Fernandes ST-85DM The Revival. Iron Maiden-Dave Murray, 1981 - Black

1981 Fernandes Musician Limited Series ST‑85DM – First‑Generation “The Revival” / Dave Murray ’57 Clone

A truly rare first‑generation Fernandes Musician Limited Series ST‑85DM, built and introduced in the fall of 1981 (and featured in the 1982 catalog). It is a highly accurate clone of Dave Murray’s (Iron Maiden) signature “Kossoff ’57” Strat as it appeared in 1981 — and in fact far more faithful to the original than what Fender USA managed to cobble together many, many years later. The ST‑85DM is a purpose‑built guitar, not a modified stock ’57 Fernandes.

Fernandes’ builders were given full access to the original guitar — a wild story on its own — when Iron Maiden’s Killer World Tour made a stop in Japan in May 1981. The Fernandes team took extensive photos, weighed and measured everything, and within just a couple of months had an extraordinarily precise clone ready for production. These early ST‑85DMs are, without a doubt in my mind, the best production clones of Dave Murray’s original guitar; you would need to commission a custom build to surpass them.

This example is from the very first batch produced in 1981, with the early “The Revival” decal applied directly on top of the clear coat (no protective lacquer). These decals are often missing or damaged; this one is perfect and original. The “The Revival” decal, together with the sharply struck Fernandes logo on the neck plate, confirms this guitar as a first‑batch 1981 ST‑85DM.

The guitar is in very good condition for being 45 years old. It has only minor scratches and dings — nothing ugly or distracting in my opinion. It is also close to completely original and complete. The largest flaw — unfortunate but not surprising — is a missing original tremolo arm. The “wiggle stick” has been replaced with both a standard aftermarket arm and an extended‑length Jazzmaster arm (correct size). The proper arm is a long Fernandes/Mighty Mite (or Charvel) brass‑tip M5 metric arm — an item that is sadly very hard (and also often expensive) to source.

The rear trem cavity cover is missing, which is correct; as a clone, this model did not come with trem cover plate. An aftermarket cover is included in the case if you prefer having one for comfort. There are two replaced parts: the output jack — perfectly reasonable, as it’s a perishable item — and the truss rod nut. The original Phillips‑head truss rod nut has been replaced with an Allen (hex) nut, which is a very good upgrade. The original nut is usually too short and is easily damaged without the proper tool.

Specifications

• Body: three‑piece alder, symmetrically joined, one large center piece and two "wings".
• Neck: solid maple with correct ’57 Hard V‑profile. The neck is straight and fully adjustable.
• Radius: 7.25

• Frets: original nickel‑silver, minimal wear
• Pickups:
• • 2 × genuine vintage DiMarzio Super Distortion humbuckers (neck and bridge), factory‑installed, non‑F‑spaced (clone correct)
  • 1 × Fernandes L‑5001 single coil (middle), classic “grey back” vintage pickup
• Switch: 3‑way with two additional positions (5‑way). A typical Japanese modification -from factory- where positions 2 and 4 are intentionally indistinct but still selectable. Dave Murray’s original guitar used a simple 3‑way switch for many years.
• Tremolo: solid brass tremolo bridge plate, brass block, brass screws and brass saddles — Japanese copy of a Mighty Mite brass tremolo
• Tuners: Deluxe nickel, Kluson type
• Nut: solid brass
• Pickup rings: solid brass, mounted only via the humbucker height adjustment screws (correct)
• Volume knob: overlaps the bridge humbucker ring, exactly like Dave Murray’s original. Fender moved the volume control on all their versions so it sits clear of the ring.
• Electronics: original and serviced
• Weight: 3.6 kg

Case

A brand‑new, robust ABS case is included — easy to carry and offers excellent protection. Total weight (guitar + case): 7.6 kg.

PLEASE NOTE

I will ship within the European Union only at a flat fee of 110€. The flat fee includes very sturdy packaging in an oversized double cardboard purpose constructed box with the guitar sandwiched between multiple layers of bubble wrap, it will not rattle around in the box. The shipment will be traceable and fully insured.