I have the rosewood neck version, it feels just great. Mine's a mongrel of two different years, plus Lace Sensor gold pickups, but my friend said it was the most stratty sounding strat that she'd heard.
You're right, an absolute dream strat for the money. I have the same one but I think the 50 Road Worn came out in 2008 as my serial number starts with MZ8
Totally agree on these early models. One of my local shops had one like this and it was always my go to when I would visit. I regret not buying it then.
I have 2009 or 2010 60's Roadworn in Olympic white (that yellowed a bit over the years!) that I brought new and had it since. Maybe 2 years ago, I got fixed at another store that I brought it and the repairman and I talked together as he worked on it and he said to me that's a really good Strat, a lot better that the Vinteras which were the closest to the RN available at the time. It's still my #1 Fender, the other being a Squier CV Esquire Custom, wihich is not bad once it's well adjusted. Your RN 50's is a quite beautiful as well! 😎
I had a 60s strat for the longest time. I regret getting rid of it as my parents got it for me, but I'm not a huge strat guy anymore. I also had two of the 50s teles. Really shouldn't have sold one of those. Killer guitars. IMO the best model Fender has put out.
I vividly remember playing the first run Road Worn 50s Tele. It's one of those watershed guitars wherein it felt so nice to play it shifted my perception of what a good guitar is. (not the only guitar to do that but one of the early ones). I've played more modern Road Worns, the Jason Isbell Tele notably, and maybe it's a nostalgic bias but I feel that original Road Worn was nicer somehow.
Haha! Bloody hell- - would that manager have told Jeff beck he couldn’t use a white strat? What a c*#%!! I remember sitting in a big famous guitar shop on Santa Monica and picked up a road worn and I played that for ages - even compared to some of the mega expensive American strats it felt lovely to play..
Great video. I love my original run RW Tele and more recent RW HSS Strat. Main difference is the newer neck has more unfinished feel. Both very light. On the whole relic debate on top of the feel. I would say these get picked up more at home as less precious about them getting knocked or dinged.
Best mexican strat I've ever owned was the road house deluxe in hss with the vintage noisles pups and a Fender double tap humbucker. Better than any mexican strat which is available today throughout the whole Mexican series. The split on the humbucker was the best split I've ever heard. If I was to buy another Mexican strat, I would defo go for that one.
Interesting to hear about your G&L Legacy!! That’s the guitar I started on - originally bought for my son back in 2002. More of a Strat half-brother than a Strat clone…. It would be interesting to hear your take on them nowadays.
The guitarist I work with has a blonde Tele with a single could in the centre position, piezo bridge (a Nashville maybe?) and it is hooligan. He did get it pleq’d but it plays and sounds wonderful. He’s got a Gristlemaster and a G&L with B and G benders and I have an Elite and that Mexican Tele holds its own against them all.
Why I’ll always buy relic’d if I can: much better resell if it gets roughed up! There’s something about not having to worry about damaging a guitar that makes you reach for it more often and player harder. Also, great for playing out.
I have a 2009 MIM Fender standard strat in candy apple red I got for $400 a few years back and it's amazing. Even today it's on par with guitars 5x its price. I've tried squiers to custom shops and none of them are as comfortable and reliable as that 09 MIM strat
I had a 2011 Mex strat not road worn but the best strat I’ve owned,I played it to death and the guitar neck was so worn out, but what a guitar, I have a 2019 American strat beautiful but I don’t play it as the old one not at all ,
I had one , it was really great but I hated the narrow tall frets , felt like train tracks . Either medium jumbo or vintage frets for me . I did consider getting it refretted but just sold it and bought a classic series Laquer , much the same but nicer neck / frets .
The noventa line came from Mexico. They were pretty unique, but didn’t really get on with the p90 they were using. I had the surf green strat. Hard tail with 2 p90s. Loved the idea but ended up moving it on after a year or so
I had a 2010 60s RW that I never should’ve let go. After I got my USA Silver Sky, I traded the RW for a PRS CE22 and sold that pretty quickly after. Paid $650 for the RW and sold the CE for $1400 so I did well, money wise. Still a regrettable decision though 😢
The Charvel stuff is superior and doesn't need a refin lol. Not sure what the Fender replacement roasted 12" radius, flat oval necks with rolled edges are off but those seem more like Charvel specs.
I had one but couldn’t get over how bad the relic job was. It had like 6 equally spaced punch marks next to the output jack that didn’t look like realistic wear at all. That and I couldn’t get along with the vintage string spacing. It made it difficult to switch between my guitars with Gibson spacing.
I have a 2015 rosewood neck sunburst 60s strat. It’s best strat I’ve ever played. My dad has been trying to get it off me for years. Road worns are awesome. Most custom shop strats look shit and over relic
I played a few of the early Road Warns, and had two problems with them. First, and least important, is that the relicing was so uniform guitar to guitar that I had a hard time considering it "convincing". But more importantly, I felt that the neck and fretboard were SO warn, that I didn't like the feel. If they had donme any more to the neck, it would have given me splinters. IMHO, it was really overdone.
I had one of those... remember this was before relic guitars were a thing. It's almost like they were an experiment, someone at Fender went "let's try and sell a guitar that's brand new but looks like it's 40 years old...." and the supervisor must been high as a kite and actually approved that.
I think "high as a kite" is the crux of the matter. Mind you they have opened a whole new market, so kudos to the guy. It's not everyone's cup of tea, but if I were to consider a Fender, there's more to choose from, so why not. 😅
The only problem is they way overdid the fingerboard. I have no idea how someone didn’t say it’s too much and doesn’t look anything but fake. Otherwise they are great, just not for me because I can’t get passed the board
Wouldn’t it be more cost effective and commercially appealing to do a straight, non-relic Mexican Vintage range, with nitro cellulose? Surely that’s what’ll come next out of the far east.
I don’t mind relicing if it is well done or unique, but these don’t really come off authentic. They are fun but not the best looking relics I’ve ever experienced
The entire relic concept is beyond me, it is like buying a new car that is rusted, torn, tattered and worn and you pay extra for that and if you find a genuinely POS old car you actually pay even more where as most people would only pay a few hundred for it.
Same. If the wear is genuine from use, it’s impressive and can look cool. But relic’d guitars are like those distressed leather jackets that look like you’ve fallen off a motorbike a dozen times the day you buy it. Tacky.
@@lauraeeee the distances on the string saddles look sort of odd... Normally the saddle of the (thick) E string is furthest from the nut, then the A string closer to the nut, and then the D string closest to the nut. This is repeated for the GBe strings, with the G string being furthest from the nut and (high) e string closest to the nut. In this case, the saddle of the G-string is quite far out, which could suit a wound G-string but not an unwound one. Has the intonation been properly checked (i.e., while fretting the 12th fret and adjusting the saddle distances)?
I don't understand how you can sell such disgusting guitars! It's like a guy who's been going from an engine full of grease to a guitar for 10 years...
I had one of these when they came out and loved it. Sold it back in 2015 and have always wanted to get it back.
I got a 2008 60s road worn Strat, and I’m loving it.
What colour ?
@@benallmark9671color*
Wow what a magnificent tone! So genuine Strat!
I have the rosewood neck version, it feels just great. Mine's a mongrel of two different years, plus Lace Sensor gold pickups, but my friend said it was the most stratty sounding strat that she'd heard.
You're right, an absolute dream strat for the money. I have the same one but I think the 50 Road Worn came out in 2008 as my serial number starts with MZ8
I found a 2009 60s RW Strat, phenomenal playing guitar, completely stock. Possibly a Never Sell guitar.
Totally agree on these early models. One of my local shops had one like this and it was always my go to when I would visit. I regret not buying it then.
I have a 2018 purple road worn Telecaster & it has the best feeling neck I've ever played. Its a joy to play.
My main Strat is a 2017 Road Worn 50's in Sunburst. That era was a little less extreme with the relicing. A truly amazing guitar.
09 or 10 bought new still have it 60’s road worn. Love it
I have 2009 or 2010 60's Roadworn in Olympic white (that yellowed a bit over the years!) that I brought new and had it since. Maybe 2 years ago, I got fixed at another store that I brought it and the repairman and I talked together as he worked on it and he said to me that's a really good Strat, a lot better that the Vinteras which were the closest to the RN available at the time. It's still my #1 Fender, the other being a Squier CV Esquire Custom, wihich is not bad once it's well adjusted. Your RN 50's is a quite beautiful as well! 😎
I had a 60s strat for the longest time. I regret getting rid of it as my parents got it for me, but I'm not a huge strat guy anymore. I also had two of the 50s teles. Really shouldn't have sold one of those. Killer guitars. IMO the best model Fender has put out.
I vividly remember playing the first run Road Worn 50s Tele. It's one of those watershed guitars wherein it felt so nice to play it shifted my perception of what a good guitar is. (not the only guitar to do that but one of the early ones). I've played more modern Road Worns, the Jason Isbell Tele notably, and maybe it's a nostalgic bias but I feel that original Road Worn was nicer somehow.
