The Fender Stratocaster, often referred to as a Strat, is a model of electric guitar designed by Leo Fender and Freddie Tavares in the early 1950s, and manufactured continuously to the present. The Fender Stratocaster has been used by many leading guitarists, and thus can be heard on many historic recordings. Along with the Gibson Les Paul, the Fender Telecaster and the Gibson SG, it is one of the most enduring and common models of electric guitar in the world.

The Fender Stratocaster has been widely copied; as a result "Stratocaster" or "Strat" is often used when referring to any guitar that has the same general features as the original, regardless of manufacturer. Such a guitar not produced by Fender or Squier is thus called a strat copy. However, in many jurisdictions the word "Stratocaster" is reserved solely for use by Fender and its subsidiary company, Squier.

Much of the popularity of the Fender Stratocaster can be attributed to its versatility. The neck, middle, and bridge (termed "rhythm", "normal tone" and "lead", respectively) pickups provide a wide range of tones. The standard single-coil pickups often found in Fender Stratocasters produce a trebly sound with a high top end and bell-like harmonics.

From 1959 to 1967, the Fender Stratocaster was refitted with a rosewood fretboard, as well as color choices other than sunburst, including a variety of colorful car-like paint jobs that appealed to the nascent surfer and hot-rod culture, pioneered by such bands as the Surfaris, the Ventures and the Beach Boys. Dick Dale was a prominent Fender Stratocaster player who also collaborated with Leo Fender in developing the Fender Showman amplifier. In the early 1960s, the instrument was also championed by Hank Marvin - guitarist of the Shadows, a band which originally backed Cliff Richard and then produced instrumentals of its own. So distinctive was the Hank Marvin sound that many musicians - including the Beatles - initially deliberately avoided the Fender Stratocaster and chose other marques. However, by 1965, George Harrison and John Lennon of the Beatles both acquired Fender Stratocasters at about the time of the Rubber Soul recording sessions. Fender had planned to stop production of the Fender Stratocaster before Jimi Hendrix popularized the guitar in the late 60s.

After a peak in the 1970s, driven by players such as David Gilmour of Pink Floyd, Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple, Eric Clapton, and Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits, another lull occurred in the early 1980s. During that time, CBS-Fender cut costs by deleting features from the standard Stratocaster line, despite a blues revival that featured Fender Strat players such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, Robert Cray, and Buddy Guy (a Fender Stratocaster player since the mid-1960s, sometimes credited with influencing Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and Stevie Ray Vaughan in their choice of the Fender Stratocaster as a primary blues-rock guitar). 

One of the most popular guitar manufacturers, Fender, now offers an extensive line of contemporary cutting-edge Fender Stratocasters alongside vintage reissues, as well as maintaining a Custom Shop service that builds Fender guitars to order. Those who wish period-accurate replicas can request Fender Stratocasters with original-style cloth-coated wiring, pickup and electronics designs, wood routing patterns, and even artificial aging and oxidizing of components using the Fender Custom Shop "relic" process.

The top-of-the-line American Deluxe Series Fender Stratocasters came with a variety of high-end options (including a Fender DH-1 humbucker in the bridge position and an American 2-point locking vibrato bridge {Fender /Floyd Rose assembly} with LSR Roller Nut and locking tuners on certain models) and Samarium Cobalt Noiseless pickups with S-1 switching. Refinements include solid alder or ash bodies, flamed or quilted maple top, one piece maple neck with the choice of maple, rosewood or ebony fretboard with abalone dot inlays, rolled fingerboard edges, highly detailed nut and fret work. Fender Guitars produced before 2004 featured Vintage Noiseless pickups and 4-bolt neck fixing. The smooth contoured neck heel feature on these Fender Strats was added in 2002. Additionally, the American Deluxe Fender Strat HSS (also known as American Deluxe Fat Strat) utilizes two Hot SCN pickups for a proper balance with the humbucking pickup. This guitar was also available with an optional Fender Deluxe locking vibrato bridge (American Deluxe Strat HSS LT). Introduced in 1998 and upgraded in 2004, the American Deluxe Fender Strat HSS LT has been discontinued in 2007.

American Series Fender Stratocasters feature non-veneered alder or ash bodies, rolled fingerboard edges, three custom staggered single-coils and the DeltaTone system (which includes a high output bridge pickup and a reverse-wound single-coil in the middle position). Hardtail versions were discontinued in 2007. New for 2003 was the American Strat HSS which features a Diamondback humbucker (bridge), two Tex-Mex single-coils (neck/middle) and S-1 switching. An HH model with dual Sidewinder/Black Cobra humbuckers was offered until 2007,some are ATOMIC I,HOT ATOMIC or even PEARL GATES PLUS(THESE ARE JUST WAYS OF SIMULATING GIBSON PAFS OR SEYMOUR DUNCAN JB'S available with the choice of tremolo and hardtail bridges.

