The American Vintage series introduces an all-new lineup of original-era model year guitars that bring Fender history and heritage to authentic and exciting new life. With key features and pivotal design elements spanning the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s, new American Vintage series instruments delve deep into Fender's roots - expertly preserving an innovative U.S. guitar-making legacy and vividly demonstrating like never before that Fender not only knows where it's going, but also remembers where it came from.

The American Vintage Series has long presented some of Fender's bestselling guitars (their early-'80s introduction, in fact, was one of the first signs that Fender was "back" as the CBS era ended). Today, Fender has boldly cleared the slate to make way for a fresh American Vintage series with new features, new specs and the most meticulous level of vintage accuracy yet. Rather than just replacing the previous models with different ones, we've completely and comprehensively re-imagined the entire vintage-reissue concept - restoring original tooling dies, voicing new pickups, reformulating vintage colors and more - based on actual vintage guitars we tracked down to make sure we had it right. We did the work, and it shows, because there's pure tonal magic in each new American Vintage instrument.

The American Vintage '56 Stratocaster® guitar takes you straight back to mid-1956, when the model was still new and when what is quite possibly the most prized and popular neck ever affixed to the instrument first appeared - a thick one-piece maple neck with a soft "V" shape and comfortably rounded edges. Such meticulous authenticity even extends to the single-ply white pickguard with eight holes, lightweight alder body (ash on White Blonde) with deep contours, and vintage-accurate pickups, bridge saddles, tuner spacing and more.

Product Specs

• Body: Alder

• Body Finish: Gloss Lacquer

• Body Shape: Stratocaster

• Bridge: 6-Saddle American Vintage Synchronized Tremolo

• Bridge Pickup: American Vintage '56 Single-Coil Strat

• Color: Black

• Configuration: SSS

• Control Knobs: Eggshell

• Controls: Master Volume, Tone 1. (Neck Pickup), Tone 2. (Bridge/Middle Pickup)

• Country Of Origin: US

• Fingerboard: Maple

• Fingerboard Radius: 7.25" (184.1 mm)

• Fret Size: Vintage-Style

• Hardware Finish: Chrome/Nickel-Plated Steel

• Middle Pickup: American Vintage '56 Single-Coil Strat

• Model Name: American Vintage '56 Stratocaster, Maple Fingerboard, Black

• Neck Finish: Flash Coat Lacquer

• Neck Material: Maple

• Neck Pickup: American Vintage '56 Single-Coil Strat

• Neck Shape: Thick Soft "V"

• Number of Frets: 21

• Nut Material: Bone

• Nut Width: 1.650" (42 mm)

• Pickguard: 1-Ply White

• Pickup Configuration: SSS

• Pickup Switching: 5-Position Blade: Position 1. Bridge Pickup, Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup, Position 3. Middle Pickup, Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup, Position 5. Neck Pickup

• Position Inlays: Black Dot

• Scale Length: 25.5" (64.77 cm)

• Series: American Vintage

• String Nut: Bone

• Truss Rods: Vintage-Style Butt Adjust

• Tuning Machines: Pure Vintage Single Line "Fender Deluxe"