Fender Cyclone

A 99, made in Baja's no-holds-barred pennisula, this little Cherry Bomb is plainly put, "A Blast!." My new 22 fret wonder is a deep Candy Apple, with chrome hardware reminisent of my first "65" Music Master. Slightly larger in frame then the MM, this Cyclone body is slightly rectangular with a nicely carved back keeping a player friendly slant on your body. The laminate is so thick, but still allows the sparkle of the Candy to be seen from across the stage in low light.

The Tex-Mex, Atomic-Humbucker combo is something I'm not used to, but was exactly what I've been looking for in my next guitar. I've been playing Pauls exclusively, using the Fender brand only for my accoustic and recording needs. I've allways wanted a Strat to fullfill that "clean/bluesy" emptiness left by playing only vintage Gibson Humbuckers. This guitar definately delivers. I noticed that a previous reviewer found the Atomic-Humbucker somewhat of an Atom-Dud; I've got to say, "try 'em all before you buy!" Mine rips! I do have to agree that the Tex-mex offset pickup is funky, and sounds inferior to a precision "noiseless" Strat bar, but a slight hieght tweeks will give you a nice standard fender sound.

I kept looking at the Strat standards, playing them and a few Tele's while I waited for new strings to put on the cylcone. They come equipt with .09s, way too light. I went for .10-.52s. I also picked-up my dream MusicMan, and jammed till the sales guy finally came. I honestly preferred the neck size and action (sort-of)of the Cyclone to that of the MusicMan. The maple neck is lightly laminated, giving you that raw wood feel and slide. If you look at enough of these you can find some beautiful neck grains that are normally saved for the top-end Strats and Teles'. There's a sweet rosewood inset up the back of the neck. The one problem myself and others note is the space around the neck fitting and the body. The slight gap needs a thin sheath of neopreen to fill the gap to keep any wax and dust out the neck cavity. I initially found the medium-jumbo fret wires to be a buzz-killer (comparing once again to worn down Les Paul frets), but after Jammin' this morning, found them not to be a bother at all and no buzzing.

I don't know what the body is made out of, but it doesn't matter with the opaque finish. It's light, yet the thousand-layer laquer on this ax offers a great protective shell. I did see the blonde, and natural bodies, but not the black or burst. By far, the sweetest is the Candy Apple, this coming from an all Natural wood player. The blond style was....dirty....had to say it. This body style lets the ax rest well when sitting down at the computer, or plugged into the four track. The head-stock is huge, but thin, reminisent of the old JazzMaster and Mustangs. The tuners I'd rather throw away, and upgrade them with precision tuners. Probably the same for the bridge. I'm used to resting my palm on a Tune-o-Matic. This old-style, bargain priced bridge hurts. It'll let you put blood and sweat into your music if your not carefull. I've never had a wammy before eiher, but if you keep it off, you can get some nice pitch-bends with a little pressure from your palm.

The reviews are nice to read when trying to select a guitar; I read this whole page before I made the trip to pick up my Cyclone. Fender has quietly given the public a great jem for the price. It plays fantasic, more importantly, its fun! Its nice to be professional and jam, but its a groove thing when it makes you feel good when you play it. With a few modifications this guitar could have easilly competed with, and bested a mid-range Strat. I just glad that they didn't and kept the price reasonable. At $389, I got a deal. Balance out the pick-ups though...they're not quite set right.

Pros: Just about everything, ease and payability, plenty of room for signatures, great balance, price
Cons: The Crappy White plastic back plate. HEY FEND

To all the Gibby players out there,
If you want the Strat-Tele sound, but have invested too much into Gibson to afford that "57" Fender, this guitar will deliver. Plus give you the familiar Humbucker ride. Enjoy.

I think this is one guitar that will get handed down or end up attached to the wall in some Hard-Rock Cafe. The tuners will go before anything else. So, keep a new set of tuners on your wish list for Christmas. Everything else on the guitr is solid...just write Fender to get rid of that sheap back plating.

I've never had to deal with Fender on a related support issue, but there are enough authorized dealers to take care of any needs. Maybe replacing the Tex-Mex pick-up before it burns after the warrantee ends would be a good idea.

I've been playing for 31 years, I started young....

