I found this one lingering at an unreasonably low price, so I had to take the plunge. There were some dings and quite a bit of buckle rash on the back, but they seem to be honest playing wear rather than abuse or a fake "relic" attempt. It wasn't love at first sight, but after a good fretboard cleaning and a string change I knew this was definitely a keeper. I still need to fine-tune the setup.
The felt washers are missing from the strap buttons, but otherwise everything appears to be stock. The strap buttons are not the type most commonly used on G&Ls, but these did show up on pre-BBE instruments at times. I have the same type on my '81 L-2KE and '91 ASAT Signature Bass, so they were definitely in the factory at both ends of the Leo-era. A few other features typical of the early ASAT Classics are the white crinkle pick guard, white switch tip, steel saddles and "by Leo Fender" stamp on the bridge.
I'm not sure about this guitar's origins. It's serial number is not in Dale's log. The neck and body dates are from January 1990 (ignoring the second body stamp, which would have been on the Saturday between Christmas and New Years). Those dates are among the lowest for an ASAT Classic or ASAT Classic Sig in the Registry. All I know about its past is that it had ended up in the Nashville area. It also appears to have been played hard, but pretty well taken care of.
I've owned two ASAT Classics from later in the '90s. Tone-wise, this one is an entirely different beast. I'd say it's much closer to a Telecaster than the newer ASAT Classics. I haven't done any A/B testing yet, but the bridge pup is probably brighter than any of my other G&Ls. The neck pup is very full, and both are quite loud. It actually took a bit of getting used to.
Ken
