Fender Highway 1 Strat

The features are what drew me to this guitar. 9 1/2" radius fingerboard, C shape neck, jumbo frets and a nice light weight and lightly finished body. That's a winner! I can't stand these 12" flat necks and tiny frets and bodys that weigh a ton! Fender has got it right here.

I need more time through my gig rig, but so far so good at home.

This was so cool... This guitar was right out of the box! It is set up great! I really can't believe it. The tremolo works fantastic! It has 9's on it, I need 10's or bigger. No biggie...

I was very impressed with the feel of the instrument, you know how you can just feel it sometimes, that the quaility is good. I believe that I will be playing this guitar for many gigs in the future.

Ha! Yeah, right!

I've been playing for a living for 30 years, went on the road for the first time in 1977. This is my fourth Strat, I also own Gibsons, Ibanez, Washburns etc... The Fender's are number one. If it were stolen and I could afford to but another... Yes! I would, where elas are you gonna' find a neck like that with jumbo frets already installed? I allways check out the new Fenders where ever I am. I might just pick them up and set them down again, because they weigh a ton and have the terrible bullet proof finish and tiny frets. But this guitar is differant, very differant. The Jimmie Vaughans are impressive also, well just the neck and the electronics... the body sucks... and weighs a ton... no tone. But this guitar is complete.

This is a 2005 american strat 3 colour sunburst with a rosewood fingerboard

sounds great bit noisey but all strats are sound exactly like a full price strat i was about to pay 1400$ for one and then i saw this one and i liked it better

it was set up great i havent really changed it yet i just set the neck to the curve i like it at

this would defenetily survive for a long time i wish the paint would come off faster thou that would look really cool

i cant really depend on it scince the pickups broke and the neck exploded but they were repaired under warrenty and upgraded because it souldnt of heppend or something i forgot exactly what they said

when i brought it in to get repaird fender sent me a letter apologizing for the inconvinience and stated that texas specials and a more expensive neck were put on

ive been playing around 2 years but ppl always think ive been playing my entire life i use a fender bassman and an fender FM100H with a marshall cab with 25watt greenbacks i would definatly buy it again because of its low cost im accually gonna order one in about a week as a christmass preasnt for me great overall guitar thou

This was a stock Highway 1. The Fender web site has all of the particulars of this model. The big changes from the American Standard are the pickups, the bridge/tremolo, and the satin finish. I peronally like the 6 point tremolo. I find that it stays in tune much better than my American made 2 point. I hear people say that the satin finish helps to add to the tone. I have both American Standard with polyurethane finish, and this one with the satin finish, and I can't tell the difference. Mine has the maple neck, and I absolutely live it! The stock pickups weren't that bad, but I switched them out to a Pete Biltoff assembly.

I run this through a Fender Blues Deville. The only pedal that I use is an Ibanez TS-9 Tube Screamer. The guitar had a good tone, but my American Standard had the same basic tone. I figured that because this guitar wasn't that expensive, I'd change the pickups. After extensive research, I settled on a Pete Biltoff (Vintage Vibe Guitars) Stratocaster pickgurd/pickup assembly. All of the pickups were hand wound to 5% over what a typical strat pickup is. I just wanted a little extra umph! After installing this assembly into the guitar, the difference was night and day. These pickups made this guitar come alive! I can't believe that a guitar could sound this good. It's now, very well balanced.

I bought this guitar used, but it was obvious that this guitar was used very little, if at all. When I got it, the setup was alright, but I tweaked it a bit to my liking. I didn't have to adjust the neck. It came straight as an arrow. The finish was perfect. You either like this finish, or you don't. It grew on me, and now I like it. Not a lot of light reflection. The only thing that I don't like about this guitar, is that the vibrato arm is to short height wise from the body. And I mean it's way to short. It hits the body. Do yourself a favor, and buy a different arm.