I've only played Pauls for electrics, but did start learning with a MusicMaster, this guitar takes me back. Nobody would close enough to steal it, but if they did, I definately beat them with the hard shell finish, tune it up, then play on.

With its tex-mex humbucker and strat singlecoil this guitar rocks. It had a 3way switch witch i usuall kepp in the middle for humbucker and single coil. Teh only disadvantage is there are only two knobs(Volume and Tone).

This guitar sounds great. i does not gt any sounds that i don't want comin out of it. I doesn't even get any sounds aout of my old 15 wat Dean markly amp. curently the effects i usually use is the Korg Ax1G effects proceessor. The combonation of the cyclone and the processor kills.

i have dropped this things from my bed which is about 3 ft. high. O couse not on purpose, but i just picked it up and started playin again. This guitar has been through so much abuse from me, it is amazing that there is still no scraches or dents.

Greatest guitar for the price ever.

this has to be one of the most unique sounding\looking fenders I have seen . Its candy apple red finish and white tortis shell pickguard make a winning combonation

I like to play alot of punk , grunge , and ska, this guitar is in my opinion ideal for any of these types of music when mixed with my DOD grunge pedal, it has the ability for clear bright sound or heavy distortion

The action on this guitar is great, but I'm not to fond of the tremelo. Other than that it was almost as if this guitar was made for me

The only word to describe this guitar is solid. Whenever I go to my freinds house to jam it goes with me, it also goes to school with me sometimes, and it still dosn't have a scratch.

It has a great warrenty ,but I don't think I will need it

I have only been playing for a short period of time , but I have no regrets about buying this insturment

98 made in Mexico with 22 frets, only 2 knobs (1 volume, 1 Tone) but the pickup combinations it sounds very versatile. I absolutly love the 3way selector with it's single coil and humbucker combo. The pickguard does bother me a bit since I can not fit a cover over the humbucker. The rosewood fret board and maple neck feels so comforatbale I can play for hours with out strain. Poplar body gives a comfortable feel and weight and a different sound than usual.

I play alot of rock, progressive, hard, bluesy, classic and this guitar suits all of them! I love Zeppelin and Hendrix and with 2 such unique sounds I thought it would be difficult to find a guitar to cover both of them. The humbucker is amazing, I even lowered mine and slanted it forward its so powerful, I don't care for the single coil (Tex-Mex, uneven magnets) as much because the humbucker easily over powers it and it picks up too much noise so I plan on replacing it with a Fender Vintage Noiseless.

The action is wonderful. It's not so loose that it will buzz like mad when you try to bang out on it but is not in anyway difficult to use any stress what-so-ever! I have adjusted the pickups to fit my own liking and I have fixed the bridge since I don't think it works well with the tremolo at all. The medium jumbo frets were near perfect and play superb. I don't normally care for black but with the tortie pickguard I couldn't refuse (especially since it was the only one in stock). If I could get another I would prefer vintage white with the tortie pickguard. The tuners top it off though, extrodinarilly easy to replace strings and are quite accurate. They take getting used to but I will keep the till replacing is needed.

FANTASTIC! I use this guitar non-stop! Gigging, practice, jam sessions whatever and it never quits or gives me a problem. I heavily depend on it since I have and do gig with out back up with it. If this guitar can withstand MY playing I'm sure it will stand up to most any others as well. The finish is great with its thickness and extra gloss coats, I wish the black wouldnt print so easy but that's expected.

Had this guitar for awhile now and still have'nt had to deal with customer service yet but I'm sure Fender would'nt be much of a problem anyway.

If something were to happen to this guitar I would be heart broken and yes I would instantly get another, but white this time! =) I compared this to a Standard Mexican Strat, an Epiphone Les Paul, and Epiphone G-400 (SG), and Fender Powerhouse Stratocaster. After almost buying the standard Strat my brother pointed out this one and asked if I would atleast play it to find out how it sounded. As soon as I picked it up I fell in love with it and didn't relize that I had pluged into 3 different amps in an hour and a half at the store.

I`m adding to my previous review I submitted a few months ago becuase I know so much more about it than before!!!

I`m WAY impressed at this guitar! Fender did a really good job creating a hybrid of the coolest guitars from it`s past, such as the Mustang, vintage Duo-Sonic, and Jag-Stang, and put on more modern electronics. I don`t want to go into details about the guitar, because everybody else can explain the specs better than I can.

