MIJ 68' reissue is a real gem.I

I like to play a lot of different types of music and the 68'pretty
much covers everything with style to spare. The extra mid range of the
Texas Specials compliment the brightness of the 2-pc. maple neck and
ash body. A pair of custom shop 54' PUPs would also be a good choice.
Tone is a subjective thing, but I play the 68' through a Fender Hot
Rod DeVille 4x10 and a Mesa Subway Blues 1x10. It's hard to beat the
strat/4x10 combo in my opinion.

The factory set-up used .09's which aren't my cup of tea. I put .10's
on, lowered the action a little bit, reintonated and it was right there. The wood quality is nothing short of amazing, considering this
is a Japanese reissue. The overall fit and finish far exceed many
costlier Fenders I've looked at. It makes financial sense for Fender
to produce in Mexico rather than Japan, which is unfortunate. The
Japanese models are of exceptionally high quality. If you have one,
hang on to it.

I take care of my guitars, so I haven't had any real problems other
than replacing my strap buttons with Schaller's so I won't accidently
drop it and have a real problem. Strats can be a little tempramental
from time to time, and this one is no exception. The narrow, U-shaped
neck and vintage floating trem seem to be especially sensitive to
even slight temperature changes. It's not a big problem, but tuning
stability can be frustrating sometimes, especially after trem dips.
This is an old story with vintage style strats though. You learn to live with it.

The only time I delt with Fender customer service was when I received
a set of Custom Shop 54'strat PUPs which didn't work (what a hassle).
I sent them back and they promptly shipped me a set of Texas Specials!
Oh well. I just installed the TS's and called it good.

I've been playing electric and acoustic guitar since the early 70's.
I also own a 1997-Japanese 72'Tele Thinline Reissue, 1998-American Standard Tele with Joe Barden PUPs and a 1999 Carvin DC127.
If my 68 was stolen or lost, I would be bummed. I may be in the minority here, but I think the Japanese really nailed the Fender
reissues. Tora Tora Tora!

this is a 1996 model re issue, made in Japan(good thing). Its an ash body, with a solid maple neck (glossy finish) with 21 vintage frets. It has all the typical features of any strats. All hardware is vintage. Excellent quality. Japanese Fenders are Fenders best kept secrets, followed by Mexican-made products...They're both cheaper in $$$ and if you hot-rod them with better pick ups they are a steal price-wise. American fenders are nice but the factory pick ups (Texas specials excluded!!) suck... they just don't have it in my opinion.

This original pick ups were decent, however the bridge pick up was alittle thin so naturally I replaced it. I selected a Dimarzio FS-1 pick up (this is the one Edge from U2 uses) and I couldn't be happier...lots of mid range boost, highs are kept in check, lows are not muddy at all! I seriously recommend this pick up to those who want a true workhorse in their strat. The other two pick ups are just fine. They do the trick for me. The ash body along witha maple neck makes this guitar the brightest thing I ever heard!! It just rings! It competes with any other strat out there. Don't let the vintage frets fool you, they're good enough to play any style of music you want, besides its all in your style anyways...

Lets face it, everybody has their own style and set up, so if your retarded, you would leave the factory set up and not touch a thing. Always tweak your guitar to your liking, and maintain the thing!! the worst thing is to get an awesome guitar and not take care of it...Buff your baby, buff it often!! I'm happy with my own set up but my set up doesn't speak for everyone so I can't rate this category fairly, but my set rocks for me.

this guitar is durable...hasn't let me down at all...like I said before if you take care of your axes, there shouldn't be any problems!!

Haven't needed them.

There aren't too many out there so if you see one, I recommend a test run...This guitar may not be for everyone, but its definitley more than a one trick pony...Its well built, and suits my musical needs to a tee...it might suit yours too, so give it a shot.

made in 99, white, put in Fat 50's w/ green guard. Other than that, all stock. All the damn features I need.

What can I say, sounds like a Strat. Running through a screaming silicon Fuzzface w/ a Vox wah into an old Deluxe Reverb. Sound is in the head, hands & ears. I can get whatever I want & then some.

Had to raise action, set up bridge for whammy, and reintonate a little bit. But thats w/ any guitar. Finish seems a little too thick.

