Rough and Ready
The Affordable new Fender® Road Worn™Series
Guitars with more than a few miles on them exude a captivating mojo and mystique that musicians find irresistible. Every scratch, ding, and dent is like a badge of honor, earned through considerable sweat, passion, and determination. It's almost like the harder you push your instrument, the more it gives back, rewarding players with ever-increasing comfort and playability.
Think of a great Fender® guitar player or bassist and chances are you'll also think of their well-worn and loved instruments. From Stevie Ray Vaughan's Number One Stratocaster® with only remnants of its original sunburst finish remaining on its body to Andy Summers' highly modified and battered Telecaster®, these guitars reflect the players' personalities and experiences in every scar and blemish. These are the reliable old friends that players like Keith Richards, Bruce Springsteen, and John Frusciante count upon gig after gig and session after session even though they could afford to buy a shiny new guitar every day if they wanted.
Back in the mid '90s, the Fender® Custom Shop developed special finish and hardware aging techniques that they used to create the Fender® Relic® series. While technically new guitars, the Relic® series offers the broken-in feel and comfortable playability of instruments that have survived years of gigging, practicing, and playing time. Now Fender® is using those same aging methods to produce the Road Worn™ series guitars and basses, which combine aged aesthetics, modern functionality and playability, and low prices that working musicians can afford.
"We brought in some master builders from the Fender® Custom Shop and had them share their knowledge of the processes behind the Relic® guitars with builders at our factory in Ensenada, Mexico," says Justin Norvell, director of marketing for the Fender® electric guitar division. "It's truly an art. It's very hard to make a guitar look convincingly worn unless you know the secrets."
Guitar Center premiered the Fender® Road Worn™ guitars and basses at a special launch party held at Guitar Center's flagship Hollywood store. The response to these instruments was overwhelming. Even the most seasoned players and pros were convinced that these guitars and basses were survivors of years of gigs. "When I picked up these Road Worn™ guitars, it felt like I was playing an instrument that had already blossomed into its full potential." said Bruce Watson. "The best part is, you don't have to wait 15 to 20 years to break it in."
"The Road Worn™ guitars look and sound very authentic," Jamie Kime agreed. "The only thing missing is the smell of sweat, smoke and beer — and I'll be taking care of that!"
The Road Worn™ series is based around several of the most classic and desirable electric guitars and basses Fender® has ever produced. Models include the '50s Telecaster®, '50s Stratocaster®, '60s Stratocaster®, '50s Precision Bass®, and '60s Jazz Bass®. Each model is available with a choice of two iconic vintage finish options.
"We started with the bedrock of classic series instruments, which already existed in the Fender® line and which players desire and are looking for," says Norvell. "These models are all vintage-style instruments, but we decided to make a few modifications that modern players would probably make themselves. With vintage guitar prices being what they are these days, no player would dare to modify a priceless vintage instrument. The Road Worn™ series is for the person who loves the vintage aesthetic but usually modifies an instrument so it satisfies his or her playing preferences.
"The Tele® and Strat® models feature Tex-Mex pickups, which are a plastic bobbin version of the Texas Special pickup. The Tex-Mex Strat® pickups were introduced on the Jimmie Vaughan Tex-Mex Stratocaster® a long time ago, and they became an instant players' favorite. We've used them with a bunch of other guitars we've made over the years. They're really sweet sounding pickups with a fat, warm tone that's like an overwound vintage Sixties Strat® pickup. The frets are also taller than vintage frets. We used Dunlop 6105 fret wire to compensate for the vintage 7-1/4 inch radius, which is rounder than what you'll find on a modern Strat® and Tele®. It's kind of like replacing the frets on a used treasure that you found on the wall of a pawn shop."
The bodies and necks of each model are finished with nitrocellulose lacquer — the same type of finish Fender® used on its guitars in the '50s and '60s. A lacquer finish allows the wood to breathe and resonate more naturally than modern polyurethane finishes do. The aging process makes the finish even thinner and exposes bare wood in several key spots, resulting in a lively, responsive instrument with big, bold tone. "The Road Worn™ finish is true to vintage standards," says Norvell. "There is no thick undercoat or heavy urethane finish. Being able to produce a high volume of instruments with lacquer finishes is a first for the Ensenada facility. We're making a true vintage-style instrument readily available to the masses."