I would rate it at a perfect 10, but it doesn`t have the american standard bridge or better tuners. The vintage-style bridge is really, well, cheap. I can hear the saddles rattle when I`m playing! The bridge also falls out of intonation really fast, too. I don`t think it can handle any strings other than .009s, because .011s lift the bridge high enough to pull back on the bar as if it were a free-floater! The tuners are Ok, but not the best. It takes some time changing strings because they sometimes fall out of the tuners. The whammy-bar seemed a little loose, so I wrapped Teflon tape around the threads for better grip. Also, the pick-guard mounted output gets in the way of the whammy bar so I have to unplug the guitar before I can take the bar off.

Overall, it`s as good as can get in this price range.

I play mostly rock and metal. This might sound crazy, but I`m in the youth worship team at my church so it also has to sound glimmering. I needed a sound that was versitile and reliable. When this is your only guitar, you have to make it sound and do whatever you need. If you can`t play a particular style because it doesn`t have the right tone for it, then it`s no good. The Cyclone is everything but!! The sustain is amazing!!! It can last forever!!!
The Tex Mex in the neck is perfect for the dazzling worship. It`s got the single-coil country quack and perfect balance from lows to highs for great sounding chords and picking. The Atomic humbucker is infact the same DH-1 humbucker used in American Deluxe Fat Strats, just under a different name, so it sounds pretty cool. I learned to love it, and now I can`t live without it!!! Another thing that makes this guitar special, is when you`re playing rythm with the Tex-Mex, with a flip of a switch you`ve got the added output and volume for your solos!!!

Overall, this is great, bright sounding guitar. It can do what you want with it without being pulled back from some styles because of tone. I`ll give it a ten. I love the sound!!!

It looks and sounds cool, but the main thing is feel (trust me, I`ve had a Gibson Thunderbird explorer, the most awkward feeling thing ever). I would have to say, the neck is perfect. It`s 9.5 radius fretboard, just like a strat. The neck also is a bit smaller than a strat, but it feels great to play. The headstock looks fantastic, I just had to tell you. The finish is about a foot thick!!! Sure, you can chip it without noticing. The only way of actually going through the hard-as-a-rock finish is if you slammed it up against the wall or hit it with a sledge.
Everything on this guitar only of the best quality. The factory settings actually were great, unless the guitar shop I got it at previously set it up before I got it. Everything is the best for it`s price...

It`s probably the most reliable guitar on the market. I rest my case

Why would I deal with fender with such a great guitar???
I`ll put a 10 since you don`t even have to bother them at all anyway. It would help us all out if EVERY company, not just guitar, is like this.

It`s one of the best. If it were stolen, I`d go whoop the guy`s butt and get my guitar back. Then I`ll buy another one for the heck of it. Heck, when things are this good, why not go all the way???

Mexican - made Fender Deluxe series guitar. It has a humbucker in the bridge and a Tex - Mex single coil in the neck. A 22 fret, 24.75" scale neck with a rosewood fingerboard, a contoured body like a Strat, but shaped like a Duo - Sonic or Mustang. It has a vintage style Fender Stratocaster synchronized string through trem block vibrato, vintage style tuners. The truss rod adjuster is at the headstock end. It comes in a deluxe gig bag. Made in 1999 - Candy Apple red polyurethane finish like a rock, a three way Les Paul - like pickup switch, and a master volume and tone control mounted on a Jazz Bass / Mustang chrome plate. W/B/W pearl laminated pickguard

This guitar is great for those into the Mustang vibe. My first guitar was a Fender Mustang, and this is very reminiscent of it, without the crappy vibrato found on the Mustangs. This one stays in tune, especially after I removed the screwed down to headstock string tree and replaced it with a Fender American Standard's Easy Glide tree. What this accomplished was a little less downward force on the two high strings, so that there was less chance of binding at the tree and the nut. I always suggest polishing your nut slots anyway, to remove burrs and square edges. Just don't mess with the leading edge of the nut, or you may mess up your intonation, and don't widen the slot by much. I also replaced the neck Tex - Mex Strat pickup with a Dimarzio Chopper pickup. The stock neck pickup is about half the output level of the bridge humbucker, my only complaint about the guitar, but one problem I anticipated and corrected. This is a very cool guitar. I own a bunch of Strats and yet this is one Fender that you can kind of develop your own thing with. With the new Dimarzio pickup in the neck, the balance between the two pickups is tremendous, as well as a dramatic difference in tone, but not power. I play thru a Boogie Mark IV and a Marshall cabinet, and this guitar just blew the Strat away for the evening! I got some tremendous, "rippy" tones on the bridge pickup, and some fat, round "sweet tones on the neck setting. Together, they sounded a bit like a blend. The guitar is light, yet solid, and it plays tremendously. The Mexican Fender factory employees have done a lot of great things, and the quality is always consistent and just what you'd expect.

