1985 Fender Stratocaster '72 Electric Guitar ST72-55 Olympic White 100% Original, Japan MIJ Fujigen

Up for sale, a 1985 Fender Stratocaster ‘72 vintage reissue model ST72-55 in excellent, 100% original condition and in perfect working order. Produced in the golden age of “Made in Japan” production at the much-revered Fujigen factory, this Strat was marketed exclusively to the Japanese market and is rarely seen outside of its country of origin. This particular ST72-55 has both a pencil-dated neck heel and early A-prefix serial number embossed on the three-bolt neck plate.Tonewoods include a basswood body, maple neck and rosewood fretboard, yielding a balanced, smooth acoustic profile with plenty of clarity and treble cut. The original trio of alnico magnet single coil pickups are coupled to a five-way switch, and each pickup position offers a distinct and sweet-sounding voice.  The pickups deliver throaty, rich lead tones in the neck position, thinned-out squawk in positions 2 and 4, and a snappy, cutting bridge. Weighing 8lbs 1oz, this Stratocaster has been professionally setup here at Mike & Mike’s Guitar Bar with 10-46 strings, low action and accurate intonation.The maple neck has a medium C-shaped profile carve with generous shoulder and lightly rolled fretboard edges, measuring .840” deep at the 1st fret and .930” at the 12th. The rosewood fretboard is a dark cut of this particular tonewood, featuring a vintage-spec 7 1/4” radius and the stock slender fretwire. The frets are in remarkable condition, retaining their full factory height and showing only light wear beneath the plain strings on the crowns of frets 1-2. This guitar plays cleanly in all registers with a straight neck and responsive, optimally-adjusted truss rod. The nut measures 42mm in width, and a small split in the rosewood has been repaired behind the nut and above the bullet truss rod. The large headstock features an era-accurate block Fender logo and dual string trees, and the chrome Fender Japan-branded Gotoh tuners turn smoothly and hold accurate, stable pitch. The ”Made in Japan” stamp is present, and the A-prefix serial number is embossed on the three-bolt F neck plate. The neck heel is pencil dated 5-9-85, and the factory stamps are present in the neck pocket and on the heel.All the electronics work as intended, with the trio of pickups wired to the original full-size pots (dated to March of 1985) and governed by a traditional Volume/Tone/Tone control array. Hardware includes the vibrato with full-size tremolo block and ‘70s-style block saddles, and the unit actuates smoothly, currently setup with three springs. The chrome plating on the hardware is positively gleaming, and plastics include the three-ply white pickguard and uniformly aged pickup covers and knobs.The Olympic White gloss finish shows some isolated areas of more prominent yellowing and aging of the clear coat, particularly along the body edges and where the forearm crosses the top. Cosmetic wear is limited to a scant few minor dings on the instrument as a whole, as well as one small finish chip and light scuffing on the treble-side cutaway. The smooth gloss finish on the neck profile is in exceptional condition.A gigbag is included.