Pre Owned Fender Custom Shop Masterbuilt Stephen Stern '50s Stratocaster 2-Tone Sunburst With OHSC

Here at Truetone Music, we are fortunate to have close relationships with some of the most prolific guitar builders.  One that stands above the rest is the legendary Stephen Stern, Senior Masterbuilder at the Gretsch Custom Shop.  Over the years, he was also responsible for D'Aquisto, Benedetto and Fender Custom Shop builds.  During his career, he amassed an impressive collection of gear.  Now, select pieces have become available for the first time, exclusively through Truetone Music.  

 
Quite possibly the prize possession of the collection is this Stratocaster built by Stern himself.  While he is mainly known for amazing Gretsch builds, his talent stretches beyond that.  During his career, he built very few Fender-branded instruments, and an extremely small number of Stratocasters - his estimate is less than 10.  This particular one was built by Stern for his own personal use, after a previous Strat was stolen from a gig.  He put this one to good use on stage for years, until serendipity struck: he got the original Strat back.  As part of a partnership with Truetone Music, Stern is now offering this Strat for sale - it's truly a rare find.

 
Any Fender Custom Shop Masterbuilt instrument is special, but this one lands on its own level.  Built by Stephen Stern, with a neck relic'ed by Dale Wilson, it has an incredible vibe and feel.  It's a '50's Strat with the deep body contours on the ash body, with a maple neck that has a super comfortable "C" profile instead of the typical "V" profile.  Stern did this specifically because he likes the feel and sound of maple, like a 50's Strat, but the slim, easy playability found on a 60's Strat.  Also, a main feature of this guitar is that it's a hardtail - also specific to Stern's vision when he built it, as that's his preference.  

 
The pickups are Custom Shop 50's Strat pickups, wound to recreate the iconic sound of the original Strat - you get the crystal clear, glassy highs, with a smooth low end, and just enough mids to sit in the mix perfectly.  This is a super musical sounding Strat.  Also, it's lightweight, coming in at just 6.6 lbs.

 
Other features include vintage tuners, a period correct disc string tree and a single-ply white pickguard.  The guitar comes with a tweed case, and has been setup to play perfectly.

 
Included is a Certificate of Authenticity, signed by Stephen Stern.  This isn't just an amazing instrument, it's also a piece of history, and truly collectible.  There is only one Strat built by Stephen Stern and relic'ed by Dale Wilson - and this is it.