Dan Smith came to Fender in 1981 with the intentions to improve Fender during their slight decline in the late '70's into '80. A period of revamping the product line, the Smith "era" has since been well regarded time for the famed brand. The first "Smith Strat"s as it is sometimes referred to, was only produced from 1981-'83 - and we are pleased to have one here at the shop! History aside, this is a very well made instrument and it has some cool and iconic elements. First of all, this attractive Sienna Sunburst finish is almost reminiscent of the cherry burst Gibson was doing at the time. A slightly smaller headstock cut takes a page of the pre CBS look, but with its bold font is more like a post CBS era - all intentional in Smith's choices for the company. Great sounding pickups with the classic glassy bell like tone a Strat should have, this could cover all your gigs. This guitar is in great shape from the previous owner. Cosmetically its hardly got a mark on it, and its evident that this guitar was used sparingly with some of the finish still present on its frets. Only small non problematic surface level scratches are evident. The three ply parchment guard is fitted with the conventional 3 knobs, unlike the two knob variation some see later on. This also has the traditional 4 bolt neck design. A standard 25.5" scale length, it has again the standard 1 5/8" nut width. The neck on this guitar is very comfortable with a C profile with slightly narrower shoulders (which puts it on the verge of being a soft V) that measures .84" thick at the first position tapering up to .90". The necks date at the heel is a bit hard to read, but the neck pocket of the body is clearly stamped for February of 1983. The neck is stamped having been built by A. Castaneta, a builder for Fender at this time. The neck is straight with a virtually untouched truss rod. The frets are in good shape with some slight wear to the finish along the edges. The action is low measuring 5/64" in height at the twelfth fret. This all original Strat is very cool for any Strat-Enthusiast or Fender collector. Weighs __ Comes with the original hardshell case.