![2002 fender highway one stratocaster 2002 fender highway one stratocaster](https://images.reverb.com/image/upload/s--l3tmFkUC--/a_exif,c_limit,e_unsharp_mask:80,f_auto,fl_progressive,g_south,h_620,q_90,w_620/v1476897111/rn4ljefwcuiva815bxbe.jpg)
They sound tinny in positions 1, 3, and 5, and they sound overly warm in positions 2 and 4. The pickups that come on this thing are (in my own humble opinion) under-wound and poo. The only downside to these as they come from the factory is the pickups. The tremolo seems to be of a very good mass, and the imitation bone nut does its job well enough, as the sustain is better than most other strats I've played that didn't have a Floyd Rose system installed. The frets seem particularly well crowned and rounded on the edges for a factory Fender, but that could just be mine. It's a 'C', but it's closer in overall thickness to the 'soft Vs' that I've played. To me, the neck is the centerpiece of the guitar. This is an American-made Stratocaster with a PRE-CBS HEADSTOCK!!! I can't stand those 'big peghead' abominations. It has a very spartan, utilitarian sort of beauty. The translucent nitrocellulose on these early Highway 1s is very nice looking, and does seem to be improving with age. The nice, darker wine red with the wood grain still promisingly visible erased any feeling of wanting that old Mexy back. I had previously owned a 1994 made in Mexico Fender 'Squire Series' strat which was fiesta red. I bought it at Brook Mays Music in Duncanville, Texas as they were going out of business in 2007 with hardshell case for $400. It came with a white/black/white three-ply pickguard with all white appointments. Mine is a 2005 wine red translucent nitrocellulose finish.