R.I.P. Fender American Vintage series (1982-2017)

[John C]

I think there were 3 - '52 Tele, '57 Strat, '62 Strat.

The Jazzmasters and Jaguars were first introduced in July 1999.

I meant strats. Sorry.

Correct - there were only the 2 Strat models from 1982 until about 2005, when they added a "70s Strat". There was a bit of confusion about that one - it wasn't tied to a specific year so they could use the same bridge that they used on the '57 and '62 on a large headstock/bullet truss rod/3-bolt neck Strat. Most of the time it was referred to as part of the AVRI series, but in some other materials they didn't use the "American Vintage Reissue" designation.

For anyone interested it ran this way:

1. 1982-June 1999: '52 Tele, '57 Strat, '62 Strat
2. July 1999 - 2004: '52 Tele, '62 Custom Tele, '57 Strat, '62 Strat, '62 Jazzmaster, '62 Jaguar
3. 2005-2010: '52 Tele, '62 Custom Tele, '57 Strat, '62 Strat, 70's Strat, '62 Jazzmaster, '62 Jaguar
4. 2011-July 2012: '52 Tele, '62 Custom Tele, '69 Tele Thinline, '72 Tele Custom, '72 Tele Thinline, '57 Strat, '62 Strat, 70's Strat, '62 Jazzmaster, '62 Jaguar
5. August 2012-mid 2013: '52 Tele, '58 Tele, '62 Tele, '69 Tele Thinline, '72 Tele Custom, '72 Tele Thinline, '56 Strat, '59 Strat, '65 Strat, '65 Jazzmaster, '65 Jaguar
6. Mid 2013-2017: '52 Tele, '58 Tele, '62 Tele, '56 Strat, '59 Strat, '65 Strat, '65 Jazzmaster, '65 Jaguar

Not counting any FSRs

 

[tealsixtysix]

Some or all of those AV 72 Tele Thinlines in 2012ish were done with 9.5" radius and 6105 frets -- it was an FSR, not a Wildwood thing. I wouldn't mind seeing those added to the American Originals line.

 

[cg]

I really like the new lineup. Great specs, cool colors. Seems like a win to me!

 

[Guspin]

I really like the new lineup, but I guess that the AV 52 seem to have more finish options.
I don`t know if the pickups in the new AO are better than the AV

 

[JDW3]

I found an AV '65 Strat, but he said it was built in 2019. Is that possible?

 

[tuumbaq]

I found an AV '65 Strat, but he said it was built in 2019. Is that possible?

NO.

 

[JDW3]

NO.

What would be a dead giveaway, regarding serial numbers, etc?

 

[Kmaz]

What would be a dead giveaway, regarding serial numbers, etc?

If it's a '65, then it has to be earlier than 2019. The American Vintage Series had been discontinued well before that year.

 

[John C]

I found an AV '65 Strat, but he said it was built in 2019. Is that possible?

NO.

If it's a '65, then it has to be earlier than 2019. The American Vintage Series had been discontinued well before that year.

Correct; the AV series was replaced by the American Originals at the beginning of 2018. However, Wildwood Guitars has been doing "American Vintage Thin Skin Nitro" runs for the last 2 years. I checked the site - right now they have '59 Strats but no '65 Strats; I can't remember if they did some '65s over the past 12 months. But that would be the only way to get a '65 with a later date than 2017.

What would be a dead giveaway, regarding serial numbers, etc?

The serial number format is a "V", followed by 2 digits for the year, then 5 digits for the serial number. So if it really is a 2019, the number would be "V19xxxxx".