![]() The slab rosewood fingerboard with clay dots is just right for the period and the offset slab alder body is very in‑vogue in the 21 st Century. The diminutive ¾-size body and short 22½” scale length neck may also put some off but it is still a quality built, ‘Made in U.S.A.’ Fender guitar. What’s not to like? The distinctive Desert Sand colour may not be to everyone’s taste (one might wonder what Fender were thinking), although the mix of coffee and cream does grow on one. ![]() These 1950s Musicmasters were designed and built by the same people who worked on the Stratocasters and Telecasters of the time, using the same materials in the same Fender factory in Fullerton, California. The wear through the top coat to the white undercoat indicates this is the original finish. Here is a 1959 Musicmaster in all‑original and very good condition for its age. Now… is this an ugly duckling or a beautiful swan in disguise? I think you know which side of the fence I’m on. The Fender Musicmaster is well and truly an affordable vintage bargain for the time being. ![]() This means that the only Musicmasters generally available are original now‑vintage models. To‑date, the Musicmaster has not been reissued since they were withdrawn in 1982, unlike the Duo‑Sonic and Mustang. The Fender Musicmaster was discontinued by 1982. From 1964, the Musicmaster and Duo-Sonic were again redesigned to match the general style of the newly introduced Fender Mustang with the more popular 24” scale as standard and the short 22½” scale as an option. Fender revamped both the Musicmaster and Duo‑Sonic in 1959 with plastic scratchplates to replace the previous anodized aluminium and rosewood fingerboards. Both models had a 1‑piece maple neck with a 22½” scale and 21 frets. Both models had a simple slab body with a fixed non-vibrato bridge/tailpieces. The solid body offset single‑pickup Fender Musicmaster was the first ¾‑size ‘student’ guitar produced by the company, released in April 1956, followed a couple of months later by the dual‑pickup Duo-Sonic. The earliest of these ‘student’ models to appear were the Musicmaster and Duo‑Sonic, followed by the Mustang and Bronco in the mid‑1960s. Fender’s hope was that these pupils would remain loyal to the brand and migrate up to the more expensive models in their line‑up. Fender also wanted to differentiate the low cost guitars from their professional level instruments. These ‘budget’ models had to be cheaper to manufacture and simpler to play in order to sell to learners, many of whom were young and eager to emulate their idols. In the mid‑1950s, Fender sought to increase its consumer popularity with beginners by introducing a range of student models over the following decade.
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