[Arran]

I was thinking the same Russ, I can't understand why people insist on refinishing old radio cabinets in a satin or matte finish, it may be pleasing to some eyes but it is still wrong. I also noticed the lack of shading, though it isn't the worst I've seen for that by a long shot. Even a Baby Strat is valuable enough to deserve a factory original refinish.
My problem with this is even now some people think that finishes like this are original, I've seen many fleabay and craigslist listings describing mediocre matte refinish jobs as such. It's not really a surprise since in many cases it is just about impossible to find a photo of a given model online whose finish has not been tampered with.
Regards
Arran