What you are looking at here is a piece of Fender history, this time-capsule of a Stratocaster was built in 1982 using parts left from the end of 1978, most notably, the neck. As you can see from the pictures, the serial number depicts a 1978 year of manufacture, that’s not the only place where 1978 is showing either, the pots and switch also show dates from the late 70’s. The body of the guitar is finished in polyester as per Strats from the era. The routing is not conclusive though, showing rounded edged pickup routes which are fitting with the early 80’s Dan Smith Fullerton guitars which, are well known as being fantastic guitars as Smith pulled Fender out of the poorly made CBS era Strats. This guitar also has some special, fitted as standard, pickups lurking under the pickguard, it has a complete set of the famed ‘Red Bobbin’ pickups, these units are highly prized by players and collectors alike, mainly due to their higher than average output. It is worth noting that sets of these pickups (red bobbins) fetch very good money in the Strat world, with some selling in excess of $1000. This information is available here... The other interesting feature of this guitar is that it has its complete history within its case, the guitar was originally bought in 1983 by a lady named Gillian Rice, she bought the guitar from ABC Music in the southern region of the UK, the guitar was sold for £350 new and she also bought a Tokai case with it for £50. Following this purchase, Gillian owned the guitar for many years and seldom played it, this is evident by the minor pitting on the first three frets and the overall condition of the guitar being 9.5/10 in my opinion. The original warranty card was filled in by Gillian and left within the pages of the original owner’s manual, the inspection tag is still present also. Other paperwork includes the polishing cloth paper insert, the original tremolo springs in their original envelope (still sealed) Ashtray bridge cover and tremolo arm. One other item is the original lead which has been issued with Fender guitars since day one, again, never used and still tied up in its bag. These have all been kept in a Tandy bag (remember that store?) The guitar itself is in absolutely incredible condition, the term ‘one lady owner’ can be used here accurately, there are no chips in the body paint or lacquer on the neck, there are few very minor scratches on the body horns which I couldn’t get in a photograph. Case-wise, as you can see from the original bill of sale, there was no case supplied with the guitar when it was bought new, it won’t have been long afterwards that a period correct moulded Fender case was acquired. The case does show signs of wear and tear with one hinge broken and remains of spray paint on one side but a solid case with all latches working. Playability-wise, this guitar is a screamer, doing my best Albert King impersonation I can confirm that it has a great tone with plenty of sustain, this could be to do with the weight of the guitar, as with many late 70’s/early 80’s Strats, this guitar weighs in around 9lbs and the famed red bobbin pickups. Electrically, the guitar is 100% stock; it has been untouched since the day it arrived home with its new owner, literally, is a time capsule from 1983. (I used a template for the pickguard screws so each one is back where Fender put it) I have a long history of studying, owning and dealing in Stratocasters, I only pick ones that are rare or just good guitars in general, I am pleased to say that this specific one is both. I am Sam Orr the author of The Fender Stratocaster, so please feel confident that you’re buying from someone that genuinely understands these guitars inside and out. Other interesting points with this guitar is that it possesses the S8 serial number on the headstock and a neck date stamp of 82 showing that this guitar genuinely is a transitional prototype if you will, of what Dan Smith had in store for Fender and their players. The guitars specification is standard Stratocaster, 7.25” radius maple board, vintage frets (which still have a small amount of lacquer overspray on the 14th-15th frets!) Bullet truss rod adjustment, three bolt micro tilt (as per 1978 specification) The body has better contouring that any other late 70’s Strat I’ve come across, this is in keeping with the early 80’s specification, another Dan Smith improvement. As the body has had improvements with routing and contouring, this is reflected in the neck join being beautifully cut giving the neck no movement whatsoever. This guitar is basically perfect for collectors or players alike. If you are a right-handed player looking for a Band of Gypsies vibe then this is the ideal guitar to flip over for those ‘Machine Gun’ moments. If you’re a left-handed player after a clean (now vintage) Stratocaster, then this is the guitar for you. Dan Smith’s recent passing is even more reason for this guitar to kept in its current show-room condition; he really managed to turn Fender around and put the entire company back on track. The guitar has been set up beautifully (if I do say so myself) with 10’s as standard, it’s a great guitar and rare in this condition with tremolo...not to mention the case candy! As with buyers, I imagine you will research this guitar in detail, so I have taken the liberty of finding some forum posts relating to this guitar and its famed pickups... “It's an 82. I have a '78 serial-numbered, lefty Strat. And most (actually all) Lefty Strats from 78-82 had 78 serial numbers. In 30 plus years I've never seen another lefty without an S8. They built a ton of necks in 78/79-my 81 Strat has a S9 serial number (righty Capri Orange).” “It is more likely that the serial number decal is left over from 1978, rather than the actual neck or body.” “Fender officially announced the design change from 70's style to the Smith style in January 1982 and the NAMM show. However, I have seen 70's style Strats with dates as late as March 1982, as they were clearing out old stock during the transition. Often these later guitars have an E2 serial, but I have seen S8 and S9 serials as well.”  “I actually like the early 80's 70's style guitars. While they can be heavy, they have more dramatic body contours like a vintage Strat, and they are generally well made and sound great.” “Red bobbin pups are hard to come by and very EXPENSIVE, so are the guitars they come in. These pups came in the Strats produced in 1980-1982, in the "Dan Smith Era". A 57' or 62' American Vintage RI from the Dan Smith era will run you $3K-$5K. The pups would sell for $400-$1K. The only reason I could think of creating these pups is to make a fake/copy.” “In late 1981 Fender hired Dan Smith to head up marketing and help turn Fender's quality issues and lagging sales around. It was Dan Smith's goal to restore the confidence of the dealers and guitar players in Fender once again. The factory at this time was building about 200-300 guitars a day. Dan Smith, with Fender's approval, literally shut down the Fender plant and spent approximately 2+ years training what employees were left how to build a quality guitar. Dan Smith, with the help of John Page, proceeded to work on a reissue of the most popular guitars of Leo Fender's era. They also used plastic wiring and only switched to cloth in the very late '82 to early '83 models. The red bobbin pickups were also used in some of the very early models. If you own one of these early (almost prototype) models, consider yourself very lucky. Values on these will no doubt be the highest” As with all my eBay listings, I’d much prefer you to come and check the guitar out, you won’t be disappointed, failing that, I can ship it at cost, just get in touch. I’d also prefer not to do PayPal but understand if that’s not an option for you. Please let me know any questions you may have.