1983 Fender Elite Stratocaster. These were made for one year only due to CBS putting Fender up for sale in 1984. White is an extremely rare color for this model, and this one has aged spectacularly! The guitar famously served as the prototype for Eric Clapton's debut signature model, with him having received two Elites with a hardtail bridge and traditional pickup selector switch! Many of the features on this guitar would be incorporated into his own signature model when it was released. This vintage strat is months away from being 40 years old and is just an epic piece of Fender history!
The 1983 Elite was an absolutely revolutionary model that saw Fender introduce 14 new designs and patents that transformed their historical strat design to becoming an even more iconic model with features we now enjoy in present day! This guitar was the origin story for roller string trees, noiseless pickups, TBX active tone control, active MDX midrange booster with 12 dB of gain and more! Of perhaps more significance was the Elite’s introduction of the Biflex truss rod system that allows for concave or convex adjustments without reliance on string tension. The output jack was located on the side of the body instead of the top. The serrated rubber volume/tone knobs with embossed numbers and engraved F logo are incredible. Another fantastic feature is no routing through the body, so no back plate with a huge chunk cut of the guitar like on other strats where there is cavity for the tremolo that goes through the entire center of the guitar.
This rare 80s Fender guitar is part of the world famous instrument collection at Essex Recording Studios! Check out our website and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitch and YouTube! @essexrecordingstudios
International buyers are welcome! We ship to any country in the world! This guitar will be packed and shipped with love, care and respect! The guitar is in great condition for 40 years old! You are welcome to collect the guitar in person if you are local to our studio in Southend, England at postcode SS1 1AB directly opposite Southend Central train station.
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