The Fender Vintage Hot-Rod Series has vintage looks and modern playability ignited together in these next-level guitars, which feature authentic ’50s and early ’60s Fender designs paired with some of the most scorching hot-rod modifications.

The American Special Series included Fender Strats with sought-after features that span the bridge between traditional and modern technology, either in specifications, design or both. Fender American Special series models were made in Corona, California (USA). The Floyd Rose Classic Fender Stratocasters (made from 1998 to 2002) featured an original Floyd Rose locking tremolo bridge. They came in HSS and HH configurations (a set of Fender DH-1 humbucking pickups paired with two DeltaTone single-coils). The range also included the Honduran mahogany-bodied Strat-O-Sonic guitars with the choice of Black Dove P-90 soap-bars and Atomic II humbucking pickups, which lasted until 2007.

The VG Fender Stratocaster (designed by Fender and Japanese synthesizer giant Roland) is an American Series virtual modeling guitar with a Roland VG pickup and two extra knobs for Tuning Function Control (5 Rotary Positions) and Mode Control (5 Rotary Modes), offering 37 different Stratocaster, Telecaster, humbucking, 12-string and acoustic sounds, plus five alternate tunings, all at the simple flip of a switch or twist of a knob. It all comes in the gracefully familiar form of an American Series Fender Stratocaster, designed to deliver each sound with level, balanced tone and volume - no need to readjust amp settings with each change in guitar sound. The VG Strat has been introduced in 2007 and endorsed by Fender guitar clinicians Greg Koch and Jeff Kollman.

Custom Classic Strats are Fender Custom Shop versions of the American Series models, sporting C or V-shape maple necks with rosewood or maple fingerboard and three Modern Classic single-coils with a Hot Classic bridge pickup featuring a custom steel inductance plate. Custom Classic guitars made before 2003 were equipped with a set of Fender Texas Special single-coils.

Highway One guitars (introduced in 2003 and upgraded in 2006) sport a large headstock, '70s styling, super-sized frets, three distortion-friendly Alnico III single-coils and a Greasebucket tone circuit (which rolls off the high frequencies without adding bass). The Highway One Fender Stratocaster HSS features a black bobbin Atomic II humbucker in the bridge position. Limited edition models with '50s and early '60s specs are also offered with a run of 150 instruments; 2-tone sunburst finish, ash body, maple fingerboard and 1-ply parchment pickguard or surf green finish, alder body, rosewood fingerboard and 3-ply mint pickguard, both featuring a small headstock with "spaghetti"-style decal. Additionally, the alder-bodied guitar with the rosewood fretboard and the 3-ply mint pickguard sports a set of Custom Shop '69 Fender Stratocaster single-coil pickups.

The Fender Artist Signature Series line includes several Fender Stratocaster models loaded with features and specifications favored by famous endorsees such as Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, John Mayer, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Mark Knopfler and others. The Custom Artist guitars are the Custom Shop versions; they slightly differ from the regular Fender Artist Signature range in terms of quality and construction, making these instruments much expensive than the regular production versions. Like the other Fender Custom Shop models, the Custom Artist guitars are available as Team Built and Master Built items.

Standard, Deluxe and Classic Series Fender Stratocasters are generally made in Mexico, although some models are manufactured in Japan and Korea. Each model has features which make these moderately-priced instruments an affordable value for any budget.

Fender Stratocasters are built in the United States, Mexico, Japan and Korea.

American, American Deluxe, Artist, Custom Classic, Custom Artist and Highway One series Fender Stratocasters are made in a Fender factory in Corona, California, United States of America and are commonly called Made In America (MIA) Stratocasters. There is also a Fender Museum there open to the public. 
Most other Stratocaster series models are made in a Fender factory in Ensenada, Mexico and are often labelled as Made In Mexico (MIM). Guitar necks are still manufactured in the Corona factory and sent to the Ensenada factory to be mounted onto guitars. 
The Fuji Gen Gakki factory in Matsumoto, Japan, is also licensed to manufacture Fender Stratocasters, but exclusively for the domestic market. However, second-hand or earlier Made In Japan (MIJ) or Crafted In Japan (CIJ) Stratocasters can be found in foreign markets. Fender Japan had previously used the MIJ label, but switched to CIJ shortly after it limited guitar production to the domestic market. 
There is also a budget-minded Squier brand of Stratocasters by Fender, and is popular among novice guitarists. Squier Stratocasters are produced in Indonesia and India at lower cost than Fender Stratocasters, but are otherwise similar in concept and maintain similar respective quality standards. While Squier Stratocasters are predominantly inexpensive versions of Fender Stratocasters, some models are also unique to the Squier brand, such as the OBEY Graphic series or Hello Kitty series. A 12-string version, known as the Stratocaster XII, is also available.

from Wikipedia,licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.

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