The failure of Roger Rossmeisl’s Coronado series in the late 1960s did not deter Fender from mounting another invasion of Gibson semi-hollow territory in the late 1970s with a new model called the Starcaster.

It appeared to have been better thought-out, combining Fender and Gibson features in a way that gave it a better chance at success than the Coronados. Designer Gene Fields took the familiar – by this time traditional – double-cutaway, arched-top body of Gibson’s ES-335 and made it more Fenderlike by stretching it diagonally, giving it the offset waist of Fender’s Jazzmaster. Fields also redesigned the peghead, giving it softer lines and an elegant beveled edge.

Functionally, the Starcaster had a pair of humbuckers so it could compete directly with the Gibson ES-335. Ultimately though, just as before, guitarists preferred the original Gibson – they preceived the asymmetrical body of the Starcaster as being simply misshapen – and it fell out of sight as the 80’s began.