Fender Deluxe Molded Strat/Tele Case

I bought this for my American Special Stratocaster (which came with a gig bag). This is the second case of this type that I have (they come with the American Professional and Elite series). And it is a great case.

The aluminium skirt around the lids is tight fitting, the plush interior is thick and well-finished. The storage compartment has a lid and is really quite large. The neck of the guitar is properly supported. Both my Strat and Tele fit snugly into this case (the Strat has the large 70s headstock and it fits - just).

I use this case for home storage and for that purpose it really is excellent. I've not gigged with these cases, but on the basis of what's happened to my cases in the past I would say that the will stand-up well to "normal" gigging. For anything slightly more heavy-duty, there are a couple of areas of risk. There are feet on the case which are attached (rather than being part of the ABS moulding) which I think could theoretically attract damage with sufficient abuse. The latches are good and close fitting and are designed to be opened by without damage by customs officials - but they are plastic and they do protrude - and so for this reason I would not personally use this as a flight case.

Relative to the well-reputed but slightly cheaper competition, I have owned those brands in the past and they are fine, but I think this case is worth the little extra cash that it costs. The latches are slightly smaller and less prominent than on some of the competition and in my opinion this case looks better - less "knobbly" bits of ABS moulding and, of course, it has the Fender logo - which if you're putting a Fender into it is a must!

And if you have more than one case of this type, they stack really well and won't move! I would buy it again.