The Washburn Stephens Extended Cutaway series of electric guitars was introduced in 1987. It was a series of three high end super strats and two acoustic models designed by Stephen Davies using the Stephen's Extended Cutaway which affords easy access to the upper frets using a bolt on neck design. To make best use of this extended cutaway these guitars had lots of frets - up to 36 in the case of the EC36 model. The EC 29 and 36 were made until 1989 in production for two years and the EC 26 Atlantis lasted an extra year until 1990. The Washburn Nuno Bettencourt signature model shares some similarities with the EC 26 (it has the Stephen's Cutaway) and replaced the Stephens Extended Cutaway series in the 1990s.
 | WASHBURN EC26 (ATLANTIS)The Washburn EC26 ATLANTIS was introduced by WASHBURN in 1987. It was designed by Stephen Davies. The Canadian Godin company made the necks and bodies but the final assembly and finishing was done in Seattle. It has Seymour Duncan JB humbucker and Seymour Duncan single coil - both angled. The EC-26 was discontinued around 1990 - the model was superceeded by the Nuno Bettencourt models which also used the extended cutaway. |
 | WASHBURN EC29 (SPITFIRE II & CHALLENGER II)The Washburn EC29 model (also called the Spitfire II or Challenger II model depending on which catalog you look at) was introduced by WASHBURN in 1987. It was designed by Stephen Davies - with his extended cutaway and 29 frets. Above the 24th fret this model has compensated (thinner) fretwire to improve playability. |
 | WASHBURN EC36 (SPITFIRE I & CHALLENGER I)The Washburn EC36 model (also called the Spitfire I or Challenger I model depending on which catalog you look at) was introduced by WASHBURN in 1987. It was like the EC29 (with a Stephen's extended cutaway) but with a single humbucker and 36 frets. Above the 24th fret this model has compensated (thinner) fretwire to improve playability. There are some photos of EC36s (and EC29s) with monkey grips - I believe this was a factory option. |
Specifications:
| Model | Image | Finish colors | Made in | Number of strings | Finish effects |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WASHBURN EC26 (ATLANTIS) 1987 to 1990 |  | black finish, red finish, white finish | USA | 6 strings | - |
| WASHBURN EC29 (SPITFIRE II & CHALLENGER II) 1987 to 1989 |  | blue finish, purple finish, red finish, white finish | Japan | 6 strings | crackle finish, sunburst finish |
| WASHBURN EC36 (SPITFIRE I & CHALLENGER I) 1987 to 1989 |  | blue finish, purple finish, red finish, white finish | Japan | 6 strings | crackle finish, sunburst finish |
| Model | Body material | Body shape features | Body style | Body top material |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WASHBURN EC26 (ATLANTIS) 1987 to 1990 | alder body | double cutaway, extended cutaway | super strat style body | - |
| WASHBURN EC29 (SPITFIRE II & CHALLENGER II) 1987 to 1989 | alder body | double cutaway, extended cutaway | super strat style body | figured maple body top |
| WASHBURN EC36 (SPITFIRE I & CHALLENGER I) 1987 to 1989 | alder body | double cutaway, extended cutaway | super strat style body | figured maple body top |
| Model | Bridge | Hardware color | Tuners |
|---|---|---|---|
| WASHBURN EC26 (ATLANTIS) 1987 to 1990 | Kahler Spyder tremolo, locking tremolo | chrome hardware | locking tuners |
| WASHBURN EC29 (SPITFIRE II & CHALLENGER II) 1987 to 1989 | Floyd Rose licensed tremolo, locking tremolo | chrome hardware | locking tuners |
| WASHBURN EC36 (SPITFIRE I & CHALLENGER I) 1987 to 1989 | Floyd Rose licensed tremolo, locking tremolo | chrome hardware | locking tuners |
| Model | Fingerboard inlay material | Fingerboard material | Fingerboard position markers |
|---|---|---|---|
| WASHBURN EC26 (ATLANTIS) 1987 to 1990 | pearl fingerboard inlay material | rosewood fingerboard | dot fingerboard position markers |
| WASHBURN EC29 (SPITFIRE II & CHALLENGER II) 1987 to 1989 | pearl fingerboard inlay material | rosewood fingerboard | dot fingerboard position markers |
| WASHBURN EC36 (SPITFIRE I & CHALLENGER I) 1987 to 1989 | pearl fingerboard inlay material | rosewood fingerboard | dot fingerboard position markers |
| Model | Neck joint | Neck material | Number of frets | Tuner layout |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WASHBURN EC26 (ATLANTIS) 1987 to 1990 | bolt on neck | maple neck | 26 fret | six-in-a-row tuners |
| WASHBURN EC29 (SPITFIRE II & CHALLENGER II) 1987 to 1989 | neck through body | maple neck | 29 frets | six-in-a-row tuners |
| WASHBURN EC36 (SPITFIRE I & CHALLENGER I) 1987 to 1989 | neck through body | maple neck | 36 fret | six-in-a-row tuners |
| Model | Pickup selector controls | Tone controls | Volume controls |
|---|---|---|---|
| WASHBURN EC26 (ATLANTIS) 1987 to 1990 | 1 coil tap switch, 5-way selector switch | 1 tone control | 1 volume control |
| WASHBURN EC29 (SPITFIRE II & CHALLENGER II) 1987 to 1989 | 1 coil tap switch, 5-way selector switch | 1 tone control | 1 volume control |
| WASHBURN EC36 (SPITFIRE I & CHALLENGER I) 1987 to 1989 | 1 coil tap switch | 1 tone control | 1 volume control |
| Model | Pickups brand and model | Pickups configuration | Circuit functions |
|---|---|---|---|
| WASHBURN EC26 (ATLANTIS) 1987 to 1990 | Seymour Duncan JB pickup(s) | single coil/ humbucker pickups | - |
| WASHBURN EC29 (SPITFIRE II & CHALLENGER II) 1987 to 1989 | Washburn pickup(s) | single coil/ humbucker pickups | active electronics |
| WASHBURN EC36 (SPITFIRE I & CHALLENGER I) 1987 to 1989 | Washburn pickup(s) | 1 humbucker pickup | active electronics |