I don't generally judge the factory setup, because I have found that you almost always have to make adjustments, whether due to shipping changes or whatever. It was playable and he intonation was close. The pickups were low by acceptable standards, and the pickguard, neck and all have very good workmanship on them. The red finish is superb, and the neck has a satin finish that doesn't stick to most dental work!

This is a cool, no frills guitar. It looks good, will last forever, and I hope to see it become one that some famous sucker will endorse and perpetuate to a commonly used and sought - after instrument. It really does the trick of combining the best of the old and the best of the other old to make a very functional and nifty little axe.

Fender is, was and has always been a great bunch to deal with. If you are disgruntled, call Bob or email him at Fender Customer Service. He's the man, and will get your problems, if any, squared away for you pronto!

I have played since 1971, and am an obvious Fender fanatic. I can't find any complaint other than the weaker neck pickup. I put a Seymour Duncan JB Jr. in there first, and it was weak compared to the Fender Humbucker too. I like Dimarzio pickups for replacments, when needed. I like the sustain, feel and general cool trip back to age fifteen that I get from this guitar. You can easily play it all night or use it on a few songs. The vibrato unit stayed in tune very well after some tweaking, but you have to leave it floating, as with any other. The ones that let it lie flat on the body when not used save themselves from going out of tune if they break a string - but you'll never be able to play and stay in tune unless you leave room to give the bar a tug and raise that 12th fret G string harmonic at least a whole step. Doing that "tug" after using the vibrato bar will pull your strings back to in tune, especially if you:
1) Stretch your new strings thoroughly before attempting to play out
2) Tug the bar once before tuning it to play. This sets the point of reference.
3) Make sure you have eliminated the binding at the nut and string tree(s).

If I had a wish on this guitar it would be
1) Better string tree
2) Hotter neck pickup as stock
3) Option of all maple neck
4) An option for stock locking tuners and an LSR roller nut
5) A Tele or Strat - style pickup knife switch
6) A snap - in trem arm
This is a serious guitar that could be made even more serious with some upgrading, and very little at that. I like it!!!

I bought this guitar in hope of finding something like a jag-stang, since they don't sell them anymore (damn you Fender), and something I could upgrade to a versatile punk-rock/ grunge guitar. It has 22 frets, a humbucker in the bridge, single coil neck, and a strat tailpiece. Mine is in candy apple red, and I bought it brand-new from Musicians Friend. I'll describe my many upgrades later. The guitar itself really didn't need many upgrades when I bought it, so I'll give it an eight

The only thing that really got me angry was the half-life humbucker. Really, if you're gonna put a humbucker in, put something in that's worthwhile. I immediately changed it to a Seymour Duncan JB, like Kurts, and that really skyrocketed the sound rating. Next, I took out the single-coil, and put in a DiMarzio V. Vintage p/u. I loved it for the lead tone and bluesy feel it gave my guitar. Before the upgrades, I'd give it a 5, but now it is definetly a 10!

The guitar was set up pretty good when it came in the mail, and the action was decent. The finish on the guitar was great! Like a sheet of clear iron over the paint. I changed the black selector knobs to tele/p-bass type chrome, and then when I changed the p/u's, they were balck so the guitar itself looks like a modified mustang, except for that damn strat pickguard and tailpiece. speaking of the pickguard, it was loose at first, so I took it into the shop and they fixed it with new screws (the ones that came with it were either too small or cheap) I love this guitar now!

