I found a new Custom Shop Time Machine '56 Relic Strat in a guitar shop back in December. It's still there. The price on the tag says $2500. I looked around online and most of them that I could find elsewhere (Musician's Friend, etc...) were in the $3000 range. The store claims the original price, or perhaps the list price, was $3700. I've played the guitar numerous times and really like it. It's not a heavy relic job, and I'd rather it be a NOS or Closet Classic but good luck finding one of those. Anyway, from my understand, the Time Machine '56 Strat is discontinued. One guy that works at the store told me the guitar had been there for more than a year at least. They came down to $2350 on the guitar when I told them I was interested but that was still too much for me. I decided to let the guitar sit there for awhile and go back in a couple months and offer them $2000 in cash. I'm biding my time hoping that I can get it cheaper. They don't want an expensive guitar to sit in their shop for years so they'll eventually let it go for less if nobody buys it.

For anybody who has bought one of these guitars or knows something about them, is $2350 a good deal that I should take? Any advice?

if you have the $2000 in cold, hard, beautifly, sensual..............errr oh yeah, cash then walk in plonk it on the desk and say you want to take the guitar today. see what they do.

That's my plan. I just don't have the cold hard beautiful........cash at the moment....... not for a couple weeks. I would have done that originally if I had had the money at the time.

Actually, I just checked Musician's Friend again. They have the same guitar for $3,699. So apparently $3700 wasn't the list price after all. Or if it is, then MF is selling the guitar at the list price.

The NOS and Closet Classic finishes were a little cheaper, with one of them being around $2800.

It's starting to look like $2350 is a pretty good deal, but I'm still gonna try and get it cheaper.

If I were you, and could afford it, I would run, NOT WALK, back to that store and buy it for $2350 or best deal you can make now (should have deluxe hard case included, with Certificate of Authenticity if it is a Custom Shop guitar)
I paid that much for a used Custom Shop '56 Strat Relic RI, 1 of 100, 50th anniversary in Aztec Gold with gold anodized aluminum pick guard and once I played it I had to have it. It remains the absolute best Strat I have ever played. I found it in Memphis, TN, and I'm from Florida.
If yours is anything like mine, it will be hard to find another like it, and especially hard to find one locally that you can actually play before deciding on whether to buy. Even all Custom Shop guitars don't sound the same. If you like this one, the price is fair, get it.
Just my humble opinion.

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’04 Fender Custom Shop ’56 Stratocaster Relic RI 50th Anniv. Aztec Gold
'10 Fender American Select Mahogany HSS Strat
'07 Fender Custom Shop Vintage Heavy Relic HB Telecaster
'03 Gibson ES-345 RI
Schecter California Custom Hellcat
’10 Squier Telecaster w/Bigsby (Fender CS Texas Specials/Candy Apple Red)
’09 Squier Stratocaster HSS (Pearly Gates HB/SSL-1/SSL-1/Silver Sparkle)
’02 Squier Bullet/Seymour Duncan HB/LockingTuners
’10 Squier Vintage Modified Jaguar HH (Fiesta Red)
Breedlove AD25/SR Plus Acoustic

Yamaha S90XS Keyboard

Many a great deal have been lost because of wanting a few more dollars in savings.
They may not budge on the price they quoted you.
Yes...Cash is great but there is a point where that shop will decide the price is too low, personally I would not count on time being on your side.
They can always list the guitar online at E-Bay or elsewhere.

They have the guitar but you may not be the only potential customer.
You are gambling on the fact that, you can force them to a lower price, yet they have the merchandise and the internet...

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"C'est parti mon Kiki "

I wouldn't say I'm gambling on them selling the guitar. I guess you could say I don't want it that bad. I could have had it for $2350. I could have given them a couple hundred bucks and locked it up on layaway but I opted not to. I spend way too much of my money on guitars anyway, so while I'd like to have the guitar, I'm not gonna be heart broken if they sell it to somebody else. If they get what they're asking, then good for them. It would keep me from spending another 2 grand on guitars, as if I don't have enough already.

MSRP is always a high estimate, not at all realistic when you consider the list price, but also be aware that a shop may not list a guitar below a certain price, that has to do with the contract between the supplier Fender and the retailer.

As far as the CS 56 NOS, I have the time machine version, closet classic, mine came with gold hardware, only change has been to the 5 way switch and replacements of the tuners (same as OEM ). It is a 2001 and I would not part with it for any reason.
They are special, even more so that they are now discontinued. Granted it is a like them or not at all, I have not run across anyone who has played it who is unsure, it is a Yes or a No..

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"C'est parti mon Kiki "

Yeah I know about MSRP and I think what you're talking about is the minimum advertisement amount. Meaning that stores can sell a product for whatever they like, but there is a minimum price they have to put on the sales tag or in their catalog.

Anyway, this guitar is a relic and I'd much rather have NOS or Closet Classic like you have.

Relic is what...slightly dinged up.. a few scratches...
It just has never appealed to me. On the other hand i have no problem acquiring a preowned guitar that has seen some use. ( I stop if it has been thrown out of the 2nd floor window along with the TV... )

Seriously, I was lucky that my 2001, 56 NOS was immaculate, it had belonged to one of the Fender reps in New England and was just used as a showpiece. The couple of dings and scratches on it are from my own playing, that is just unavoidable no matter how careful one tries to be.
Hopefully in the future I can find another but in a Mary Kaye theme.

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"C'est parti mon Kiki "

Yeah the relics are the guitars that are supposed to look like they've been played since '56. I'm not crazy about them either. Wish it was a Closet Classic or NOS finish but it's not.

Are you familiar with the American Vintage Series? I just got an AV '57 Strat reissue and was wondering how it compares to a Custom Shop guitar.

This is the 2001 CS 56 NOS



I know of the vintage series, but have not played one enough to have a fair comparison to the 56 NOS.
I will say this, I had an American Standard, have an MIM Deluxe Player as well as two rebuilds.
The CS is just different.
It is comfortable without you realizing as to why that is. Compared to the more modest models it is just a more dialed in instrument. It is subjective however as not everyone will like a soft V neck instead of a C shape neck..

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"C'est parti mon Kiki "

Beautiful guitar. I love the soft V neck myself. 3 of my 4 Strats have V necks but I did notice quite a difference in the neck of the CS '56 relic and my other V neck Strats. The '56 was bigger. I still liked it, it just felt bigger and more rounded than my Road Worn '50's Strat or my American Vintage '57.
I was sort of wanting to find my own versions of Clapton's famous '50's Strats, "Brownie" and "Blackie". So I got a black AV '57 Reissue and I'd like to find a sunburst CS '56, preferably without the relic treatment but I may end up buying the relic anyway.

Again, lovely instrument.

Ok...........I figured I'd resurrect this thread.

I finally put the CS Time Machine '56 relic Strat on layaway this past weekend. It was priced at $2500 and they offered it to me for $2350. I felt like I could get it cheaper if I had the cash so I waited, hoping to save up a couple grand and go buy the guitar. I knew they wanted to move the guitar, it had been in the shop for over two years, and figured I'd get it cheaper if I had the cash on hand. But I couldn't work as much over the past month as I would have liked and just simply could not afford to buy the guitar right now. But I couldn't get the damn thing off my mind. For two months I've obsessed about it, and decided to go ahead and put it on layaway for the $2350. So at least I've got it locked up. And I've got until the beginning of September to pay it off. Would have been nice to get it cheaper but I think $2350 is a pretty good price. Most online dealers are selling them for the list price, around $3700, I assume because they're discontinued. But anyway, at least nobody else will be buying this one now!

Happy new guitar day in anticipation!

Jeff