Thanks, man. I actually posted to that section yesterday as per your advise. Will let you know if/when I hear back from him.

and he will nicely tell you what i said earlier...

I hope he is a bit more verbose... ; )

lol...i got the 'F A K E' thing off mike...look at his posts regarding mock stuff...on another note, ive got a 62 avri strat that started its life out as vintage white but ive smoked it into that color on your strat...looks beautiful now...

Seems someone went to a lot of trouble and effort if it is a fake.

I guess it depends what you gave up in trade for it.

Using the product dating page, a "V" + 6 digest Identifies it as a MIJ 1996-97.
If you go by the Japanese serial numbers.

If you look in the American section you will find that a "V" + 5 or 6 digest identifies it as an American Vintage series of 2004, which would go along with your date stamp on the neck.

Fender numbers are difficult to say the least, so I think it is best to wait until you hear from Mike.

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Marriage is like playing cards...

At first all you want are Hearts and Diamonds.

But in the end, all you really want is a Club and a Spade.

Exactly how sure of that are you concerning the body? Also would you please explain why. If you know something then please tell us. There's no real question about the neck, the only thing I see on the body is the HSS routing. I've worked on a good few CS strats and have never seen it. I couldn't say it doesn't happen though.

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No no and no

Just to reiterate, this guitar was traded to me as a MIJ 67 reissue. It wasn't presented as a Custom Shop guitar - it wasn't even mentioned during our exchange.

The guy trading it to me didn't know for sure who relic'd it, and wasn't sure if it was all MIJ or not, but believed it was.

I was impressed by the level of detail on it- frankly, I've never seen anything like it. I was just surprised a bit by what I found when I opened it up- and am trying to figure out what it is. If I decide to sell it at a later date, I'd like to be able to represent it accurately.

FWIW, I've got about $750 into it.

750ish, then either way I think you did good.

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Marriage is like playing cards...

At first all you want are Hearts and Diamonds.

But in the end, all you really want is a Club and a Spade.

That body does look like a MIA body to me. A lot like my Highway One's in fact.

My Amber 2005 Highway One has a NAT stamp in its cavity; meaning the body was sorted out as having good enough looking grain to take a transparent finish.

You might have to contact Chris himself to get closure on this.

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

Which would also explain the lacquer checking, which doesn't look like the typical urethane checked mess.

I think this is solved regarding the body. Did/does the highway one come in that colour?

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No no and no

You lost me here- How does it explain the checking, and why is the Highway one color relevant?

If the body originally had a (NAT)ural finish, it would have had to have been stripped down to the wood to apply the white paint, right? Prior to the application of the lacquer currently on the guitar?

The body either had to have been stripped, or someone began this project with a new body that was intended to be finished naturally (i.e. no opaque paint).

Or am I misunderstanding something?

As OrvilleOwner said the NAT stands for a guitar body that is pretty enough for a natural or translucent finish. That doesn't necessarily mean the guitar got a natural finish when it was made. Only that it was sorted as being good enough to have a natural or translucent finish. There could have been a abundance of such bodies when the original guitar was made. Or the guy spraying paint that day may have disagreed with the decision. Or it could have just slipped through, who knows.

Being a highway one body it would have received a nitrocellulose finish. Cellulose ages and checks (those small crack lines) a hell of a lot easier than polyurethane (used on the American deluxe/standard) or polyester (used on Squiers and the lower end Mexican guitars). It gives a more natural aging effect, more like those 50's/early 60's guitars. Mainly because those guitars had nitrocellulose paint too.

I can't think of one relic guitar that has a polyurethane finish, except maybe the Yngwie Malmsteen tribute guitar.

It seems the most obvious answer to me, now that OrvilleOwner has chimed in with that bit of info.

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No no and no

It wouldn't matter what the original color was. One doesn't have to completely strip it to repaint it. Someone could have just shot it with the white nitro and then reliced it ... you don't have a heavy relic that's down to the wood. You might want to take a peak under the paint in one of the cavities.

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

It looks like the white paint is original in the cavities. The American Vintage series also appears to have the nitrocellulose lacquer and come in olympic white, which would match the serial number on the heel plate and the 2004 date in the pocket (as well as the US electronics, beveled pickups and 6 screw bridge). Anyone have a 2004 Fender Catalog?

Also, I contacted the previous owner again regarding the relic work - He stated that that the pawn shop who sold it to him told him it was done by Bill Nash. So I contacted Bill Nash and showed him the pics. He said it wasn't one of his... So the search continues.

Two things caught my attention: first, I thought builders use stamps with their name and second, why write "master builder"?

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Tune Low, Play Hard & Floor it!