Fender Custom Shop 1955 Stratocaster Hardtail Super Heavy Relic, Metallic Purple Overview

Fender Custom Shop 1955 Stratocaster Hardtail Super Heavy Relic, Metallic Purple

Crafted by the Fender Custom Shop’s artisanal luthiers, this stunning Stratocaster melds a classic '50s model with modern playability and fiery pickups.

Classic Feel & Sound

At the heart of this '55 Fender Custom Shop Strat’s Golden Age tone are its period-correct tonewoods. The body is sculpted from a resonant piece of Ash, which delivers the crystalline highs, crisp mids and defined lows the tonewood is renowned for. The heavily relic’d nitrocellulose finish exposes the body’s beautiful grain pattern.

The roasted AA Flame Maple neck is sculpted to a classic 10/56 “V” profile and feels every bit as good as it looks. This hybrid profile gradually transitions from a soft “V” to a fuller “C” as you climb the middle and upper frets. This gives you the best of both a vintage and contemporary neck - comfortable chording and effortless soloing at the dusty end. The neck is adorned with 21 Jumbo 6100 frets, which facilitate expressive bending and vibrato whilst enhancing sustain. The roasting process makes the Maple neck a lot more stable and resistant to warping.

Gorgeous Worn-In Look

This 1955 Strat has undergone the Custom Shop’s Super Heavy Relic treatment - the most intensive of all the ageing processes. Every single element of this Custom Shop Stratocaster has been carefully aged, from the exposed wood to the oxidised hardware. It’s as if this guitar has been a faithful workhorse that’s been heavily played and seen countless gigs over the decades. A highlight is the roasted Maple neck’s back, which boasts the inviting satin-smooth, worn-in feel that a seriously played-in neck can provide.

Incredible Strat Tone

Setting this 1955 Custom Shop Stratocaster from the pack are its impressive trio of single-coil pickups. The neck and middle are equipped with a '58 Strat and a handwound Fat '50s Strat respectively. These pickups are perfect for those articulate, vintage Strat tones. The middle pickup has been reverse-wound to eliminate hum. The bridge features a red-hot Texas Special pickup, which has been overwound for extra output and punch. Used in tandem with the Modern Strat wiring, a wide array of inspiring tones are instantly accessible.

Modern Reliability

Whilst this 1955 Fender Custom Shop is undoubtedly vintage at its heart, it has the advantage of modern build quality. This is an instrument with the desirable qualities of a Golden Era instrument with the rock-solid reliability and performance of one made today. Thanks to the vintage hardtail bridge, you can count on this Strat to retain its tuning no matter how hard you hit or bend the strings.

Fusing a '50s foundation with slick playability and hot-rodded, vintage-voiced pickups, this Custom Shop Stratocaster is more than a collector’s item - it’s a true player’s guitar.