This guitar would definetly withstand live playing! It's like a brick house! The hardware will last the next thousand years, and I would definetly be able to gig with this w/o a backup! The strap buttons needed to be replaced, but most Fenders have that problem anyways.

never dealt with Fender

I've been playing for a year or two now, and this is my second electric I've bought, other than my strat. The cyclone is a great guitar for anyone looking to get into punk or grunge. If this guitar were stolen, I would hunt down the thief and pummel him with my guitar, because it still wouldn't break even after using it as a club! I wish this guitar had more of the mustang in it, like the pickguard and the short neck. I played the jag-stang once, and the cyclone took someo of it and more of the mustang and made the cyuclone. Kurt made a good guitar with the jag-stang, but someone took a little more time with the cyclone and really made a great guitar!

Well my cyclone is a one of the quite new Mexican Deluxe line along witht he Toronado. Its Black with a brown shell pickgaurd....which is rather good looking. Its got a 3-way switch on for the humbucker then both then the single coil. It has a Tone and a Volume control and the jack all mounted on a nice chrome plate. The pickups are a fender Atomic Humbucker and a tex-mex single coil. Its passive, made of poplar with a maple neck [i think] Its very much a Duo-Sonic/Mustang style body.....basically a mustang with a humbucker, strat tremolo and a different neck. The neck is nice and thin and short. Came w/gig bag which is well padded, got nice pockets...two zips, essential for locking.

I play stuff from blues to grunge/alternative.....Its got a nice blues tone on the Tex-Mex that single coil really has a nice sound although as it was said it is quieter than the humbucker. But really nice tone i like it. The Atomic humbucker isnt quite as great. Its a bit too muddy and generally not very good. Im gonna replace it with a Dimarzio super distortion in the future. The sounds it can make are quite variable with the single coil good for a bluesy sound or rythum and the humbucker is better for leads otherwise its a bit saturated on chords. So i like the Tex-Mex but not the humbucker as much....its ok but id like something a bit better.

Well i got it set up nicely...whether that was factory or Coda Music where i got it i dont know.The action was goodand the neck felt nice. Yes my guitar has a flaw....it buzzes....is this normal for a cylcone because my old epi didnt buzz. It only buzzes when i have no fingers on the strings or tremolo arm im not sure if this means the guitar isnt earthed properly or something. Ill sort it out some time. Nice finish etc.

It seems reliable enough and like it will last. The strap buttons are okay but i have lost my strap a few times althought thats partly the old strap.

Dont know but i hear bad things of them.

I've been playing over a year and this is my second guitar. I had a epiphone LP Standard but i traded it in against the cyclone. is should have checked this buzzing out at the store but id idnt notice it. The shape and neck are my dream i love mustangs but cant get them easily or cheaply in the UK so this came close. I play it thru my BOSS OS-2 [nice pedal] into a park G10 amp [ a bit crap but its pkay w/pedal] Very nice feel, weight etc....wish it had a better humbucker and came in sonic blue :)

I`m WAY impressed at this guitar! Fender did a really good job creating a hybrid of the coolest guitars from it`s past, such as the Mustang, vintage Duo-Sonic, and Jag-Stang, and put on more modern electronics. I don`t want to go into details about the guitar, except that it is a `99, cost $250, and came with a bag and NEVER BEEN PLAYED, because it`s in all the other reviews.
I would rate it at a perfect 10, but it doesn`t have the american standard bridge or better tuners. Overall, it`s as good as can get in this price range.

I play mostly rock and metal. This might sound crazy, but I`m in the youth worship team at my church so it also has to sound glimmering. I needed a sound that was versitile and reliable. When this is your only guitar, you have to make it sound whatever you need. If you can`t play something because it doesn`t have the right sound for it, then it`s no good. The Cyclone is everything but!! The sustain is amazing!!! It can last forever!!!
The Tex Mex in the neck is perfect for the dazzling worship. It`s got the single-coil country quack and perfect balance from lows to highs for great sounding chords and picking.
The atomic humbucker is great for metal, I guess. It`s extremely bassy and a bit muddy and barely enough output to put out a little grind. The lows overpower the highs too much and the mids aren`t enough for me.
Overall, this is great, bright sounding guitar. It can do what you want with it without being pulled back from some styles because of tone. I`ll give it a nine. It would be perfect ten, but the atomic humbucker is way too bassy, for me that is...

