Fender Unveils Five New Master Built Guitars to Benefit Crew Nation
All proceeds from the sales of the guitars will go to Live Nation’s Crew Nation - a global relief fund for live music crews.
Fender has unveiled five new Custom Shop Master Built guitars.
All proceeds from the sale of the five hand-built guitars - which were painstakingly constructed in teams of two by Fender's Master Builders - will go to Live Nation’s Crew Nation - a global relief fund for live music crews.
The guitars will be available only on the Official Fender x Crew Nation Reverb Shop.
You can learn more about each of the unique instruments below.
Yuriy Shishkov and Kyle McMillan-Built Fender Crew Nation Tele ($14,700)
Fender Master Builder Yuriy Shishkov created the distinct body artwork of this Tele, in which a Fender Stratocaster headstock intertwines with heart and scrolled-silver inlay work - made so to illustrate Fender’s dedication to its struggling music industry partners.
The guitar’s two-piece ash body has a redwood burl top with custom hand-engraved artwork and a silver lace inlay, a green diopside stone and diamonds, and a NOS nitro lacquer finish. Its single-piece AAA birdseye maple neck features a silver lace inlay, a green diopside stone and diamonds, ivoroid nitro binding, a large “C” profile and a 9.5”-radius fingerboard with medium jumbo frets.
The guitar's “Josefina” hand-wound Tele pickups feature three-way switching and modern Tele wiring, while other features include a custom brown-shell pickguard and control cover, a ’58-’63 Tele bridge, Schaller deluxe tuners, strap locks, a “Build at Home” neck plate by Fender Custom Shop Principal Master Builder Ron Thorn, a bone nut and a disk string tree.
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The guitar includes a deluxe hardshell case, strap and certificate of authenticity.
Jason Smith and Dennis Galuszka-Built Fender Crew Nation Tamo Strat ($8,700)
This guitar, built by the Fender Custom Shop’s Jason Smith and Dennis Galuszka, was constructed with one of the last pieces of tamo ash available in the shop (it had been saved for a special occasion.)
The guitar has a chambered ash body with a figured tamo ash top and an NOS lacquer finish. Its tinted AAAA flame-maple neck has a flat-lam AAAA maple fretboard with a 9.5” radius and 21 narrow tall frets.
Sonically, it features "Josefina" hand-wound ’60s Strat pickups (with a reverse-wound/reverse-polarity middle pickup) with five-way switching and Vintage Modified #2 wiring.
Other features include a three-ply white nitro pickguard, a Custom Classic Strat tremolo, a “Build at Home” neck plate by Ron Thorn, vintage-style tuners with brown-shell buttons, a bone nut and a wing string tree.
The guitar comes with a deluxe hardshell case, strap and certificate of authenticity.
Ron Thorn and Paul Waller-Built Fender Crew Nation Korina Strat ($7,600)
Built by the Fender Custom Shop's Ron Thorn and Paul Waller, this guitar features a korina body with an NOS lacquer and “walnut burst” finish. Its quartersawn korina neck features a ’60-style oval “U” profile and a flat-lam Macassar ebony fingerboard with a 12” radius and 21 medium jumbo frets.
Sonically, it packs Abigail Ybarra hand-wound Fat ’50s pickups with five-way switching and Vintage Modified #2 wiring.
Other features on the guitar include a gold anodized pickguard, an RSD Strat bridge with narrow spacing, a “Build at Home” neck plate by Ron Thorn, vintage-style tuners, a bone nut and a wing string tree with a metal spacer.
This guitar comes with a deluxe hardshell case, strap and certificate of authenticity.
Greg Fessler and Dale Wilson-Built Fender Crew Nation 2 Tone Tele ($7,200)
Built by Dale Wilson and Greg Fessler - Fessler did the wiring and finish while Wilson worked on the neck and final setup - this guitar features a two-piece select ash body with a Journeyman Relic lacquer finish. It also has a single-piece tinted flat-sawn maple neck with a ’52 “U” profile, 9.5” fingerboard radius and 21 medium jumbo frets.
Sonically, it packs “Josefina” hand-wound Twisted Tele pickups with three-way switching and modern Tele wiring.
Other features include a ’52 parchment Tele pickguard, ’58-’63 Tele bridge, a “Build at Home” neck plate by Ron Thorn, vintage-style tuners, a bone nut and a disk string tree.
The guitar comes with a deluxe hardshell case, strap and certificate of authenticity.
Todd Krause and Carlos Lopez-Built Fender Crew Nation ‘56 Strat ($7,000)
Built by Todd Krause and Carlos Lopez, this guitar features a two-piece ash body, a single-piece quartersawn maple neck with a 10/’56 “V” profile and a 9.5”-radius fingerboard with 21 medium jumbo frets.
In the sonic department, it packs “Josefina” hand-wound pickups with five-way switching and modern Strat wiring.
Other features include an American Vintage Strat tremolo, a “Build at Home” neck plate by Ron Thorn, vintage-style tuners, a bone nut and a wing string tree.
This guitar comes with a deluxe hardshell case, strap and certificate of authenticity.
To view the entire lot, head on over to reverb.com.
Jackson is an Associate Editor at GuitarWorld.com and GuitarPlayer.com. He’s been writing and editing stories about new gear, technique and guitar-driven music both old and new since 2014, and has also written extensively on the same topics for Guitar Player. Elsewhere, his album reviews and essays have appeared in Louder and Unrecorded. Though open to music of all kinds, his greatest love has always been indie, and everything that falls under its massive umbrella. To that end, you can find him on Twitter crowing about whatever great new guitar band you need to drop everything to hear right now.
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