Condition Note: Neck pocket paint chip.
Nile Rodgers has written, produced, and performed on recordings that have sold more than 500-million albums globally. Every hit record he’s produced has shared one essential element: the used 1960 Fender hardtail Stratocaster Nile bought in a Miami music shop. Rarely is a single guitar so inseparably identified with its owner as The Hitmaker.
The Hitmaker features a 1960 alder body that is uniquely smaller and more contoured than a typical vintage Strat. The beautiful Olympic White lacquer matches the finish Nile sprayed on the guitar himself just after he acquired it in the early days of Chic. The custom ’59-profile one-piece maple neck has a 9.5” radius fingerboard, medium jumbo frets and a satin finish. A “Nile Rodgers & Chic” logo adorns the back of the headstock and a custom Hitmaker logo is stamped into the neck plate.
The Nile Rodgers Hitmaker single-coil Strat pickups are voiced to accurately replicate the quack, chime and bell-like clarity of the original Hitmaker. Other features include a hard-tail string-through bridge with period-correct bent-steel saddles, an eye-catching mirrored chrome-plated brass pickguard, locking Sperzel tuners and a set of white speed knobs. The guitar also comes with a vintage-style case with Hitmaker-embroidered interior and a custom certificate of authenticity.
Body: Alder
Body Finish: Gloss Nitrocellulose Lacquer
Body Material: Alder
Body Shape: Stratocaster
Fingerboard Radius: 9.5″ (241 mm)
Headstock: Stratocaster
Neck Construction: 4-Bolt Standard
Neck Finish: Satin Nitrocellulose Lacquer Finish with Gloss Headstock Face
Neck Material: Maple
Neck Shape: 1959 “C”
Number of Frets: 21
Nut Material: Bone
Nut Width: 1.625″ (41.3 mm)
Position Inlays: Black Dot
Side Dots: Black
String Nut: Bone
Truss Rod: Vintage-Style Butt Adjust
Truss Rod Nut: Vintage-Style Butt Adjust
Control Knobs: White Speed
Hardware Finish: Nickel/Chrome
Neck Plate: 4-Bolt Serialized with Custom Hitmaker Logo
Pickguard: 11-hole Chrome Plated Brass
Pickup Covers: White
Strap Buttons: Vintage-Style
String Trees: Dual-Wing with Metal Spacers
Switch Tip: White
Tuning Machines: Sperzel Locking
Controls: Master Volume, Tone 1. (Neck Pickup), Tone 2. (Bridge/Middle Pickup)
Middle Pickup: Hitmaker Nile Rogers RWRP Strat
Neck Pickup: Hitmaker Nile Rogers Strat
Pickup Configuration: SSS
Potentiometers: CTS 250K
Switching: 5-Position Blade: Position 1. Bridge Pickup, Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup, Position 3. Middle Pickup, Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup, Position 5. Neck Pickup