I haven't had this long enough to test its reliability. I use it mainly for recording. The neck is a tested design, it's just the satin finish that worries me. But, I didn't buy it to keep it pristine, I bought it to play. So far, so good

I've never had to deal with Fender

I've been playing for about 30 years. I mainly play Gibsons. I just needed a Fender for tonal variety during recording sessions. After installing the pickups, I haven't touched my American Standard. And, this thing plays better than my American Standard. I bought this guitar because it was cheap, and I knew that I wanted to butcher it up. After playing it for about a month, I knew that I wasn't going to make many changes...so I just changed out the pickups. The bridge/tremolo is extremely similar to a '69 Strat that I had owned. I always liked that setup. The American Standard 2 point goes out of tune way to easily. Now, like any guitar, you've got to play them all to see what you like. I bought this in the blind, and just got lucky. Would I replace it if it were stolen? Let's just say that I also have a Mexican Strat that I would use in place of it. Yes, the Mexican made Strat plays just as well as my Americans. I'd just change the pickguard assembly. Nobody would be able to tell the difference. And as far as playability go, they play the same.

This is a 2005 Hwy 1 in translucent blonde (beautiful).
Alder body
Maple neck with modern C shape
Maple fretboard
Chrome hardware
Cast/sealed tuning machines
Vintage-style synchronized tremolo
3 Alnico 5 single-coil Strat pickups
5-way pickup switching
3-ply parchment pickguard
Master volume
Tone 1 (neck pickup)
Tone 2 (middle pickup)
Greasebucket tone circuit on bridge pickup

I love the sound of this guitar, very clean when you want it to be yet can get as dirty as a pig eating slop. It suits mt style quite well. It is very quiet an all positions, or quieter than I expected it to be so I am quite pleased. I tried a few other Strats but this one sounded cleaner, fuller, kinda in your face sound that isn't harsh or muddy... in a word ...NICE.

So far I haven't found a single flaw... I have owned several Strats in the past, including a very expensive Custom Shop model and this one "feels" almost as good as those did. I paid 1600.00 for a Strat that was very nice, had all the bells and whistles like a LSR nut, locking tuners, a set neck with sculpted heel, TBX... and while those were great they didn't make the guitar. If I sit and play this thing with my eyes closed, I would swear I am playing a much more expensive guitar. This is absolute value for your money.... The set up was great off the shelf, but I did raise the action a bit and blocked the bridge. Other than that, I don't think I would change a thing.

Should last as well as any Strat out there.

Never used it.

I've been playing for 17 years. I own a number of Vox amps and a couple of other guitars. If this were lost or stolen I would cry! I would definitely buy another one! It is without a doubt the best guitar I have ever owned! I believe it is the best value on the market.
I understand from friends who work at GC that they can't keep these in stock--the word is getting out!

This guitar was manufactured in Sept. 2005. The finish on this looks and resonates very well. It has a vintage blonde satin nitrocellulose lacquer finish. This is a very comfortable and lightweight guitar USA made guitar. I'd guess about 6 pounds. It has a maple one piece neck and fretboard with 22 medium jumbo frets.
This pickup configuration is S-S-S. Non-locking ping tuners that work very well, even with heavy trem action. It has a 5-position selector switch, and the greasebucket tone circuit that allows you to roll off some of the treble, without adding bass. This is a very nice feature, but took me a couple of months to get used to because I've always run both tones wide open.

The pickups on this guitar produce a more round tone that can sound glassy and great with high gain. The thin nitrocellulose lacquer finish lets the body wood's natural tone shine through.

The setup wasn't bad, but I adjusted and tweaked the string height and pickup height to my liking.

This is a very durable, quality USA made Fender Stratocaster and is the REAL DEAL !

Fender's website is great for provided specs and their customer service is tops.

I've been playing for 40 years and have 9 Strats currently. This one is my "go-to" guitar lately and I may need to thin the heard and buy another one with a S-S-H configuration. The backs of these necks are so smooth and no fret sprout at all. Just very comfortable guitars.

US Made Standard Strat. Satin Teal Blue finish. The finish is not nitro celluose. It is acrylic. Not a very tough or pretty finish. Maple neck and fretboard. 2004 model. It was new, on closeout.