This quitar is tough as nails. I've dropped it and it stays in tune. I can whammy hard and IF it goes out, I can yank my bar back to bring it right back in. This guitar smokes any American Strat I have ever owned, including a piece of crap Custom Shop American Classic. It's always good to have a back-up, but if I had to I wouldn't think twice about gigging w/ this guitar alone. Oh yeah, serious fret wear up to about the 6th fret after only 6 months. But I do play alot. Frets aren't that great anyway but for the price I'm thrilled w/ this axe.

Had to deal w/ Fender on the issue of bad pick-ups. I even bought some Fat 54's new & ohmed them out in the parking lot and one was dead. Alot of their pick-ups seem to go bad. Called Fender and gave them Hell! But I will say Bob Willocks saved me from forever being mad at the "new" Fender. Very supportive.

If this guitar was stolen I'd probably start crying. This is the only new Strat I would own. They are hard to find anyway. I have always wanted one and finally got one last year right before they quit making it. And they replaced it w/ a 3 bolt 70's reissue? What the hell are those guys at Fender thinking. Talk about idiots! They are completely missing the point. I will probably never buy a new Fender anything again. I'm saving for a vintage strat. And yes I'm going to play the shit out of it and gig w/ it. What do you think Leo made 'em for, to look at? Collectors suck. They serve no point but to drive the prices up on great guitars and most of the time they don't even play. They just think they are a player. You know if your a player. If Fender still made great guitars at good prices maybe I wounld't feel so strongly about this.

Mine is a 1997 Japanese reissue of the classic '68 Strat. Solid, Swamp Ash body, natural finish, large headstock, U shaped maple on maple neck, 3 single coil (crappy stock)pickups, you know..your typical strat. Unfortunately came without a gig bag, but what can you expect for so much guitar at so low a price. The tuners look great (I'm really into the vintage look & sound) and are mechanically sound. The bridge looks 30 years old, so for my preferences that is good, and the sustain is great as is the intonation. All in all, this guitar was just what I was looking for.

This guitar is probably as versatile as they come. I usually play it through a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, & it sounds fantastic. On occasion I'll run it through my Korg Pandora effects box to satisfy the distortion addict in me. The original pickups were, well, feces! They were weak, noisy, and not what should have been put on what is otherwise an awesome guitar. This sound problem was quickly solved within 24 hours of my purchase by replacing the pickups with gold lace sensors. For those of you unfamiliar with these pickups...GO AND GET SOME!!! You will not get a better, more versatile, clean & clear sound anywhere!!! They are perfect on this guitar for any style of music. There is nothing I now dislike about this guitar, besides the fact that it is probably better than me. The sound on this Strat went from a 6 to a 10 with the addition of the sensors.

I couldn't find any problems worth mentioning pertaining to the setup, the action was, & still is great. The factory pickups...well...to be quite honest...just didn't jiggle my toggle. The pickup selector on my guitar was very quiet, and is just fine the way it is. With my minor sensor modification, the rating went from a 7 to a 10.

This guitar is a workhorse from A-Z. It is as reliable as they come, stays in tune exceptionally well (but that may be because I've NEVER used the whammy bar..I think they're unnecessary)& sounds fantastic. The only problem I've had was the damned strap button on the neck side. Just recently I noticed it was loose, & after further investigation I saw that the thread wasn't biting or holding its place. This was fixed quite easily by using a slightly thicker screw, & I've had no problems since. One thing I did do was add a little piece of felt between the body & the strap button to prevent scratching my baby.

Fender were very helpful with information about thhis guitar prior to my purchase...yet I don't understand why they don't have an 800 number. After the strap screw came loose...I dealt with Sam Ash & not Fender.

