The 75th Anniversary Nocaster reissue and three Player II models are in local stock now, spanning a $4,999 vintage flagship down to sub-$1,500 workhorses.
The guitar Fender shipped in 1951 with a blank headstock is back, and now on Australian shop floors. The 75th Anniversary American Vintage II 1951 Nocaster leads a four-model expansion of Fender’s 75th Anniversary Collection, and as of August the reissue and three Player II models have landed in local stock for immediate purchase.
1951 Nocaster
Fender’s first mass-produced solidbody guitar arrived in 1950 as the Broadcaster, the instrument that would soon become the Telecaster and reshape the electric guitar. The name didn’t last long. Gretsch pointed out that it already sold a Broadkaster drum kit, so Fender clipped the Broadcaster decal off its headstocks and kept shipping guitars with no model name at all until the new Telecaster decals arrived in 1951. Those in-between guitars picked up the nickname Nocaster years later, and that’s what this reissue recreates.
The reissue is full of period detail. Its ash body comes in Nocaster Blonde under Fender’s Heirloom Lacquer, an aged nitrocellulose finish made to look and feel like a guitar played for decades. The substantial ’51 “U”-shaped maple neck carries a 7.25″ radius and tall vintage frets, while touches like the narrow 12th-fret dot spacing and the single Phillips-head screw at the truss rod nut keep it true to the originals. A triple brass saddle bridge, single-line Fender Deluxe tuners and 75th Anniversary Blackguard Telecaster pickups finish it off, the pickups delivering the raw, chimey blackguard twang the model is known for.
Read our review of the Nocaster here.
Player II Telecaster
Coming from the more affordable Player II line, the Telecaster runs a Modern “C” neck with a satin back, a 9.5″ radius fingerboard with rolled edges and 22 medium jumbo frets. There’s a choice of alder, chambered ash or chambered mahogany bodies, with Alnico V single-coil pickups handling the tone. It comes in Daphne Blue and Seafoam Green with a rosewood fingerboard, or Candy Apple Red and Aztec Gold with maple. RRP $1,349.
Player II Baritone Telecaster
Its sibling takes that same build into deeper baritone territory for lower tunings and heavier parts, keeping the Modern “C” neck and Alnico V single-coils. It comes in Butterscotch Blonde and 3-Color Sunburst with a rosewood fingerboard, or Black and Lake Placid Blue with maple, with an RRP of $1,499 to $1,599.
Player II Precision Bass
Rounding out the range is the P Bass, which pairs an alder body with the same Modern “C” neck, split-coil Alnico V pickups and 20 medium jumbo frets. It comes in Daphne Blue and Seafoam Green with a rosewood fingerboard, or Candy Apple Red and Aztec Gold with maple, several of the colours pulled from the Fender archive. RRP is $1,349.
All four are available now through major Australian retailers. Head to Fender to learn more.
