Fender Custom Shop '51 Nocaster Journeyman Relic Electric Guitar, Maple Fingerboard, Aged Black

Worn-in, well loved, but without an owner. How can that be? Well, that's the magic of Fender Custom Shop—delivering authentically feeling, looking, and to spec guitars that never imitate vibe, but superbly supply that vintage Fender tone we've all been searching for. Here, with a '51 Nocaster sporting an Aged Black with Journeyman relic treatment, each unique hue, ding, scratch, and unfinished portion tells the story of expert craftmanship, and offers a canvas to impart your own musical retelling.

Iconic? What an understatement! The '51 Nocaster is a legacy defining Fender entry that propelled the eventual Telecaster to global music history. Really, we could spend an entire paragraph detailing this story and we still wouldn't scratch the surface. Well, anyway, this '51 Nocaster is sculpted from a 2-piece off-center ash body, boasting a deep aged black Journeyman relic gloss finish that unveils more details the more you observe it—dings and scratches, slight tarnishing of the hardware, imprints on the pickguard, and aged screws all come together to offer a unique, broken-in and well-played guitar that feels like it already has been. Resonant and robust, lending a brilliant top-end twang with unmatched articulation—we just hope you properly dig into it when playing. It yearns for more scars!

What makes a Nocaster truly special is the 1951 "U" shaped neck—chunky and deep but fits in the palm like no other. Built from rift sawn maple and sporting an unfinished back, the shades of worn wood looks as great as it feels. Intuitive and effortlessly comfortable, just a day with the guitar will trick you into thinking it's been by your side for a lifetime. As tradition for Nocasters, the worn-looked fingerboard is also made of maple, touting a compound 7.25"-9.5" radius and adorned with micarta black dot inlays and narrow tall sized frets. Smooth like no other—perfect for slides and strums alike, the only thing you won't like about this Nocaster is that you waited so long to try one.

Let's not get it twisted: relic doesn't mean broken, and the suite of hardware choices chosen for this Nocaster, despite their weather appearance, support this fantastic instrument. The Tele '51-'54 bridge is as classic as it gets—mounted to the body with a bridge pickup slotted snuggly, supplying string to body vibration transfer that greatly impacts the singular tone, and positioning adjustable saddles for the perfectly feeling guitar experience. Furthermore, a bone nut with a slightly smaller 1.625" width supports intonation, while the vintage style tuning machines maintain proper pitches through all jams and recording sessions, ensuring all your notes sing as they should, on or off stage.

Now, let's plug it in. In the bridge position, we'll hear a hand wound '51 Nocaster single-coil pickup, a classically bright sound that delivers prominent rock and country tones without thinning your sound. We've used the word "twang" before, but this sound transcends the descriptor, situating a tonal landscape that'll be molded to fit any of your genre needs. In the neck position, we'll find another hand wound '51 Nocaster single-coil pickup—this one donning the rounded metal aesthetic that supplies a bassier, fuller tone that emphasizes bass and mid frequencies without muddying the tonal water. When put into middle position, both pickups supply a harmonious, balanced tone that harks back to decades of American musical history. Controlled by simple volume and tone (blend) controls, and supplying authentic Nocaster utility with decade accurate wiring, this guitar exudes nostalgic tones a plenty.

Packaged in a tweed Fender Custom Shop branded hard shell case, this '51 Nocaster is ready for a life of late-night gigs and intensive writing sessions. Why'd they call it a Nocaster when the answer is obviously "yes"?