Made in Mexico CUSTOM SHOP FENDER's

CoolCat

CoolCat

Well-known member
I noticed at GC the CUSTOM SHOP Fender guitars were made in Mexico now.

Did they shut down the US Fender Custom Shop? :confused:
 
COOLCAT said:
I noticed at GC the CUSTOM SHOP Fender guitars were made in Mexico now.

Did they shut down the US Fender Custom Shop? :confused:
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They might as well bury the Fender company now. It ceased to exist many years ago anyway.
 
I looked around and can't find any adverts of saying the MIM opened up a Custom Shop? Maybe these are Guitar Center special "Custom Shop" Fender line strat's made in the new CUSTOM SHOP? or is it just a Mexico line named model of Fender called the CUSTOM SHOP series? like the Highway 1 series, kind of, or there's a new Custom Shop guitar name/model but its MIM? or maybe its a line of guitars that are actually made in a new actual Custom Shop department that makes a line of guitars called the Custom Shop series...

just talking about it over beers with a friend and was curious and thought someone here might know or even work there. We're just old Fender fan fart-heads who are confused trying to keep up with it all...

It seems the Corona, CA still has a Custom Shop line too, I need to call probably...so I'm thinking possibly Fender just added a new CUSTOM SHOP line in the Mexico plant......fhk I'm confused... I'll just keep drinking until this is all cleared up.... :D

buuuuuuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrrppppppp...
 
COOLCAT said:
or is it just a Mexico line named model of Fender called the CUSTOM SHOP series?
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Thats exactly what it is. There is also still a U.S. Custom Shop.

Incidentally, the Highway One's are American made.
 
Sorry to hijack the thread and all, but it seems related... :o

I was at GC this weekend, the one they have in the part of town where all the rich people live, and they had a wall behind the counter covered with vintage guitars. Now, they had a '59 strat hanging on the wall for around 35 grand. Also, a '65 for around 27 grand. My eyes came to rest on two strats made in the mid 70's and they were only around 3 grand. Would it technically be worth the investment to purchase one in the hopes that the value would increase in the future (like the '59 and '65)? And does anyone have experience with any strats made in the 70s? Any 'quality control' related issues? It has become another goal on my list to procure one of these if it would be worth my time... ;)
 
pikingrin said:
And does anyone have experience with any strats made in the 70s?
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From what I remember, the initial guitars after the CBS buyout of Fender (beginning of '65) for a year or so were mostly all with the same material as the "pre-65" guitars. Then for a couple years into the 70's most of the guitars and amps were the same quality/specs. But then around the mid 70's or so CBS started to monkey with everything.
 
Outlaws said:
From what I remember, the initial guitars after the CBS buyout of Fender (beginning of '65) for a year or so were mostly all with the same material as the "pre-65" guitars. Then for a couple years into the 70's most of the guitars and amps were the same quality/specs. But then around the mid 70's or so CBS started monkey with everything.
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See, I have heard of all that CBS / pre-CBS stuff but never thought about it that deeply. What can I say, I was only born in 1982. :D

But, in light of that information, would the initial investment still be worth it in the longrun? I wonder if they'll let you touch them if you have the money to pay for it? (The guitar you pervs...) :D I guess that would be the only way to find out if truly wanted to snag it. :o
 
Outlaws said:
From what I remember, the initial guitars after the CBS buyout of Fender (beginning of '65) for a year or so were mostly all with the same material as the "pre-65" guitars. Then for a couple years into the 70's most of the guitars and amps were the same quality/specs. But then around the mid 70's or so CBS started monkey with everything.
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Would that be the era of the 3 bolt neck plate by chance?
 
pikingrin said:
See, I have heard of all that CBS / pre-CBS stuff but never thought about it that deeply. What can I say, I was only born in 1982. :D

But, in light of that information, would the initial investment still be worth it in the longrun? I wonder if they'll let you touch them if you have the money to pay for it? (The guitar you pervs...) :D I guess that would be the only way to find out if truly wanted to snag it. :o
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It is very unlikely that they will ever be worth what the pre-CBS ones are worth for a few reasons. First, they just aren't as good. The necks are not as comfortable, the pickups don't sound as good, and the finish on most of them is too thick. Also, there are a LOT more CBS era guitars than pre-CBS guitars, and the rarity of a guitar is a big part of why they become valuable. That being said, they are unlikely to LOOSE their value, at least not any time soon, so you don't have to worry about the investment.

