As Fender’s surf-turned-alt-rock icon reaches its 60th birthday, the guitar giant has marked the king of short-scale offsets’ anniversary with two contrasting Anniversary Jaguar models.
First is the 60th Anniversary Jaguar, which takes a more traditional approach, but it’s joined by a high-performance 60th Anniversary Ultra Luxe Jaguar, which sees the Jag take-on a definitely-not-traditional (for a Jaguar) 25.5-inch scale length and more.
Fender 60th Anniversary Jaguar
The simply-named 60th Anniversary Jaguar is the more traditional of the two new models, featuring an alder body and a ’60s C-shaped maple neck. The fingerboard is rosewood with a 7.25” radius, and has been bound and blocked with vintage-style pearloid inlays.
It features a traditional Jaguar bridge and tremolo system, and Fender has included the mechanical, adjustable string mutes found on Jags of yore. Pickup-wise, Fender has fitted a pair of Anniversary Jaguar single coils, with the switching handled by a traditional lead/rhythm circuit, and the Jaguar strangle switch.
The 60th Anniversary Jaguar comes in two nitrocellulose finishes: Mystic Dakota Red and Mystic Lake Placid Blue, both with tortoiseshell scratch plates and matching headstocks.
Fender 60th Anniversary American Ultra Luxe Jaguar
At the other end of the spectrum is the 60th Anniversary American Ultra Luxe Jaguar. Kicking things off, it shuns the Jaguar’s 24” scale length (originally designed to coax Gibson fans towards the brand) in favour of Fender’s conventional 25.5” scale.
The Texas Tea-finished, black and mirrored chrome Jaguar replicates the Jag’s original positioning as the tuxedo model in the line-up, and being part of the Ultra Luxe series it’s packing some additional cutting-edge features.
The neck profile is the UL line’s Augmented D shape, and Fender has added a compound radius (10”-14”) ebony fingerboard, rolled fingerboard edges and stainless steel frets.
Electronically, it’s home to a pair of Custom Double Tap humbuckers, switched with a three-position blade, but those humbuckers can also be individually split using the mini-toggles.
Down at the bridge there’s an Adjusto-Matic with through-body stringing, and Fender has added a TUSQ nut at the opposite end. It comes with a premium hardshell case.
Both the 60th Anniversary Jaguar and 60th Anniversary Ultra Luxe Jaguar are available now, priced at £2499.
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