Fender custom shop Strat's

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GazMozGazMoz Frets: 26
edited July 2019 in Guitar
Fender make a custom shop Strat for virtually every year of their golden era guitars 54-65.

Question; what are the differences between them?Seeing as you can spec them as you want them.

I realize that 50's guitars have 1 piece maple necks and late 59 saw the introduction of rosewood. But what's the difference between say a 60 and a 62 if you can order both with the exact same specs? Is it body contouring? 

Thanks in advance
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  • TINMAN82TINMAN82 Frets: 1845
    GazMoz said:
    Fender make a custom shop Strat for virtually every year of their golden era guitars 54-65.

    Question; what are the differences between them?Seeing as you can spec them as you want them.

    I realize that 50's guitars have 1 piece maple necks and late 59 saw the introduction of rosewood. But what's the difference between say a 60 and a 62 if you can order both with the exact same specs? Is it body contouring? 

    Thanks in advance
    Assuming you’re talking off the shelf, in my experience the only constant era specific features tend to be the fingerboard (maple vs rosewood) and the screw configuration of the pickguard. Everything else is prone to vary depending on what the dealer selects but you can find them more or less era correct. The fingerboard radii tends to be flatter than vintage.

    My 61 strat has era correct transitional pickguard and finish but a thicker 65 neck profile, for example. I like the options Doug from Coda tends to select.
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  • musteatbrainmusteatbrain Frets: 871
    http://guitarhq.com/fender.html

    This is a good starting point but a total wormhole to geekery
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  • musteatbrainmusteatbrain Frets: 871
    http://guitarhq.com/fender2.html#strat

    This is is the best link 
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  • GazMozGazMoz Frets: 26

    My 61 strat has era correct transitional pickguard and finish but a thicker 65 neck profile, for example. I like the options Doug from Coda tends to select.


    That's exactly what I mean. Mine is a 60 with the 65 neck also. But what make's mine a 60 and yours a 61?
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  • Philly_QPhilly_Q Frets: 22515
    edited July 2019
    On the body contouring, I don't think they really try to be era-specific.  Maybe there is some subtle difference between the '50s and '60s models, but my hardtail started from a '70s spec and it certainly isn't an anchor-weight slab with an over-sized neck pocket and hardly any contouring.

    There are lots of different Custom Shop neck profiles so they're more likely to attach the "correct" profile neck to a specific-year Strat, but that's not a hard and fast rule.

    As @TINMAN82 says, scratchplates and fretboards are the main indicators.  And body woods.  Then headstocks and decals when you get to the mid '60s.
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  • GazMozGazMoz Frets: 26

    http://guitarhq.com/fender2.html#strat

    This is is the best link 

    Ah I see. Do Fender actually go to THAT much detail with the CS guitars?
    They change the types of tone capacitor? The addition of patent numbers to the headstock?
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  • BrizeBrize Frets: 5619
    It's often minor details like string trees, positioning of decals and patent numbers but there are some more significant changes. For example, a '61 Strat will have a slab-rosewood board, whereas a '63 Strat will have a round-lam (thinner) rosewood board (a '62 Strat could have either). An early 60s Strat will have clay fingerboard dots, whereas a '65 Strat, for example, will have pearloid dots.
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  • GazMozGazMoz Frets: 26
    @TINMAN82 ; Does your strat have patent numbers added to the haedstock decal?
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  • GazMozGazMoz Frets: 26
    GazMoz said:
    @TINMAN82 ; Does your strat have patent numbers added to the haedstock decal?
    I've just checked 2 examples out on Wildwood's site a 1960 and a 61 and YES they add the patent numbers to the 61. 
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  • BrizeBrize Frets: 5619
    GazMoz said:
    Ah I see. Do Fender actually go to THAT much detail with the CS guitars?
    They change the types of tone capacitor? The addition of patent numbers to the headstock?
    Certainly the patent numbers will always be correct for the year being reissued.
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  • GazMozGazMoz Frets: 26
    It's crazy the detail once you notice it actually. I know all the usual stuff like neck construction and slab v lam, 65 went to pearl dots etc.... 
    Just couldn't work out what the difference was with some of the years. Now that I look closely, you can see the addition of patent numbers and the screw hole pattern in the guard changes from 61-63

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  • TINMAN82TINMAN82 Frets: 1845
    edited July 2019
    GazMoz said:
    @TINMAN82 ;;; Does your strat have patent numbers added to the haedstock decal?
    Yeah, forgot about that. Mine has fake rather than real clay dots. Also medium jumbo frets and a 10” radius which I really like.

    https://imgur.com/gallery/JRlOta7
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  • GazMozGazMoz Frets: 26
    TINMAN82 said:
    GazMoz said:
    @TINMAN82 ;;; Does your strat have patent numbers added to the haedstock decal?
    Yeah, forgot about that. Mine has fake rather than real clay dots. Also medium jumbo frets and a 10” radius which I really like.