Based on timeless mid-'50s versions of the Tele®, the '50s Road Worn™ Telecaster® features an ash body, 21- fret maple neck, vintage-style tuning machines, a three-saddle string-through-body bridge, and a one-ply white pickguard. Finish choices are blonde or two-color sunburst. Controls include a standard three-position pickup selector (bridge, both, neck) and master volume and tone controls to provide everything from the bright twang to the fat jazzy tones Tele® players love.
The '50s Road Worn™ Stratocaster® is built with an alder body, 21-fret maple neck, vintage-style tuning machines and synchronized tremolo, and a one-ply white pickguard, with finish options consisting of black or two-color sunburst. The '50s Road Worn™ Strat® looks and feels so much like the real original deal that you may think you've stumbled upon the vintage bargain of the century. The main feature differences found on the '60s Road Worn™ Stratocaster® include a rosewood fingerboard, three-ply mint green pickguard, and Olympic White and three-color sunburst finish options. Both versions include a modern five-position pickup selector switch, master volume, neck pickup tone, and middle pickup tone controls.
Both Road Worn™ bass models are similarly iconic. The '50s Precision Bass® looks like a late-'50s version and features an alder body, 20-fret one-piece maple neck, vintage-style reverse tuning machines, nickel/chrome American Vintage bridge, gold anodized aluminum pickguard, and a single split-coil P-Bass® pickup. Finish choices are a warm two-color sunburst or the rosy, salmon hues of Fiesta Red. Stripped down and ready to rock, its only controls consist of master volume and master tone knobs.
The '60s Jazz Bass® offers an alder body, 20-fret maple neck with a rosewood fingerboard, vintage-style reverse tuning machines, nickel/chrome American Vintage bridge, four-ply brown tortoiseshell pickguard, and two Standard Vintage Alnico magnet single-coil pickups. Finish options are three-color sunburst or Fiesta Red. Individual neck and bridge pickup volume controls and a master tone knob allow you to dial in a wide variety of tones suitable for any style of music, whether it's rock, jazz, country, reggae, or whatever.
All Road Worn™ series guitars and basses include a deluxe gig bag that provides ample protection from the elements and other conditions that might add a few new battle scars to your instrument. After all, it's more exciting to talk about the dings and dents that your guitar got when something crazy happened on stage instead of when the cab driver carelessly tossed your guitar into the trunk.
These five models cover most of the major feature configurations that players prefer. "The Road Worn™ series offers a nice variety of flavors to suit different players' preferences," says Norvell. "The Tele® has a fat, U-shaped neck profile, while the '50s Strat® has a vintage-style V neck and the '60s Strat® has a slim C neck. The guitars and basses have necks with maple or rosewood fingerboards. Even though there's only a total of ten different instruments, the models we chose provide a nice, broad choice of feature sets."
Most guitar and bass players won't be able to tell the difference between a Road Worn™ instrument and one that has actually survived years of gigs. The Precision® and Jazz Bass® models even include details such as screw holes for "removed" hardware such as pickup and bridge covers and finger rests. The finish on the maple fingerboards is worn away to bare wood at the fingering positions that get the most action from players, and the finish on the back of all the necks is worn down while the exposed wood has the smooth polished, burnished feel that usually only comes from years of relentless gigging. Even the hardware and screws look like they've been to hell and back and lived to tell the tale.
"Some people don't like things that are shiny and new," says Norvell, "like folks who paint their cars primer black and wear jeans that have holes and rips in them. Or maybe you're the type of player who just likes the way a broken-in guitar feels and sounds. The Road Worn™ series is like that broken-in baseball glove you've worn so much it feels like an extension of your hand."
Whether you simply love the look of a well-played instrument or prefer the comfort and feel of a broken-in guitar, the Fender® Road Worn™ series offers a vibe no other new guitars or basses in their price range can match. "It just feels like there's a lot of music already lurking in these instruments," says Norvell. "Comfort, feel, vibe, aesthetics, tone — that's all inside each one of these guitars and basses from the minute you pick them up. It's like a kick-start, and the guitar will continue to live, develop, and wear out in its own unique way as it's played. The guitar already has some mileage on it, but it's up to you to take it the rest of the way."
"The look and feel of these Road Worn™ guitars is amazing," said Guitar Center customer Chris Pinnick at the launch party. "This Strat® is coming home with me."
"Right off the rack, these guitars have a great look and feel, like they've been around a while," Mike Menell added. "Instead of paying $3,000 or more for a Relic® guitar from the Fender® Custom Shop and waiting eight months, you can get this combination right now. Fender® nailed it."
