The Best Decision Fender Has Made Recently: Vintera II Road Worn Series Review.
Some people love Fender and its products, knowing everything about them, while others hold the opposite view and simply hate everything about the brand. Thus, we have the "Ones That Love" and the "Ones That Love to Hate" existing under the same roof. I don't consider myself a connoisseur, not even a Real-Fan, but Leo Fender is, for me, the pillar of modern guitar manufacturing, and almost every guitar that now exists has elements coming from him.
So, what does that previous paragraph have to do with the review? Well, I think it is the prologue, because I don't think Leo Fender could have ever imagined how much we still glorify "The Vintage Fender." His designs and manufacturing ideas had nothing to do with mojo or tone-wood. His concept was simply to make guitars in a production line, optimized for repeatability. Therefore, whatever materials were used in the '50s Fender models were chosen simply because they were common and simple—nothing else.
Fast-forward to 2025, and from the Mexican Factory comes this product that amazes me in many ways and gives me doubts about why the Fender Custom Shop USA even exists.
The Fender Vintera II Road Worn series was launched just 10 days ago (today, September 27, 2025), and I received this particular guitar on September 25, 2025. This rapid turnaround perfectly illustrates how modern marketing and online sales tactics work: it suits the needs of the modern guitar enthusiast. The mindset is: 'I saw this thing, I want the thing, and I want it now'—all from my sofa, achieving low effort and maximum gain.
The model I decided to go with was the Fender Vintera II Road Worn 60s Telecaster Blonde.
The Specs
Model: Vintera II Road Worn '60s Telecaster (Blonde)
Body: Alder
Body Finish: Nitrocellulose Lacquer
Neck: Maple
Fretboard: Maple
Neck Shape: Early '60s "C"
Nut Width: 42mm
Nut Material: Synthetic Bone
Frets: 21 Vintage Tall
Fretboard Radius: 7.25”
Neck Finish: Nitrocellulose Lacquer
Truss Rod: Vintage-Style
Pickups: Vintage-Style '60s
Electronics: Typical Telecaster Wiring
Tuning Machines: Vintage-Style
Looks: It’s all about aesthetics, right? This guitar looks gorgeous in person. The "Worn" job is subtle but very noticeable. The hardware looks nice. I personally dislike the look of chrome, so if it's not Nickel, then scratched chrome is the way to go for me. The pickguard looked used, but not overly done.
Frets and fretwork are done very well. The guitar came with an action I’d say is a medium height. For a 7.25” radius, this is a fine setup from the factory, but it certainly can be lowered if desired. I believe Fender simply wanted to ensure the guitar would play straight out of the box, and they certainly achieved that. The guitar played perfectly right away (this is my experience with this specific guitar, I can’t speak for all of them).
Now, as for the fretboard, you can see in the pictures that there are lines that go across it, as if someone sanded every space in between the frets. Perhaps they did this to break the shine of the fresh lacquer, but, being picky, why would a great “vintage used” guitar have these marks? Furthermore, if you check online, all guitars have the exact same wear in the same spot on the fretboard. This is clear proof of the mass-production mentality behind this line, so don’t think yours is special.
This is the second generation of the Road Worn Vintera line, but it’s the first to feature a nitrocellulose lacquer finish. I think this is the right direction for the Vintera II Series; in fact, this could be the tip of the iceberg. If Fender is smart, they will bring the nitrocellulose finish to the whole Vintera II line in the future, but there’s a risk—more on that later...
The worn look on this guitar is very well done. For some, this "relic-ing" is a 'sin'—a new guitar shouldn't look old—but for others, it's an attractive feature. I personally like how it's executed here: the weather cracks, the very tiny scratches, and so on. However, as you can see in the pictures, there is a drop of lacquer on the back of the guitar. Why? I don't know, it makes no sense to me. I believe this is more of a manufacturing flaw than a feature. It’s true that on a relic'd guitar, mistakes can sometimes pass as features—but I imagine not everyone will agree in this case.
The neck has a very comfortable girth. We can call it the "60s C-shape," but all I can really say is that it feels great. It's not skinny/thin, nor is it a fat 'baseball bat,' just a very comfortable grip. I really like the neck profile, and that’s a very personal thing that can’t be easily translated, same goes for the 7.25” love it or hate it.
