When you decide to purchase Fender vintage guitars, a little research will go a long way in helping you decide which instrument to buy. While any Fender instrument is a good instrument, whether vintage or new, the most collectible ones were created before CBS purchased the Fender Company and changed their guitars. CBS purchased the company in 1965, so by the end of the year the instruments produced by Fender had changed a great deal. The best guitars for collectors were those created before 1966.
Part of the appeal of Fender vintage guitars was that they were known as custom-contoured and exceedingly well-made. Once CBS took over the company, the bodies looked different and lost that sculpted look that set the appearance of Fender vintage guitars apart from the rest. The Fender Stratocaster, one of the most desirable Fender vintage guitars sought by collectors today, was even changed with the move to the large peg head style.
Other changes that made the instruments less desirable were the switch from Brazilian rosewood to Indian rosewood, pearl inlays, polyurethane, and new and cheaper looking plastics. With CBS came mass production with its cheaper materials to maximize profits, ruining the classic look and feel of Fender vintage guitars produced after 1965. So collectors today prefer the early guitars particularly those from the 1950s. This is when the guitars were made with maple necks from one piece of wood and came with plain tweed cases. The emphasis was on the quality of the instrument, not how to crank more out to make more money.
The Fender vintage guitars produced in the early 1960s before CBS purchased the company are also collectible, just not to the same degrees as those manufactured in the 1950s. Of these guitars, which were produced with rosewood fingerboards, the earlier models with slab-style fingerboards are the most desirable. These were produced from about 1958 through August of 1962. The least collectible Fender vintage guitars are those produced during the transition to CBS ownership and management, from about summer 1964 to December of the following year.
The first Fender vintage guitars were the Esquire, the Broadcaster and the Telecaster, the last two of which were actually virtually the same guitar. The first Esquires were introduced in June 1950 and discontinued by September of that same year. In October of 1950 they released the Broadcaster with two pickups and the truss rod that was missing in the Esquire and causing the necks to warp. The early Esquire had two pickups, and when it was re-released in early 1951 as another model of Broadcaster, it only had one, so the two pickup models, because of their rarity (only about 50 were shipped) are highly collectible.
Then by February of 1951, they renamed the Broadcaster as the Telecaster. The first Telecasters lack a Telecaster decal because of a naming conflict, but the decal appeared on the instruments starting in the summer of 1951. This guitar, and their 1954 creation of the Stratocaster, actually served to popularize the solid-bodied electric guitar and are sought out by those collect Fender vintage guitars.
The Stratocaster had three pickups, a unique contour designed for playing comfort, and a perfectly designed tremolo bar. These have been continually manufactured since they were first introduced, and are the instrument that all others are judged against. A Stratocaster, particularly one with a custom color finish, is one of the most highly collectible Fender vintage guitars you can find today. But these Fender vintage guitars in their popular colors like Sunburst are also prized by collectors.
Another one of the most valuable Fender vintage guitars is the first fretted electric bass, the Precision Bass model. This instrument set the standard for all other bass instruments. Also the early tweed-covered amps, particularly those with multiple speakers like the Bassman with its 4 10-inch speakers and four inputs, are highly collectible.
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