Did Fender ever make a Jimi Hendrix Relic Strat? I did not see a COA.

http://cgi.ebay.com/1963-Fender-Stratoc ... 286.c0.m14

Looks dubious to me. Custom shop guitars are easily recognizable, I think. And even so, nothing on the guitar says "Jimi." I certainly wouldn't pay over four hundred bucks for it. Not that I have the slightest interest.

I don't know if they ever made a commemorative Jimi Strat..But i would be concerned also ..A couple things i caught was why does a vintage re issue have a 3 ply pickguard..Also the wording of new old stock on the Fender logo would concern me also...This could very well be a legit guitar..But it needs to be looked into...

The 3-ply pickguards come on the 62 Reissues as well so I think that's okay. I don't see the words New Old Stock anywhere.

The neck heel is definitely wrong, and the 12th-fret dots seem closer together than I've ever seen them. No Custom Shop logo on the back of the headstock -- or did I miss that somewhere? -- probably just didn't include a pic 'cos it doesn't exist... and I would expect to see "Relic" (or similar) stamped into the wood of the tremolo cavity.

So... guess I won't be buying this guitar, then, and I hope nobody else does.

[edit] OK, I didn't scroll all the way down. It's obvious that this is parts-o-caster of some sort, but I didn't see the vendor actually stating that this guitar was a Custom Shop model. Not sure why they think it's worth that amount. They say that the body has some "Fender Hot Rod" parts and that the neck is the most awesomest neck evah, but conveniently draw a veil over the fact that it's made by someone other than Fender. But hey, it's got a "NOS" decal, just like Jimi's would've had!

I guess we'll keep on seeing this sort of thing until someone manages to trademark the word "relic".

When the seller is marketing a guitar with the words 1963 Fender Stratocaster then it's obvious that he is trying to pass it off as a genuine Fender Stratocaster.

Well, yes. I just meant that there's no claim that it's a Custom Shop guitar, although it seems to me that the seller is hoping that potential buyers won't know what to look for.

He mentioned the word Relic in his description. Guitar players know that the Fender Stratocaster Relics are made in the Custom Shop.

At least that's how I interpreted it. But regardless it does look to be a fake.

He is a skeezer. Bottom line. He obviously knows enough about them, to know what he can put in his ad, without falsely advertising. It is not even a genuine fender neck!

just looks like a replica to me. A very cool replica that I wouldn't mind owning, but not for anywhere near that price.

Zactamondo... mondo! It's all in that post.

The seller knows exactly how close to the wind he can sail with his terminology without actually telling a lie.

It is, in fact, a DIY job. There's no law against him being ludicrously optimistic with his asking price. (Anyone want to buy a used '80s Squier bridge from me for $700?)

If anybody felt like smoking this seller out you could contact him to ask straight out the maker of the neck. If he tells you it's a genuine Fender then you've nailed him as a fraud. Otherwise, that would be the point he has to come clean and say frankly what it really is.

Personally, I don't need to bother, though. One of the benefits of not being turned on by the relic thing...

Cheers - C

In the description of the guitar he says the Fender Decal is new old stock