How often do we see these instruments… Well, almost 30 years of vintage guitar shows and interest for guitars, and I’ve seen only one of these Rhinestone Stratocaster during a vintage guitar show in the mid 90’s… These are super rare birds !!! Extremely rare, the Rhinestone is considered to be Fender’s first “artistic” collaboration, and for this time, it was with the famous English sculptor Jon Douglas that this collaboration was made, first between 1973 and 1975, then later in very early 90’s.

In early 1973, the English Fender distribution, CBS/Arbiter opened a store in London, the Fender Soundhouse. English sculptor Jon Douglas, on one of his visits, felt that most of the guitars looked “boring”, and Ivor Arbiter, Fender’s UK distributor urged him to do better. Douglas proposed a cold cast bronze Stratocaster body, using a metal layer over a fiberglass shell. A prototype was made, followed by 6 other models. Arbiter suggested placing rhinestones into the surface of the body, and the “Rhinestone Strat” ​​was born. A very small batch of 6 Strats went on sale at the Fender Soundhouse store in London in 1975, but unfortunately a fire destroyed the premises shortly afterwards. Two were sold before the fire, but the other four perished in the flames. In the early 1990s, Douglas made molds for a future series of 50s. A plaque fixed in the molding to the rear of the body, numbered x out of 50, helps distinguish the few pieces released in the 90s, but as fate seemed to be bent on this project, Douglas’ health deteriorated, and he died before he could fulfill the initial order of 50 pieces. It is commonly said that 25 copies were born during the 90s, making this “Rhinestone Stratocaster” an extremely rare instrument!!! Some of the 25 guitars used original parts from the 70s, some used modern components, such as Japanese reissues. Our instrument features an original 74 neck, bridge, neck plate  and tuners, a Fender Custom Shop pickguard and Seymour Duncan pickups from 1987 and Japanese reissue electronics. You can see on the net the instruments number 6, 8, 11, 13, 17, 19, and very recently, on Reverb, the number 3 whose seller wants 19500€…

The body of this instrument appears to be fiberglass and is hollow, lending a welcome lightness and resonance. The original 70’s neck is in excellent condition and according to the marking on the heel of the neck and the serial number on the original 3 screw plate, the neck and plate are from 1975. The original frets are in good condition and the action, comfort and feeling of play are excellent. The electronic is perfectly functional and this instrument is not just a beauty to showcase but indeed a great guitar.

Excellent condition, only one small dent on the body, this guitar has obviously been collected and comes with a handmade case with the design and color of this Rhinestone series.