I've been playing for just about two years now. I also own a Washburn Gregg Allman signature EA-27 acoustic-electric which is not getting as much attention as it used to since the purchase of my "68 reissue Strat. It took me a long time to find this guitar at the right price & with the grain that caught my eye, so if it were stolen or lost...I'd be pissed as hell....& go look for another. I love the sound now with the gold lace sensors..much MUCH better than the stocks. This is in my opinion the best looking Strat on the market. The American Standard comes in the natural finish, but looks LAME compared to this one because of the headstock. My last Strat was an American Standard sunburst finish, was more expensive, & definitely did not sound or feel any better tham this one. What is for certain is that it didn't look as good, or warrant the price tag difference. Besides the minor problem with the strap pin...this guitar is a winner!!!

natural finish, 3 single coils, white pickguard, oversize headstock. cheap tuners but they seem to work just fine. you know, a standard strat . Made in Japan

stock pickups are noisy and way too trebly. I play this guitar through a peavey bandit with a danelectro daddy o pedal. I can usually get the sound i want by messing around with it, but i plan to change the pickups as soon as possible. pickup selector is also noisy

this guitar came beautifully setup. The natural finish is flawless. bridge is fine. a fantastic looking insturment.

i have been using this guitar for about three months and it has seemed to hold up fine. The cheap tuners keep it in tune through all kinds of weather and the finish has held up fine. no complaints at all. I think its a good idea to always have a backup.

never dealt with them

this is my third electric guitar. I have been playing for about three years and this is my favorite ive owned. If it were lost or stolen i would definately replace it. i would reccommend a pickup change however.

this one here is prolly one of the first run.... they were first put out in '88. and the neck date was wrote in pencil June '88. Made in Japan of course.... some literature say the body was ash and other say basswood. I'm not quite sure myself. Standard strat accoutrements... S-S-S, vintage style tremelo, 5-way switch, volume and 2 tone knobs. This one is a lefty and the finish is vintage white.... maple neck with 21 vintage size frets and kluson style tuners. All in all.... basic standard stuff for a Strat. Dig that oversized headstock :)

Beautiful sounds this thing can make..... i have it strung for right handed playing. Basically I was looking for a budget version of the Hendrix Tribute Strat..... I just can't see paying a thousand bucks. Stock pickups are rather noisy though.... although they sound much better than the stock crap in Mexican and Korean made Fenders. Mind you.... the mexican ones are a great deal if you can find one cheap..... but if you're after a good sound, gotta get rid of 'em right away! Anyways.... I digress. To my ears, it has a bit more fuller sound than on a stock right handed Strat. And with the bridge PU angled the opposite way, it does indeed change the sound.... creamier highs and twangier lows. I play a lot of Hendrix and Trower and various other classic rock/blues stuff. I run this thru a Vox wah, germanium Fuzz Face, silicon Fuzz Face, Dunlop Uni-Vibe, Ibanez Soundtank TubeScreamer, and out into a Peavey Classic 20. Sometimes sounding a bit shrill, but i accredit that to the amp.... as it has a rep of being trebly..... prolly running that into an extension cab would tame the treble a bit. Only thing I can say that I dislike.... with the controls being on top, they sometimes dig into my forearm. But that I can always adapt to by finding a different place to rest my arm. And about the controls.... I'm still not quite used to 'em being for a lefty... having to turn them the opposite direction.

When I first opened the case, the guitar looked as if it hadn't been played for years. Strings were rusty and 2 were missing; lotsa dust and grime and such also. When I had the nut reversed in order to string it right handed and I finally plugged in, I noticed the tone control for the neck pickup wasn't working properly. Luckily having a spare set of strings, i popped off the pickguard to have a peek. Turned out to be a loose solder joint on the tone pot. Being fairly useful with a soldering iron, I had no trouble fixing that. After all, this is an 11 year old guitar. And also, the neck had a bit of an overbow..... again prolly another thing from not being played in so long. One more thing that kinda bugs me.... the neck joint isn't very tight. On the treble side (now the bass side since it's strung righty) it's tight; but on the treble/bass side, I can slide in about 2 or 3 business cards. Other than that, it was in very very good condition. Only one ding above the pickguard and the frets had virtually no wear on them from what I could spot.

Not sure yet as to whether it would stand playing out.... since I don't yet have a band :/ But as it is, I believe it'll stand hours of me playing on it. I of course wouldn't gig without a backup.... I mean having a spare is always good in case you pop a string while playing or whatever may happen. About the finish... again there was only one lil ding on it from what I seen.... and it being 11 years old, I think it'll stand up for many more years to come.

