@@sidestyle05 If you go to the Fender Custom Shop website you can download an order guide that covers all of the options for team built models. I haven’t looked at the 2021 guide, but in 2020 the Starcaster body style wasn’t one in f the body choices for team built models. Personally, I would like the Custom Shop to build me an exact replica of my 1957 Fender Mandocaster. Unfortunately, I am certain that I could buy another vintage one for less than it would cost to get one Master Built by the Custom Shop.
Just a random compliment from North East England - I enjoy all of Casino's videos but the Baxter and Jonathan stuff is like I'm sitting around drinking coffee with the guys and learning about guitars and laughing a lot. Brilliant, guys. Stay well.
Steve Smith sincere thanks for the kind words! We really appreciate that and have a blast making these videos. It warms our wee hearts to hear nice things and again, thanks for taking the time to join us for a bit! Best to you and yours and we’ll see you soon out there!
I too, love the Custom Shop. My dealer told me to expect the Tele I ordered in about 6 months. It showed up 18 months after I ordered it. Likely a dealer issue rather than the CS. BUT, I do love my Tele. Great guitar.
Jim Haubert here, I have a Rory Gallagher Custom Shop Strat and you are absolutely correct, you cannot go wrong with the Custom Shop!! Mine is pro quality, just fits in my hand, feels real natural the whole way up the fretboard!!! It has a 25 1/2" scale length but feels like 24 3/4", great strat honk to it, went through a bunch of Fender strats in my life but this one is just different, comfortable like an old pair of shoes!! Don't care that it's a relic, just the best guitar that I have ever owned or played and I have gone through a ton of them!!!
I was wearing a pair of jeans with holes in the knees and a guy stopped me and said "you must do really hard labor..." I replied: Yeah, being a blues lawyer is rough.
Relic guitars are in just like classic cars with patina. The best ones really are really resto-mods with modern brakes, engine, trans, etc. if you're going to drive it all the time. Custom shop guitars are great for a players to take on stage.
For years I was in the camp of "why would I spend that much money, I love my Mexican-made Fenders even more than the American-mades I've bought, isn't Custom Shop just a fancier American?" Turns out, no, absolutely not. Long story short, my most magically awesome guitar is my Custom Shop Strat. And I also own a higher priced Gibson Custom Shop R9 LP (which I also love but I play my Mexi-Strat more often). I was even inspired to write a letter to the Fender Custom Shop guys and thank them for changing my life. It's that good. Needless to say, that's the one guitar I would keep if I had to liquidate all but one. No hesitation.
I just got a ‘65 CS strat. Rosewood ‘65 “C” neck with a lacquered fretboard, walnut finished body black 3-ply pick guard. No relic, NOS is what it’s called. Hand wound Diablo pick-ups. It’s beautiful. I also have a ‘68 CS ES-335 VOS vintage sunburst. The strat blows it out of the water. Don’t get me wrong, the Gibson is fantastic but the fender is on some other level of guitar I never knew existed.
Thanks so much for the discussion! Having lusted after a Custom Shop 63 (my birth year) Tele for decades, and after having seen countless online discussions "debating" the "value" of the relic process, I appreciate your sharing your insights about what makes the Custom Shop relics special. So nice to hear experienced voices for a change. Keep rocking guys!
Thank you Scott! We absolutely love the pieces they make and there is an unreal level of magic in their pieces as well! Having been lucky enough to watch them work it really is an artwork to create what they do. I hope you get that 63 one year and if you ever need any help let us know!
I too just celebrated my 60th year and my long time plan was to treat myself to a ‘63 CS Strat. But I just couldn’t bring myself to spend the cash, even though I can afford it. I’m just a home player, and although it’s my passion, I just can’t bring myself to pull the trigger on one. But I still love all the videos you guys make. Some very good unbiased information as always.
I love this format! It's like getting drunk with a few friends at the bar and chatting about guitars. It just turns out that y'all know a lot more about guitars than my friends do :)
A favorite channel. Covers guitars in a interesting freewheeling 360 degree manner covering the technicals to the emotional, and all in between. Great stuff!
im not big on relics. I like the NOS and then aging it myself. but i do wanna get a custom shop strat mainly cause im left handed and its a nightmare finding a guitar i wanna buy. awesome vid boys.
@@tomguitar1963 that's Awesome yeah I bought a CS last year love it I love all my guitars but yeah the CS r amazing and im actually thinking about buying a new one now for my Bday lol... looking to grab a 64' 3burst strat CS. fiesta red rosewood NOS is another strat i want badly gladly u got one bet its beautiful.
One of my dream guitars is a Custom Shop Stratocaster with scalloped frets, no finish on the neck, Floyd Rose, reliced and several other details that I will not bore y'all with but I cannot afford to spend that kind of money on a guitar.
I went to my local store and paid down every month for almost a year and a half for a mint FCS George Harrison 61 Closet Classic Strat. Its just a different feel about these guitars. I am so lucky to have it.
I just received my first custom shop 63. It's hard to articulate, but it feels different, sounds clear and alive. Do I think it's the pinnacle of Stratocasters,NO but it's definitely special. I don't feel they are worth the money, cool but upon reflection I'd rather spend that money on a boutique S type guitar if you buying not as an investment
LOVE your channel! To weigh in, I just cannot stomach a relic’d guitar. The sole reason I haven’t purchased a NOVO is that. Man, I hate wear on my American Pros and Elites. LOL.
Tried a Fender Custom strat shop recently & was really disappointed. The low E strings almost falling off the fretboard & the frets ends are quite sharp. It was a brand new guitar, 2021 model. Quite light actually but can’t really justify $5700 sgd for the quality.
I used to be opposed to the relic guitars too. At my local shop I picked up and played a 1960 faded fiesta red journeyman relic strat with the finish worn off the neck and it felt so good. The feel is 100% the thing with it. I'd get the NOS hardware and the journeyman relic for sure. I'll have that in a 1960 faded sonic blue tele with the heel contour and a 9.5" fretboard please and thank you.
I agree with you on the Journeyman offerings as I am the owner of a ‘60 CS Journey Tele. The feel and look is fantastic as is the sound. It’s “just right” in terms of its appearance.
We couldn't agree more Jimmy! Once you get your hands on one you truly are ruined for the rest of your time here on this guitar playing Earth! