1962 Fender Stratocaster

The 1962 Stratocaster straddles the slab-to-veneer rosewood board transition. Early 1962 examples have the thick slab Brazilian rosewood board; later examples have the thinner veneer (curved) board. Both are correct for the year. Spaghetti logo headstock. Three-tone sunburst standard. Serial numbers on the neck plate (four or five digits, no letter prefix). For 1962, numbers should fall within documented Fender serial ranges. However, neck plates were not assigned sequentially to bodies, so neck date stamps (pencil or ink on the neck heel) and body cavity dates are more reliable. Look for a hand-written date on the butt end of the neck heel and in the neck pocket or under the pickguard on the body. Check the rosewood board thickness — slab boards are approximately 3/16 inch thick with a flat bottom; veneer boards are thinner with a curved bottom following the neck radius. Pot codes should show 61 or 62 dates. Pickups should have black or gray fiber flatwork (gray-bottom pickups began appearing). Cloth wiring. Kluson single-line tuners. CRL three-way switch. The finish should be nitrocellulose lacquer. Nitro finishes check (develop fine cracks) and wear naturally over decades, showing wood underneath at contact points. The aging pattern should be consistent — even checking across the body, not localized. Refinished guitars often have a 'too perfect' look or inconsistent wear. Under UV/blacklight, original nitro fluoresces differently than modern polyester or polyurethane. Original custom color finishes are verified by examining the color in the pickup cavities and under the pickguard where it has been protected from light. The slab-to-veneer transition makes 1962 a tricky year for authentication. A claimed 'slab board 1962' with a late-year neck date would be suspicious — slab boards were phased out by mid-year. Watch for veneer boards that have been shimmed to appear thicker. Check the neck date stamp carefully — it should be consistent with the board type. Replaced pickguards, pickups, and tuners are common modifications. The 1962 differs from 1961 in the mid-year transition from slab to veneer board, and from 1963 which is fully veneer board. Early 1962 slab-board examples command a premium over late 1962 veneer-board examples. The gray-bottom pickup transition also began around this time.