On the topic of the Fender Custom shop, most of the really experienced guys in the custom shop were so offended by some changes Fender made recently that they left. I'll simply say that, these days, the only thing the custom shop is really doing is "relicing" the finishes, but most of the parts are just production parts. That was not always the case.



Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
Light said:
It is very unlikely that they will ever be worth what the pre-CBS ones are worth for a few reasons. First, they just aren't as good. The necks are not as comfortable, the pickups don't sound as good, and the finish on most of them is too thick. Also, there are a LOT more CBS era guitars than pre-CBS guitars, and the rarity of a guitar is a big part of why they become valuable. That being said, they are unlikely to LOOSE their value, at least not any time soon, so you don't have to worry about the investment.
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Okay, so about the pickup issue... Even though they may not sound as good as the pre-CBS, they most likely sound 100x better than the modern strats... (But, of course, playing them would be the only confirmation)

And also, the CBS/pre-CBS thing... Call me what you will, but are we talking about the T.V. people??
 
70s Fenders suck but they arent going to build any more of them so the price will go up. I know I made about $1500 on my piece of crap 75 Strat buying it and selling it about 2 years later. People cant afford the 50s so the 60s went up, now they cant afford the 60s so the 70s have gone up. Just how it works.

Yes, the TV people. They were diversifying and bought Fender as well as Steinway and many other companies back then.
 
pikingrin said:
Okay, so about the pickup issue... Even though they may not sound as good as the pre-CBS, they most likely sound 100x better than the modern strats...
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On the contrary, they generally sound appalling in contrast to modern strats. The pick-ups on mid-seventies models were wound so weak that they were only really usable for country. On top of that, the neck doesn't fit the body properly. Also, Fender/CBS couldn't get a decent supply of light swamp ash, so the guitars are incredibly heavy. The bodies are made of multiple pieces of wood (like, 4 or 5 slabs joined together), and these pieces often didn't match - you had poor grade alder glued to cheap ash, etc. Random pieces of mahogany even found their way into a couple of Strat bodies. Rarely, if ever, does the sound of an electric guitar improve with age. The playability might, but not the sound. What's more, the Strats being built today are pretty damn good in comparison to what Fender have built in the past.

Having said all that.......yes, they probably will make a good investment. Vintage guitar prices (a vintage guitar is technically anything over 25 years old) offer a better return on money than the stock market. They will probably never increase to the same extent as pre-CBS instruments have, but you won't lose anything on them.

btw, 3 grand for a seventies strat is a little steep. I've seen examples in great condition for just over two. Now, if you want a tip for a vintage guitar likely to increase dramatically in value while still costing less than a thousand bucks...check out a pre-CBS Fender Musicmaster, all original, in Desert Sand finish. You should pay 1,500 absolut maximum, and get an original hardcase with it. Put it under the bed for thirty years, sell it, then retire.
 
pikingrin said:
Okay, so about the pickup issue... Even though they may not sound as good as the pre-CBS, they most likely sound 100x better than the modern strats... (But, of course, playing them would be the only confirmation)

And also, the CBS/pre-CBS thing... Call me what you will, but are we talking about the T.V. people??
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Oh no, the modern pickups are much better than most of the CBS era pickups. MUCH better.


And no, not the television CBS folks. At least, not as I understand it. CBS was (maybe still is) a big corporate holding company. They bought manufacturers and tried to make them more "efficient". Didn't have much to do with making the products better, though.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
32-20-Blues said:
Rarely, if ever, does the sound of an electric guitar improve with age. The playability might, but not the sound.
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I've played many hundreds of old electrics that contradict that statement. Old guitars sound better, even electrics. The wood's moisture content evens out, the finish off-gases, and the pickups get better with age. You might not like it, but most players I know love it.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
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