Haha! Bloody hell- - would that manager have told Jeff beck he couldn’t use a white strat? What a c*#%!!
I remember sitting in a big famous guitar shop on Santa Monica and picked up a road worn and I played that for ages - even compared to some of the mega expensive American strats it felt lovely to play..
Great video. I love my original run RW Tele and more recent RW HSS Strat. Main difference is the newer neck has more unfinished feel. Both very light. On the whole relic debate on top of the feel. I would say these get picked up more at home as less precious about them getting knocked or dinged.
Have the 2021 Roadworn Tele. The nitro Lake Placid finish is amazing, it doesn’t look like a fake relic at all
Love my Roadworn 🎸🌟
Best mexican strat I've ever owned was the road house deluxe in hss with the vintage noisles pups and a Fender double tap humbucker. Better than any mexican strat which is available today throughout the whole Mexican series. The split on the humbucker was the best split I've ever heard. If I was to buy another Mexican strat, I would defo go for that one.
Interesting to hear about your G&L Legacy!! That’s the guitar I started on - originally bought for my son back in 2002. More of a Strat half-brother than a Strat clone…. It would be interesting to hear your take on them nowadays.
OMG I have the same tapered fret ends issue, and fiddled the saddles in the same way. Not just me then.
The guitarist I work with has a blonde Tele with a single could in the centre position, piezo bridge (a Nashville maybe?) and it is hooligan. He did get it pleq’d but it plays and sounds wonderful. He’s got a Gristlemaster and a G&L with B and G benders and I have an Elite and that Mexican Tele holds its own against them all.
Why I’ll always buy relic’d if I can: much better resell if it gets roughed up! There’s something about not having to worry about damaging a guitar that makes you reach for it more often and player harder. Also, great for playing out.
would be curious what you think of the mexican classic series 50's strats
I have a 2009 MIM Fender standard strat in candy apple red I got for $400 a few years back and it's amazing. Even today it's on par with guitars 5x its price. I've tried squiers to custom shops and none of them are as comfortable and reliable as that 09 MIM strat
I had a 2011 Mex strat not road worn but the best strat I’ve owned,I played it to death and the guitar neck was so worn out, but what a guitar, I have a 2019 American strat beautiful but I don’t play it as the old one not at all ,
I had one , it was really great but I hated the narrow tall frets , felt like train tracks .
Either medium jumbo or vintage frets for me . I did consider getting it refretted but just sold it and bought a classic series Laquer , much the same but nicer neck / frets .
That jam though….😮
I have to say I have a 60s vintage spec sunburst MIM, but I rosewood neck from the early 2000s and it's a wonderful sound bone stock
The noventa line came from Mexico. They were pretty unique, but didn’t really get on with the p90 they were using. I had the surf green strat. Hard tail with 2 p90s. Loved the idea but ended up moving it on after a year or so
Black fender strat nitro finish What more could you want
I have a 2007 Deluxe Lonestar and it’s a beast! By far my most used guitar.
Does yours have Jumbo frets and is it lightweight?
@@bluwng jumbo frets and light enough 😉
The body on mine is stamped "ROAD WRN" just below the middle and neck pickups.
i had an original roadworn tele. it was ok, not amazing. i prefered the baja 50 tele. what a guitar
I had a 2010 60s RW that I never should’ve let go. After I got my USA Silver Sky, I traded the RW for a PRS CE22 and sold that pretty quickly after. Paid $650 for the RW and sold the CE for $1400 so I did well, money wise. Still a regrettable decision though 😢
My road worn Tele. is my number 1 gigging guitar.
Which K-Line pickups do you have? I currently have the Fender noiseless Gen 4 pickups on my Mexican strat
golden era was 94 95. this is the silver era. still a lot better than any of the USA made ones.
This model and the Highway One model.
Nice "Mark Knoflerish" tone early on
The Charvel stuff is superior and doesn't need a refin lol.
Not sure what the Fender replacement roasted 12" radius, flat oval necks with rolled edges are off but those seem more like Charvel specs.
I‘ve got a Jason Isbell Tele Custom. Also worth checking out.
I had one but couldn’t get over how bad the relic job was. It had like 6 equally spaced punch marks next to the output jack that didn’t look like realistic wear at all. That and I couldn’t get along with the vintage string spacing. It made it difficult to switch between my guitars with Gibson spacing.
Baja Tele is my favorite
PT at a book signing! 🤘
i would say the classic player series are the best mexican fenders
Still not convinced about the tone being in the fingers? Give this a listen.
