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The gorgeous gold finish is faultlessly applied

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What are the basic differences between these guitars and the standard Classic Strats?

"Just the addition of a more modern playability within the vintage aesthetic," explains Justin. "The two-point vintage bridge has previously never been available outside the Custom Shop. Other features include refined contours and blending, flatter radii, bigger frets, and custom colours and electronics. It's basically like one of those makeover TV shows, where the experts come in and refine things."

The Custom electronics mentioned here refer to position four on the '50s Strat's otherwise standard five-way, which combines the neck pickup with the bridge. Dennis Galuszka, the masterbuilder behind the '50s Strat, outlines this and other improvements:

"Coming up with anything new and inventive to do within the parameters of the Stratocaster is a challenge that surprises me every time we at Fender do it," he says with a smile. "With the Classic Player I wanted to incorporate the better parts of a Stratocaster, both old and new. Staying within the '50s vibe I kept the Kluson-style tuners that actually lock to ensure that the newer two-point tremolo will stay in tune with heavy-handed tremolo work. Vintage steel saddles were installed to maintain crystal clarity in the notes and keep all the attack, and the five-way switch has a new voice by allowing the neck and bridge pickups to be used together."

There is a genuine Custom Shop vibe to this guitar – not least thanks to the finishes the team have used. Aside from the example here, both the '50s and '60s Strat are only otherwise available with a sunburst finish and we do applaud the resistance of the temptation to offer the usual rainbow of hues.

"We wanted to go with true vintage colours, and throw in some Custom Shop colours made especially for this run of instruments," Justin states. In addition, the shoreline gold finish is gorgeous and faultlessly applied.

The '50s Strat has a soft 'V' profile alongside a 9.5-inch radius that combines to make the flawlessly-finished neck very difficult to put down indeed.

Sounds

The '50s Strat features American Vintage pickups complete with another authentic touch: bevelled polepieces. With a touch of warming gain all five settings offer tones that are perfect combinations of crystal edges with genuinely toneful centres: as usual the further towards the neck you go, the smoother proceedings become. And the fourth position? It's a smoother, fatter version of a Telecaster's central selection: very useable and a nice surprise too.

The influence of the Custom Shop team is apparent before you even plug this guitar in, but when you do, you are rewarded with a suptuous palette of tones. This is everything a great Strat should be and more.