shortymcsteve
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- Aug 23, 2021
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Hi,
Some time in the early 80's my dad purchased what he believed to be a 57' reissue Fender Stratocaster made in the Fullerton factory. The man he bought it from claimed it was purchased in London before making its way to Scotland.
In 2009 I decided to inspect the guitar and realised some things didn't add up. At the time I posted pictures on the Fender forum asking for help to ID the guitar and that's when I realised that it was a Tokai! Recently my dad asked me some questions about the guitar again, so I decided to take a look and I now understand a lot more thanks to this forum. But I would appreciate if anyone could weigh in and answer some questions I have or correct me.
My dad thinks he bought this guitar some time between 81-83, but I know that Fender were struggling to release the 57' reissues in 82. So it would have to be after that. Probably late 82-83 if he thought he was buying the real deal.
From what I can see by checking the catalogues, the first time Flamingo Orange (FO) shows up is 1981 as colour choice for the ST50, 60, & 80. After that It's kind of hard to see FO listed until the 1985 catalog which features the TST50, 55, & 60. The TST55 is the only one available in FO.
I have a bunch of questions to I'll note them all below:
- Does anyone know the earliest known time FO was available as a colour?
- What kind of finish would this be?
- I know the serial number on the back relates to the Fenders they were trying to copy, but when did this start/stop?
- What's the story behind tokai/deluxe written on the back of the tuners? In some of the catalogues they show drawings of the tuners with Tokai written on them, and I read the story about Fender using a Tokai in 82' on their own promo material which was identified by these tuners. But my dads guitar features the word 'Deluxe', and I've come across a few others with this too.
- What wood would be used around this time? The 1985 catalogue states alder, but translating some Japanese it seems different woods may have been used previously?
-I read on the forum about pickups being stamped with different letters. What are the different options that existed? From what I read in the catalogue they listed MK I and MK II but I don't know how these relate to the stamps.
- What does 11-12 mean? I found someone else on the forum with the same numbering on their FO guitar with a rosewood neck. I assume one of these numbers is the month of production?
- The last question I have is, would there be any way that someone in Japan applied the fender decal? If this previously sported a Tokai logo I cannot see any signs of removal what so ever - but I don't know how easy it would be to remove? I assume the person who bought the guitar did this, but I also don't know how easy/common this was in 82-ish. Oh, and is there any other decals missing that should be there?
I know it's difficult to date these guitars, but if anyone can help in doing so and identify the model I would really appreciate it! Along with any other info to educate me on this guitar. Thank you!
(Sorry about the watermark, if you open them in a new tab you can see them in full resolution with no watermark)
Some time in the early 80's my dad purchased what he believed to be a 57' reissue Fender Stratocaster made in the Fullerton factory. The man he bought it from claimed it was purchased in London before making its way to Scotland.
In 2009 I decided to inspect the guitar and realised some things didn't add up. At the time I posted pictures on the Fender forum asking for help to ID the guitar and that's when I realised that it was a Tokai! Recently my dad asked me some questions about the guitar again, so I decided to take a look and I now understand a lot more thanks to this forum. But I would appreciate if anyone could weigh in and answer some questions I have or correct me.
My dad thinks he bought this guitar some time between 81-83, but I know that Fender were struggling to release the 57' reissues in 82. So it would have to be after that. Probably late 82-83 if he thought he was buying the real deal.
From what I can see by checking the catalogues, the first time Flamingo Orange (FO) shows up is 1981 as colour choice for the ST50, 60, & 80. After that It's kind of hard to see FO listed until the 1985 catalog which features the TST50, 55, & 60. The TST55 is the only one available in FO.
I have a bunch of questions to I'll note them all below:
- Does anyone know the earliest known time FO was available as a colour?
- What kind of finish would this be?
- I know the serial number on the back relates to the Fenders they were trying to copy, but when did this start/stop?
- What's the story behind tokai/deluxe written on the back of the tuners? In some of the catalogues they show drawings of the tuners with Tokai written on them, and I read the story about Fender using a Tokai in 82' on their own promo material which was identified by these tuners. But my dads guitar features the word 'Deluxe', and I've come across a few others with this too.
- What wood would be used around this time? The 1985 catalogue states alder, but translating some Japanese it seems different woods may have been used previously?
-I read on the forum about pickups being stamped with different letters. What are the different options that existed? From what I read in the catalogue they listed MK I and MK II but I don't know how these relate to the stamps.
- What does 11-12 mean? I found someone else on the forum with the same numbering on their FO guitar with a rosewood neck. I assume one of these numbers is the month of production?
- The last question I have is, would there be any way that someone in Japan applied the fender decal? If this previously sported a Tokai logo I cannot see any signs of removal what so ever - but I don't know how easy it would be to remove? I assume the person who bought the guitar did this, but I also don't know how easy/common this was in 82-ish. Oh, and is there any other decals missing that should be there?
I know it's difficult to date these guitars, but if anyone can help in doing so and identify the model I would really appreciate it! Along with any other info to educate me on this guitar. Thank you!
(Sorry about the watermark, if you open them in a new tab you can see them in full resolution with no watermark)