Fender Custom Shop '59 Transitional Stratocaster Journeyman Relic, Aged Lake Placid Blue, Kyle McMillin Masterbuilt

Take a dive into a deep, blue something with this Fender Custom Shop '59 Transitional Stratocaster in a refreshing Aged Lake Placid Blue Masterbuilt by Kyle McMillin! One of the Custom Shop's premier services – Masterbuilt guitars – show off their Masterbuilders at their most artistic. This Masterbuilt Strat from Kyle McMillin paints a vivid picture of a '50s Fender with intriguing spins at every turn. Artfully done and bursting with personality, McMillin's creative eye and skillful hand shine through this Custom Shop Strat at every angle.

In the Fender Custom Shop world, one of their top-shelf offerings is the "Masterbuilt" track. This path describes a process where a Fender Custom Shop Masterbuilder personally builds a guitar one-on-one, every step of the way. The resulting instrument is thus highly personal with some of the Custom Shop's finest features and appointments. Believe it or not, this McMillin model is just that.

Starting out, this Transitional Stratocaster features a two-piece guitar and bass alder body assuming the iconic Strat profile. Sorted for weight, this alder pick was selected among a lot for its light weight, contributing to a guitar that lands just above seven pounds. The classic Fender tonewood pick proves bright and resonant as it serves as an excellent canvas to splash a Fender Custom Shop Journeyman Relic finish treatment. One of the Custom Shop's most popular Relic treatment levels, Journeyman Relic recreates the look and feel of a lacquer finish well-loved and well-played for years with tasteful chips and checks found throughout.

Here, this Masterbuilt Custom Shop introduces a AAA flame maple neck in a 60 Style Oval "C" profile. This high-quality cut of maple exhibits deep, colorful streaking for a glowing look along its length. What's more, an unfinished Heavy Relic neck back exposes its deeper texture for a charmingly worn feel in the palm. The neck then measures with custom dimensions for a gentle feel from .810" thick at its first fret to .950" at its twelfth. At this point, a flat lam AAA slab rosewood fingerboard enters lined with twenty-one frets utilizing the Custom Shop's 6100 Jumbo fret wire and measuring with a modern 9.5" radius.

Sonically, this Custom Shop blooms with three hand-wound Poblano Strat single-coil pickups. The Poblano Strat pickup, wound for a hotter, fuller tone, plays a starring role in this Strat with its middle position featuring reverse-wind, reverse-polarity design to make for a clean, quiet output overall. 250K 10% split taper potentiometers and a Tone Saver treble bleed circuit make shaping these pickups a smooth, artful experience.

Topping everything off, this Masterbuilt Transitional Stratocaster features a number of solid hardware specifications. A Custom Shop Vintage Strat bridge lands at the base of its scale for deep, expressive vibrato bends and sturdy intonation. Toward the scale's opposite end, a bone nut and Vintage Style tuning machines ensure smooth stringing experiences. Throughout the model, this Masterbuilt Custom Shop exhibits unique age and wear with Dirty Closet Classic Vintage White pickup covers and control knobs, a Relic pickguard, and great, concentrated discoloration behind its strings. This Fender Custom Shop travels with an included Strat/Tele Blonde hardshell case.

A refreshing dip in the deep end, this Masterbuilt Kyle McMillin Custom Shop Strat is one for the ages.