Disappointing sound. Weak strat sounds. Has some hum. Hard to find an amp it sounds good through. Tried a Marshall JCM tube, Marshall MG series, Roland.

Action was ok factory set, but not great. I can't say there were any noticeable defects from the factory.

Guitar does not stay in tune. Finish is very thin matte acrylic finish. It started to wear off immediately. The finish was advertised as thin so as to let the resonance come out of the wood, but I don't think it is very resonant at all.

New with factory warranty. The guitar fell on its face on carpet at home while resting on a couch. It surprisingly was dented in several places and the finish came off. I wrote Fender and asked them if they had any touchup paint. They wrote back after a month and said there was no touch up paint and I should bring it to an autobody shop if I wanted it to get touched up. I may as well get the auto shop to paint flames on it. Disappointing experience with customer service.

Been playing a long time and have several Strats. The guitar was on close out so I bought it since it was US made. Sorry folks, I don't think US made nowadays is that great a difference compared to Mexican, Japanese or korean strats I can say I have had better playing experience with a cheap Japanese made Squier than this Strat. Not a favorite guitar of mine. Maybe I should pay someone to steal it. If I keep the guitar i will refinish or strip the finish, which is worn and ugly already and change the pickups to something hotter.

It is a basic American made guitar with a 3 color sunburst finish. The tuners are standard and the pick ups and bridge vintage style. The neck is Rosewood with 22 frets.

It sounds great. To get great sound as always with a Fender turn it up. The Greasebucket Technology works great to roll the highs off a little with out losing tone. It makes the guitar more versitile. I use it thru a Triggerman 60 with an Akai Headrush 2 and a Little Big Muff. My 2006 model is not as noisy as I expected on full volume.

The guitar was set up poorley. Alot of fret buzz. I had to adjust the neck slightly and set the action a little higher. Doing this one of the fret saddle adjustment screws was stripped on the inside from the factory,I could not turn it. It has a vintage bridge which I like but use good strings to keep it in tune. The Finish, 3 color, is thin on mine but it will in time give the guitar a "used" not abused look I think. I love the rosewood neck it feels and plays great when adjusted properly or to an individuals likeing. The knobs and switches are all fine.

Thius guitar should last along time. If you are going to use it as a working guitar it should hold up great. I just had the guitar for a month but I would bet it will be very dependable. Like I said the finish should wear nicely and give it character.

I had to have Fender send me a new saddle. They responded promptley. I have to do the work myself or give it to my Gibson guys to fix. The authorized Fender dealers in my area I would not trust, thru my experience, with a 5 dollar uke.

I have been playing fo 20 years mostly accoustic. Over the last year I decided to play electric. I also bought a mim Tele and it is great. I also have a 1983 Pre-Fender Guild D15 made in America and a Beatiful Les-Paul Classic Plus by Epiphone made in China. The Guild is my work horse but I know this Highway 1 will soon gain my confidence and be my # 2 guitar.

Regular usa built Strat. Guitar has a thin Laquer finish though. Some like this some don't. I do since it lends to the TONE!

Awesome, I bought a new HWY-1 with the Greasebucket circuit. The guitar was built in Sept of 05 which is a month or so after the Dual Tone-Pot circuit Upgrade. The guitar sounds awesome and its VERY easy to find a great tone on any position 1-5. Roll the Tone back and the Highs sound crystal clear with NO-MUFFLED sound!

I hand-picked the Strat. so its a dead-on guitar. I suppose buying on-line might cause a surprize or two but I bought it in person. Everything about the guitar is superb. I like the older style hardware as opposed to the Amer. Serie/s so the older style Trem etc etc are right up my alley! My Strat is Blonde w/Rosewood board. Its very pretty. Nice grain pattern showing through, 2-piece body, nice DARK rosewood board that plays flawless, Spectacular fret job. Only thing the guitar needed was a set-up and intonation tweaked. I added a FENDER Shell Guard as I always wanted a Strat in the Blonde/Shell combo with a rosewood board. Very LEO looking! Anyway I see NO flaws on the finish of this STRAT, Neck pocket, string-path, all is done well!

