My '68 strat was made in America. It has three single-coil pickups and 22 frets. It has the original Fender standard tremolo bridge. There is one volume knob, two tones knobs, and a pickup selector switch with five settings (bridge, bridge/middle, middle, middle/neck, neck). These are all located below the strings in the middle of the body, which is typical of Stratocasters. It has a rosewood neck (I don't know if all '68 strats have this neck, as I bought it used.) It was also painted candy apple red, which was not the original color.

UTILIZATION

The neck has a great feel, arguably the best I've played. It is easy to play everything from R&B style grooves, jazzy chord melodies, and rocking riffs with ease. It's also easy to play a really nice, bluesy solo with it. The last frets are actually somewhat difficult to play, given the shortness of the neck. The 22nd fret is almost impossible to fret, which makes it almost useless. This is rarely a problem for me, though, as I don't tend to need those notes often (I'm not sure whether or not that is because I've gotten used to the guitar, however). It's not too heavy, and easy to transport. The shape makes it easy to play standing up, sitting down, laying down, any way of playing it is really easy. It is also borderline indestructable, although this is no reason to be careless with it. This guitar might not be the best choice for shredders, because the strings tend to have a lot of bounce and the guitar just isn't suited to be played like that.

SOUNDS

These sounds suit the diverse array of music that I play rather well. The amps I use are generally Fender Deluxe Reverb '65 reissues, Marshalls, and Fender Hot Rods. I think that all three have their charms but the Fenders sound better, especially the '65. With clean settings, one can get a nice, thick R&B tone (neck pickup), or a bright, twangy Rolling Stones-esque rhythm sound (bridge pickup). Leads on clean channels can be incredibly smooth or incredibly pretty, depending on how loud the amp is and what pickup you are using. The natural distortion that occurs when an amp is cranked is usually the source of the best sound; when the amp is loud, it's got a bright, immediate sound that is striking and impressive. Many people have commented on the guitar, saying it's one of the best they've ever heard. When played with a distortion pedal or on a distorted channel, the guitar is a little more tricky. Feedback is an issue (unless feedback is what you're going for), and if you try to get a really heavy tone out of it (Metallica, Soundgarden) it will probably not work for you. If, however, what you are going for is more in the vein of The Stones, Pink Floyd, or classic rock bands of old, as well as newer acts like Wilco and Broken Social Scene, these sounds are definitely attainable. If the gain is cranked, feedback drenched rock like Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr. is also attainable and souds great. (Some of these acts use other Fender guitars like Jazzmasters, but similar sounds are definitely still attainable with the Strat. After all, Stratocasters are known for their versatility.) The bridge pickup will allow you to get a heavier, thicker tone that's still bright enough to cut through, while the neck pickup will give you a shrill, almost piercing lead tone that simply rules. If you are using a thick amount of distortion, and noise is too much, switching to the neck/middle of middle/bridge settings will eliminate most of it. The tone will change slightly but at that point the difference is minimal.

OVERALL OPINION

I've had this guitar for ten years and it's still my favorite of all time. I like the versatility of tones, and the brightness that it can achieve (I've yet to hear a guitar that sounds this bright without being painful to the ears). With a good amp, I feel like I let the guitar play itself! I tried a lot of other models but I didn't find one that came close to this. That I found it used at a reasonable price was only a bonus. I would definitely say, if you are more interested in sound that appearance, go for a model that is scratched or beat up, but not to the point of intense damage (just a few dings.) It'll be cheaper, and worth it. Otherwise it'll go for an insane amount of money. I would definitely buy another one of these if I had to.