Amazing condition for the age. One small paint chip (pictured). Original case and whammy bar. After chatting with Fender and there being some confusion about the serial number we have confirmed this guitar. Please look towards the bottom of the description for the UPDATE section.

About the Stratocaster Plus:

The Strat Plus Series was introduced by Fender in 1987 and was the highest-end production model next to Fender’s Custom Shop guitars. (Production stopped in late 1998 or early 1999.) The Plus Series consisted of the Plus, the Plus Deluxe, and then later, in 1990, the Ultra. The Plus Series was a very good attempt to reclaim Fender USA’s floundering reputation, as quality had drastically gone downhill under CBS ownership. All the Plus Series had similar features. This article discusses the Standard Plus.

After CBS sold Fender in 1985, there was no production of Fender guitars in the U.S. from February 1985 to October 1985 (almost 8 months). When the Corona plant was started up, only the Vintage Reissue Stratocaster models were produced between late 1985 through 1986. Finally, as we talk about the Plus Series, the Fender-Lace Sensor pickups, invented by Don Lace, were introduced in 1987. A Lace Sensor “Dually” was also used in the Ultra and some Tele Plus’ using two Lace Sensors placed side-by-side, looking like a humbucker though they were actually two independent pickups.

One thing is for sure—even though these guitars vary, all Plus guitars had: locking tuners; a roller nut (which means the headstock will not have string trees); and Lace Sensor pickups. I have seen American Standard Strats with Lace Sensors that people try to pawn off as a Plus so beware!

The standard Plus usually came with 3 Gold Lace Sensor pickups. These pickups were designed to give a ’50s single coil sound with a lot of chime and even bell-like tones. Crisp, and quiet, they really do perform like a 1950s pickup, but with no hum. The Lace Sensors represented a revolutionary new design for single-coil pickups—having a unique radiant field barrier system that surrounds both the coil and magnets, eliminating the annoying 60-cycle hum. The patented Lace Micro Matrix Combs replace traditional bobbins, yielding a wider tonal range and better string balance than traditional pickups.

UPDATE: The Plus model first appeared in 1987, within a year of the first American Standards, the earliest was Nov '86. Many people incorrectly identify these as 1984 models due to the "E4xxxxx" serial numbers. The fact is, the only American Strats being produced in '84, '85, and most of '86 were the USA Vintage Series, which had the serial number on the neck plate. Any "E4" serial number you come across is a late '86 at best, but most are '87 and '88, and even a few '89's.

The Plus was a souped-up American Standard, with a $200 higher price tag. It has a bunch of upgraded parts, most notably a trio of gold Lace Sensor pickups, which produce almost no hum and are non-magnetic which means no magnetic string pull and, thus, longer sustain. Another innovation is the TBX (Tone Bass Expander) control for the middle/neck pickups which looks like a regular tone knob but underneath the guard, it's a stacked pot - with a center detent, it works like a tone control from "5" to "1", and TBX from "6" to "10".

You'll notice the headstock which has the bold silver logo of the era but...no string trees, which aren't necessary due to the staggered height Sperzel tuners. The Sperzels are excellent tuners and unlike vintage tuners, you don't need to wrap the string around the tree. Just insert the string through the tuner post and cut it as close as you want - once you screw down the back it's locked into place and usually tunes to pitch in around 1/4th revolution of the post.

Another innovative feature is the "tilt adjust" neck, in use since the early '70s, with access through the neck plate. With an Allen wrench, you can adjust the neck angle; a great improvement removing the neck repeatedly until you find a shim with the perfect thickness. In place of the stock nut, this model used a Wilkinson roller nut (later models used an LSR with bearings) which reduces friction over the nut and helps maintain tuning stability.

Strat Plus specifications:

Model Name: Strat® Plus
Model Number: 010-7500-(Color#) and 010-7502-(Color#)
Series: U.S. Plus/Deluxe Series
Body: Alder (Optional Swamp Ash Body Natural Finish Only pn# 010-7500/2-821)
Neck: Maple
Fingerboard: Rosewood pn# (110-7500) or Maple pn# (110-7502), (9.5” Radius/241 mm), Medium Jumbo Frets
Frets: 22 Medium Jumbo Frets
Scale Length: 25.5” (648 mm)
Nut: LSR Roller Nut, 1.6875” (43 mm) (Changed from Fender-Wilkinson Needle Bearing Roller Nut to LSR Roller Nut 1/1994)
Hardware: Chrome
Machine Heads: Fender/Schaller Locking
Bridge: American Standard Tremolo
Pickguard: 3-Ply White Pearloid (* Tortoise Shell on color 821)
Pickups: 3 Gold Fender LaceTM Sensor Pickups
Pickup Switching: Deluxe 5-Position Blade
Controls: Master Volume, Tone (Neck), TBX (Mid & Bridge)