I know! He sounds like himself no matter what guitar he plays. Imagine that! 😂
I have a 2013 50s Roadworn Tele. Phenomenal instrument for the price. I’ll never sell it
I have an early Roadworn Strat and Tele but don’t really care for the 7.25” fingerboard
Classic series also very good if relic not liked, agree though that the older Mex guitars were better.
I have a 2015 rosewood neck sunburst 60s strat. It’s best strat I’ve ever played. My dad has been trying to get it off me for years. Road worns are awesome. Most custom shop strats look shit and over relic
Had an EJ Strat and brought one of thes RWs as a backup.. ended up selling the EJ
I played a few of the early Road Warns, and had two problems with them. First, and least important, is that the relicing was so uniform guitar to guitar that I had a hard time considering it "convincing". But more importantly, I felt that the neck and fretboard were SO warn, that I didn't like the feel. If they had donme any more to the neck, it would have given me splinters. IMHO, it was really overdone.
Those guitars are certainly nice, But if you want to see. and hear, the best MIM product, you need to find an early (2006) Baja.
It’s sounds good, just different than the American Strats.
Did these have Jumbo frets?
Mine has 6105s
Looks like medium jumbos
High and narrowish
I had one of those... remember this was before relic guitars were a thing. It's almost like they were an experiment, someone at Fender went "let's try and sell a guitar that's brand new but looks like it's 40 years old...." and the supervisor must been high as a kite and actually approved that.
I think "high as a kite" is the crux of the matter. Mind you they have opened a whole new market, so kudos to the guy.
It's not everyone's cup of tea, but if I were to consider a Fender, there's more to choose from, so why not. 😅
He's not a fan of the 9th, 10th, 11th or 12th frets then?😄
Make sure you don’t scratch it whilst it’s on loan to you.
The only problem is they way overdid the fingerboard. I have no idea how someone didn’t say it’s too much and doesn’t look anything but fake. Otherwise they are great, just not for me because I can’t get passed the board
Wouldn’t it be more cost effective and commercially appealing to do a straight, non-relic Mexican Vintage range, with nitro cellulose?
Surely that’s what’ll come next out of the far east.
That would've been the Classic Series Lacquer models they had. They were not around very long- 3 or 4 years maybe?
These were great back then, and good value too. Now they're cheap shit charged at a small fortune.
I don’t mind relicing if it is well done or unique, but these don’t really come off authentic. They are fun but not the best looking relics I’ve ever experienced
The entire relic concept is beyond me, it is like buying a new car that is rusted, torn, tattered and worn and you pay extra for that and if you find a genuinely POS old car you actually pay even more where as most people would only pay a few hundred for it.
Same. If the wear is genuine from use, it’s impressive and can look cool. But relic’d guitars are like those distressed leather jackets that look like you’ve fallen off a motorbike a dozen times the day you buy it. Tacky.
It's so lawyers with money to burn and no talent can appear genuine to their lady callers.
I wear pre-faded jeans, so I get it.
@@sroelit Why do you wear them?
You have to experience them to understand why. However everyone has their own preferences. I dig em. But you don’t. There’s no good guy/bad guy.
HSS and 22 frets missing though!
I don't think they had HSS strats with 22 frets in the 50s...
Didn't watch the whole video but what is up with the intonation?
Hey man, this is my instrument. What do you mean? The guitar plays un tune. Are you going off a visual thing?
@@lauraeeee the distances on the string saddles look sort of odd... Normally the saddle of the (thick) E string is furthest from the nut, then the A string closer to the nut, and then the D string closest to the nut. This is repeated for the GBe strings, with the G string being furthest from the nut and (high) e string closest to the nut. In this case, the saddle of the G-string is quite far out, which could suit a wound G-string but not an unwound one. Has the intonation been properly checked (i.e., while fretting the 12th fret and adjusting the saddle distances)?
@@lauraeeee it's just a visual thing btw
@@kevinvandenberg5548 yeah. I did the work myself....I agree, it looks out, but it doesn't sound it.
@@hazymous Yes, that's what I thought as well!
What a choice instrument that strat would be for the money , if it weren't "relic'd".
Its amazing how Fender sucks more and more, now this is a gem they make in the custom shop now, the difference is onley 4000 dollar on a good day! 🤢
I don't understand how you can sell such disgusting guitars! It's like a guy who's been going from an engine full of grease to a guitar for 10 years...
Disgusting to some....
@@lauraeeee It's true that some living organism on this planet feed off the filth of others. It must be appetizing for them!