COME COME STRATOASTERS? They are basically indestructable!!!

Never dealt with FENDER? Never had to!

Been gigging since the 60's. Been a Fender since then. I play Fenders, Gibsons, and Hamer's. I run them through Blackface and Silverface Amps. basically use a TS9 and a 535Dunlop Wah. I found a keeper in this Strat. The weight, balence, tone, playability, finish on this guitar are all Superb. I actually prefer 61-62 c-shape necks[SRV and Cray] that have heel Truss-Rod adjustments. But the HWY-1 and Amer. Serie's necks are very comfortable to play and are right there with the FASTEST necks I ever played. As you can tell I am VERY HAPPY with this Strat. I saw it in Sam Ash, and played next to many Strats. It was the best built Strat in the store and played super. I didn't buy it that day, but thought I should get back before it go's since it was so nice. The good one's GO-FAST! I am anxoius to see the NEW NAMM Aug 06 HWY-1 Upgraded HWY-1 Strat with the Large Headstock and AlnicoIII pups! If its anywere close to this I WILL BUY another one!!!

Most of this stuff is common knowledge. Alder body, maple neck, mine has a rosewood fingerboard, 22 medium jumbo frets, vintage strat bridge, 3 single coil pickups. The body appears to be 3 piece alder, which is fine at this price point. Came with a gig bag instead of a hardshell case.

This is a strat all the way. The pickups sound good, but I'm not a fan of the vintage staggered magnets - though the vintage vibe is what Fender was after with this guitar. These single coils are as noisy as any single coil can get, but the tone is good. However, I swapped out the stock pickups for a set of Lollar Blackface, big improvement. For the price point, this guitar rocks. An American-made strat for about $600, can't beat that.

This guitar played quite well right out of the box, I'm impressed. Action was decent, pickups were adjusted properly, and all the hardware good and tight. I will say the fretwork was VERY good. Some of the better fretwork I've seen on a production guitar.

This guitar feels right. Very solid construction, hardware is high quality. The finish is thinner than most other strats, which is what I wanted. However it could wear through easier than a heavier finish that's more the norm. I would gig it without a backup, but I almost always take 2 or more guitars on a job anyway.

Don't know. Haven't tried to contact them recently. This is the first Fender that I've owned in a very long time, so time will tell. I will say that many years ago, I had good experiences with Fender customer support.

I've been playing for about 30+ years, own G&L, Hamer, Gibson, Heritage, and an Ibanez. I'd definitely replace this guitar if it turned up missing. There's nothing I hate about it, though I might like their 2-point tremolo better. However, all things considered, a great instrument, especially for the dough. I compared this guitar to a Fender American standard. I liked the Standard 2-point tremolo better than the Highway's vintage tremolo bridge. But I didn't much like the "rolled edges" on the Standard's fretwork, which just takes away playing surface. So, the Highway One is an extremely good value in my book.

I own this guitar and I can say that I absolutely love it. It has a standard S/S/S configuration, bla bla. It was set up really well by the luthier at the shop in bucharest, but i ruined the intonation by simply buying different gauge strings. Fixed it easy as pie. Has a maple neck.

Mine has a blue finish, I'm warning you this one has a really really thin finnish it will wear off very quickly. I like this, but most people might want a shiny guitar.

It was noisy like all single coil strats. You are usually supposed to accept this but I couldn't so I bought Fender Noiseless PIckups and now it sounds awesome with absolutely no noise. The pickups aren't as strong as the old ones but I LOVE them. The guitar sounds beautiful. Soaring high tones and rumbling lows.

Beautiful. The luthier arranged it perfectly when i bought it. No flaws.

I haven't really dropped it, not even once cause it's a fender and i really care about it, but the finish wears off quickly and it already has lots of dents and parts where the paint is coming off. I like it :D the buttons and switch are good.

Never had to contact them but the fender website is awesome.

Amazing guitar. Not as good as an american ofcourse, but it still is good, and perfect for playing gigs. This is not a toy!! :D