Seeing as how it's 11 years old, whatever warranty it ever had expired long ago. I've yet to deal with Fender for anything.... so i'll get back to you on this.

I've been playing for 6 years.... and unless I suddenly win the lottery and can buy the real deal Hendrix Tribute, this is the pinnacle for me. Now... that ain't to say this is the ONLY Strat I would ever own. Variety is the spice of life, donchaknow. But for what I like to play and am inspired by, and the tone I'm trying to get, this gets me a LOT closer. If this were ever lost or stolen, I'd be crying in my beer for months.... cuz the '68 reissue is no more.... having been replaced by the mexican made '70s reissue. One thing I particularly love about it is the left-handed tremelo. For me, whenever I used a standard one, my hand would almost always somehow mute the strings whenever I would dive or wiggle it. With the bar being on top, I no longer have that problem. All in all, 360 bucks well spent. Heck, it even came with a hardshell case :)

MADE IN JAPAN, SUNBURST, U-SHAPED MAPLE NECK, SMALL WIRE FRETS. IM NOT SURE ABOUT TYPE OF PICKUPS. LARGE HEADSTOCK LOOKS NICE. THE PLASTIC PEG WINDERS NEED TO BE REPLACED. SYNCHRONIZED TREMOLO. THE GUITAR LOOKS GOOD AND PLAYS WELL THE NECK IS FAST. I PLAY LEFT HANDED AND I GOT THE STRAT PACK SET UP WITH THE GUITAR FOR JUST THE PRICE OF THE GUITAR, SOMETIMES IT IS NICE TO BE A SOUTH PAW.

THE FACTORY PICKUPS SUCKED, AND THE SWITCH MADE A LOT OF NOISE. I REPLACED ALL THE ELECTRONICS WITH DIMARZIO VIRTUAL VINTAGE,BLUES AND HEAVY BLUE AT BRIDGE. NOW ITS QUIET AND HAS A GREAT BLUES TONE. I USE A FENDER DELTA BLUES AMP (30 WATT WITH THE 15" SPEAKER, TUBE COMBO) THE SOUND IS TRUE BLUES. THE PICKUP CHANGE I THINK IS MANDATORY WITH THIS GUITAR NO MATTER WHAT YOU PLAY. OTHER THAN THAT IT IS A WELL BUILT STRAT, ITS SOLID, FAST ACTION, STAYS IN TUNE, THE TREMOLO WORKS GREAT, AND ITS GOT THAT HISTORIC LOOK.

THE FACTORY SET UP WORKED WELL, THE PICK UP SELECTOR WAS VERY NOISY AND THE INPUT WAS LOOSE. AFTER REPLACING THE GUTS I SET IT UP AND ITS A JOY. THE QUILITY ON THE CRAFTMANSHIP SHINES, I JUST DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THE SORRY ELECTRONICS.

IT WILL TAKE LIVE PLAYING, NEVER GIG WITHOUT BACKUP ITS JUST A BAD IDEA. IVE HAD IT OVER A YEAR NOW AND THE FINISH STILL LOOKS FRESH. THE PEGS WILL BE REPLACED AND THATS IT. THE VALUE OF THE GUITAR GOES UP WITH ANY UPGRADES SO ITS WORTH THE MONEY, JUST EXPECT A FEW UPGRADES BEFORE GIGING WITH IT.

NEVER DELT WITH THEM.

IVE BEEN PLAYING FOR 4 YEARS AND THIS WAS MY FIRST ELECTRIC. A FRIEND OF MINE WITH 15+ YEARS HELPED ME PICK IT OUT. I EXPECTED TO REPLACE THE ITEMS I LISTED AND WAS NOT BOTHERED BY THIS, BECAUSE THE PRICE OF THE SAME GUITAR I HAVE NOW WAS A LOT MORE THAN THE UPGRADES COST ME. PLUS I GOT A FREE STRAT PACK, AND THE LITTLE PRACTICE AMP SAVES ME FROM MOVING MY FENDER BACK AND FORTH FROM PRACTICE. I WOULD BY IT ALL OVER IF I HAD TO.