It looks and sounds cool, but the main thing is feel (trust me, I`ve had a Gibson Thunderbird explorer, the most awkward feeling thing ever). I would have to say, the neck is perfect. It`s 9.5 radius fretboard, just like a strat. The neck also is a bit smaller than a strat, but it feels great to play. The headstock looks fantastic, I just had to tell you. The finish is about a foot thick!!! Sure, you can chip it without noticing. The only way of actually going through the hard-as-a-rock finish is if you slammed it up against the wall or hit it with a sledge.
Everything on this guitar only of the best quality. The factory settings actually were great, unless the guitar shop I got it at previously set it up before I got it. Everything is the best for it`s price...

It`s probably the most reliable guitar on the market. I rest my case

Why would I deal with fender with such a great guitar???
I`ll put a 10 since you don`t even have to bother them at all anyway. It would help us all out if EVERY company, not just guitar, was like this.

It`s one of the best. If it were stolen, I`d go whoop the guy`s ass and get my guitar back. Then I`ll buy another one for the heck of it. Hell, when things are this good, why not go all the way???

Made in Mexico 1998 candy apple red with maple neck, rosewood fingerboard, 24.75" scale with 22 medium-jumbo frets. The headstock has the original Jazzmaster design which has to be the most beautiful headstock by Fender. Body is poplar. Vintage strat tremolo, vintage tuners, pearloid white pickguard, three way toggle switch, zebra Fendr Atomic humbucker in the bridge position and a Tex-Mex Strat neck pickup.
The body style resembles a Mustang, in fact the dimensions are almost the same, and the pickguard desing resembles a Strat's.
Comes with a Fender deluxe gig bag.
I really like it!!

I play punk, alternative, heavey metal, classic and pop rock. It is nice and the scale is very easy to use: not as big as a Strat not small like a Jagusr or Mustang. A good in between, plus the 9.5 radius fretboard is nice and easy.
Dislikes: the bridge pickup. If this is atomic, it as got to be past it's half life. it is weak, weak, weak. It did surprise me though, it is actually has a four conductor cable. I replaced it immediately with a DiMarzio Super Distortion.
With the stock pick-up it rates at seven, but after replacement... 10!

I bought it used so either the factory setting was not touched or the previous owner did not know jack about setting up a guitar. the action was terribly low, it buzzed constantly, the neck was absolutely straight, no relief, the intonation was way, way off, and Fender insists in using .09's, which have got to be the worst string gauge out there.
The toggle switch has very short threading so if you use the spacer under the nut, the switch will not click completely: doesn't allow one pickup to be selected alone. So I took off the spacer. Now the switch travels completely.
Now here comes the freaky part: I bought it at an auction. It still had the plastic lining of the tremolo spring cover, came with all the decals and tags. It was a special order that went bad. Apparently it came messed up from Fender. The tone pot didn't work, it went dead ocassionaly, I know because the people at the auction left the work orders in the gig bag. I guess the previous owner got fed up and left the poor guitar behind and got his money back. I got it in perfect working condition
I could not find any finish flaws: no wear!!!!! The routing is very nice and clean, better than Japanese or Korean guitars, and the finish is just lucious.

The only thing that makes me wonder regarding reliability is the neck pocket. The neck does not fit very tight. I solved this by putting a piece of metal screen material, between the neck and body, cut the same size as the neck pocket so that the neck doesn't move.
I've used it, abused it jumped with it, sling it around my shoulder and it is still in one piece. I always use strap locks. The tuners got replaced for Kluson style locking tuners.
Yeah, I'd use it without backup. Fender has always been very reliable. I own a myriad of Fenders, American, Japanese and Mexican, and never had any trouble with them.

I've dealt with Fender regarding other guitars and they have always been very helpful. It comes with limited lifetime warranty, but I,ve already altered it so that's that.

I've been playing for a while now. I really like Fenders and when I saw this guitar I was curious since I own a Jag-Stang that has the Mustang trem and it is a pain in the butt if you don't set it up right. I liked the desing and features so I tried one and casually found this one in the auction so I bid on it and won.
I really like it with the mods I've made and I would definitely kick the thief's ass and take back my guitar. If not, I would definitely buy it again and probably new.
If you like the Mustang but dislike the tremolo this guitar is for you. It does everything well as long as you change the bridge pickup.
I really really like it.