Left Handed 1963 Fender Strat, original finish custom color Olympic White, tortoise shell pickguard, gold hardware, OHSC. Original custom color left handed pre-CBS Strats are virtually impossible to find, especially with the added features of a tortoise shell guard and gold hardware; just insanely rare lefty vintage Strat! This was one of 2 Olympic White Strats purchased by Surf Guitar legend Dick Dale from Leo Fender in 1963.
The guitar was recently inspected by Scott Freilich of Top Shelf Music, who has inspected all of my personal vintage guitars. Scott is able to see things that others miss, so here is Scott’s assessment of this guitar:
“I just finished a total inspection of your lefty 1963 Stratocaster serial # L056xx. Here are the results.
The finish on the guitar is original. From the layer build and the application details, the guitar was originally finished in sunburst prior to 1963 as evidenced by the finish in the neck pocket. In 1963, a base coat of Desert Sand was applied over the sunburst finish, and an Olympic White finish was applied using a spray handle.
The pickguard is a correct tortoise shell guard for an instrument of this era. The gold hardware looks to be correct for the era except for the jack plate and jack plate attachment screws which have less wear and gold plating that is of a different hue. The original tremolo block has been replaced with an aftermarket Fender replacement. The tuning gears look correct for the era.
Electronically, the guitar appears to not be totally original. The neck pickup has a DC ohm reading of 6.09k ohms and appears to have been rewound with a wire that is darker in color than what Fender would have used in the era, the coil is neater and without the typical unevenness normally seen on Fender pickups from this era, and the cloth wire attachment is done differently than Fender would have. The middle pickup reads 5.55k ohms, and also appears to have been rewound as it exhibits the same features as the neck pickup. The bridge pickup reads 5.76k ohms, and appears to be original.
The potentiometers are all original. The 2 tone pots have the following codes: 702124-0035 250 k Aud 304 6334. The volume control has the following code: 702125 0035 250k Aud 304 6324. The capacitor, switch, and jack appear to be original. The knobs, back plate, and pickup covers are correct for a guitar of this era, though all but the back plate are easily replaced with others from instruments of a similar era. The trem arm is a repro, and there is a hole from a strap button in the opposite cutaway edge showing that guitar was used righty (typical for a lefty vintage Strat).”
So at the end of the day, this is an original Fender factory custom color finish Olympic White left handed pre-CBS Strat with rare gold tuners and tortoise pickguard with some non original hardware. The price of the guitar has been adjusted accordingly. The guitar sounds fantastic and holds a tuning for weeks. This is a great chance to acquire a very rare lefty custom color pre-CBS Strat for a reduced price!