    https://imgur.com/gallery/JRlOta7
    Oh wow she's lovely. Nice chocolate sunburst and dark board 
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  • richardhomerrichardhomer Frets: 24793
    TINMAN82 said:
    GazMoz said:
    @TINMAN82 ;;; Does your strat have patent numbers added to the haedstock decal?
    Yeah, forgot about that. Mine has fake rather than real clay dots. Also medium jumbo frets and a 10” radius which I really like.

    https://imgur.com/gallery/JRlOta7
    That’s a lovely looking guitar!
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  • TINMAN82TINMAN82 Frets: 1845
    edited July 2019
    GazMoz said:
    TINMAN82 said:
    GazMoz said:
    @TINMAN82 ;;;; Does your strat have patent numbers added to the haedstock decal?
    Yeah, forgot about that. Mine has fake rather than real clay dots. Also medium jumbo frets and a 10” radius which I really like.

    https://imgur.com/gallery/JRlOta7
    Oh wow she's lovely. Nice chocolate sunburst and dark board 
    TINMAN82 said:
    GazMoz said:
    @TINMAN82 ;;;; Does your strat have patent numbers added to the haedstock decal?
    Yeah, forgot about that. Mine has fake rather than real clay dots. Also medium jumbo frets and a 10” radius which I really like.

    https://imgur.com/gallery/JRlOta7
    That’s a lovely looking guitar!
    Thanks. Have to say a great deal from Coda earlier this year at £2.5k new. The Ancho Poblano pickups are brilliant. Was one of the last 2017 CS’s they had in stock after a 2017 bulk buy prior to the price increase. They had the same guitar in oly white at the time but I’ve always liked a strat in 3tsb. This spec in 2019 is £3.5k which seems very steep for a bolt on.

    Was set up more or less perfectly and is easily the best strat I’ve ever played. For me, it’s worth every penny.
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  • TINMAN82TINMAN82 Frets: 1845
    And I’d like to add it sounds nothing like a Les Paul in any position unless I’m flogging it through my helix with such a ridiculous amount of gain that it might as well be a Harley Benton  ;)
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  • guitars4youguitars4you Frets: 14029
    tFB Trader
    If you look at an original '54' Strat through to say '65' then Fender never really released each year as an upgrade, best ever tag or indeed other marketing tags - As such all minor changes just happened, often for ease of production, or picking up on changes requested by players - Small tweaks came into play like the move away from a single ply 8 hole scratchplate, as they warped - Hence eventually 3 ply and 11 hole  - They certainly never made a fuss about changes from the formvar pick-up wire  to enamel, or changes in magnets - At the time these changes just happened

    Today, vintage buffs exam such changes and make a big feature of them - To a large degree the Custom Shop team have done like wise

    Today the Custom Shop team can build a 54 Strat , with the different control knobs, pick-up covers and trem back plate, to those of a 55 Strat - Note the serial number on the trem back plate on a 54 Strat - Like wise they would build a 54 with a chunky neck, similar to a Nocaster, whilst a 56/57 Strt would have more of a soft V profile that is a touch slimmer, so they are more vintage correct - As @Brize states above they will get more small details correct as required like the string trees and patent nos on the headstock logo etc

    However, if look at the Custom Shop ala carte menu, and as the name custom shop implies, you can spec many different features to suit your needs etc on a mix n match basis - ie a 54 neck shape on a 62 Strat, with a maple or rosewood board - you can spec a 54 Strat with a 1960 Oval C neck profile, with 60/63 pick-ups and formvar windings - You could put 69 Hendrix era pick-ups on a 59 Strat and vice versa

    Hope that makes sense
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  • guitars4youguitars4you Frets: 14029
    tFB Trader
    That vintage link posted above by @musteatbrain is very detailed

    The more obvious changes are

    54 to 55 different shape pick-up covers + control knobs + trem back plate with small round holes for the strings and the serial number stamped into the actual trem plate

    mid 59 and the move to a rosewood fingerboard - plus a 3 ply scratchplate moving to 11 holes later

    Late 62 and the slab rosewood board moving to a thinner lam fingerboard

    As such, some years and there is little, if any obvious changes - 63 and early 64 Strat are basically the same other than a L prefix for the serial number on the neck plate - a 61 and 62 are pretty much the same - ditto 57  and 58 - yet look in detail and there are many tweaks on a regular basis - Hence the link that @musteatbrain listed previously

    Again whilst with an original vintage model, certain colours were released at various points/dates in history - Custom Shop will allow you to have a '54 2 tone sunburst finish on '62' Strat if that floats your boat
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  • GazMozGazMoz Frets: 26
    @guitars4you ; my 60ri was one of yours originally I think? It's a 2017 custom shop 30th anniversary in white. She's my baby, only guitar I play now
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  • guitars4youguitars4you Frets: 14029
    tFB Trader
    GazMoz said:
    @guitars4you ; my 60ri was one of yours originally I think? It's a 2017 custom shop 30th anniversary in white. She's my baby, only guitar I play now
    let me have the serial number I can probably trace it via my stock book
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