Just as it had for the 25th anniversary of 1979, during the CBS era, the new management of Fender decided to celebrate 35 years of its flagship guitar with a new Anniversary Stratocaster.
The 1989 35th Anniversary Stratocaster was made by the newborn Custom Shop and was inspired by the Strat Plus and the Elite: in fact the new guitar had Lace Sensor Silver pickups, locking tuning machines, TBX and MDX.
A mini toggle switch put between the two tone knobs allowed the selection of the active or passive electronics (just like that of the very first models/prototypes of the Clapton and which the guitarist rejected at the last moment).
The bridge was the 2-pivot with block saddles.
The woods had been selected to make the Anniversary Stratocaster unique. The twenty-two fret birds-eye maple neck was paired with an ebony fretboard with abalone fret-markers; the body featured a figured maple top (curly or quilted) with an Antique Sunburst finish. The top was very thick because Fender did not specialize in top bending.
The original nut, a Wilkinson Roller Nut, was almost immediately replaced with a Teflon one.
500 units, all numbered on the back of the headstock, were sold between 1989 and 1990. The guitar, accompanied by a certificate of authenticity, would have been the “base” for the future Strat Ultra, another obvious sign of the intense collaboration between the Custom Shop and the Research & Development department of Fender.
The 1989 35th Anniversary Stratocaster was made by the newborn Custom Shop and was inspired by the Strat Plus and the Elite: in fact the new guitar had Lace Sensor Silver pickups, locking tuning machines, TBX and MDX.
A mini toggle switch put between the two tone knobs allowed the selection of the active or passive electronics (just like that of the very first models/prototypes of the Clapton and which the guitarist rejected at the last moment).
The bridge was the 2-pivot with block saddles.
The woods had been selected to make the Anniversary Stratocaster unique. The twenty-two fret birds-eye maple neck was paired with an ebony fretboard with abalone fret-markers; the body featured a figured maple top (curly or quilted) with an Antique Sunburst finish. The top was very thick because Fender did not specialize in top bending.
The original nut, a Wilkinson Roller Nut, was almost immediately replaced with a Teflon one.
500 units, all numbered on the back of the headstock, were sold between 1989 and 1990. The guitar, accompanied by a certificate of authenticity, would have been the “base” for the future Strat Ultra, another obvious sign of the intense collaboration between the Custom Shop and the Research & Development department of Fender.
Antonio Calvosa
35th anniversary Stratocaster