What I can say about the neck, though, is the stickiness. This neck is very sticky. Online people claim this is inherent to nitrocellulose, but I disagree. I've finished many guitars with nitro myself, and my guitars are never this sticky. I don'tknow how much the production was rushed, so I'm not aware of the curing time for these specific guitars. I don't know the ratio of the nitrocellulose mixture, nor do I know how cured they were when the 'Worn' process began. All of these factors are relevant to how nitrocellulose cures. I can only confirm that the neck is very sticky right now, but it will get better with play, so that shouldn't be a reason not to buy the guitar.
The electronics don’t fully follow the vintage theme here. There is no vintage cloth wiring, and, perhaps more critically, no shielding in the control cavities. Sorry, but that’s a significant oversight in a series aiming for vintage authenticity. As for parts, it comes equipped with quality CTS potentiometers.
As you can see, the back of the bridge and the control plate are largely untouched. This strongly suggests that the relic-ing process is performed on the components while they are lying flat on a surface, rather than on the assembled guitar itself. This approach clearly prioritizes mass production efficiency, allowing them to process more parts at the same time.
The price for this Guitar in Thomann right now is 1549€, and it is currently sold out. Now, the common criticism is: "That’s way too much money for a Fender MIM," or "I can get a used Fender American model for that money," or even, "That’s about 400€ more than the normal Vintera II just for Nitrocellulose? No way!" Those are all true statements, yet the guitar is sold out. Therefore, the guitar is clearly not made for everyone.
For that extra 400€, you get the Nitrocellulose finish and a very good case. One might argue: "That’s 200€ extra for something no one needs (the nitro)." But here is a fun fact: 200€ is not enough money for me to do that refinish job—my prices start at 350€. I constantly get clients asking for nitro refinishes. Just because you don't see value in it doesn’t mean someone else can’t see the value of the savings here. You have the right to your statement, but your statement is not true because it's based on your opinion alone.
The Vintera II line is, without doubt, one of the best decisions Fender has made recently. In fact, if someone asks me for a recommendation in the Fender family, I immediately recommend Squier, Fender MIM, and Fender MIJ, and I bypass the USA line altogether. Is it because they are bad? No. But I can get all the guitar I want from the MIJ production if I can afford it.
The risk I see here is that Fender MIM can't get any better—this is their roof. Why? Because if the Fender corporation gives Fender Mexico the green light to make the absolute best they can, then why would anyone buy a Fender American Vintage? We are talking about a difference of between 700€ to 1000€ more. Is the Fender AV 1000€ better than the Fender Vintera II? Absolutely not. However, for some people, MIM is an inferior product to the Fender AV. Why? I don't really get the logic of the 'Made in America' superiority; the workers are all Latino anyway, so what is the real argument? Both are factories under the same corporation. So I say it again: the next chapter for Vintera II is to become the MIM version of the AV line, and I really hope this becomes a reality. This guitar proves Fender Mexico is up to the standards, but is it a risky move that eats market from the AV? Perhaps not, because the idea is to get you young with (say) the Squier Affinity Series and slowly move you all the way up. But if Fender Vintera is so close to Fender AV, wouldn't they compete with each other? For some, sure, but for others, the fact that the guitar is made in the US of A is enough to feel warmer inside.
Sure, we can argue that nitrocellulose does nothing for the overall sound of the guitar. If you think so, then you likely believe in 'tone-wood,' and in that case, I'm not your guy. But nitrocellulose feels different, looks different, ages differently, and it even smells. If I can pay more for that experience, why not?
This guitar is great, as I'm sure the rest of the line is. Is it perfect? No, it is not. But then, Fender AV guitars aren't perfect, and Fender Custom Shop models aren't either. So all in all, this guitar is worth it, every cent of it. Sure, it could be less, but the price is just the result of many other factors. It's just the way it is...
Fender Vintera II Road Worn Telecaster Blonde rules!
P.S.: For pickup sound, check some videos—I'm here for the talk about the experience of the guitar.
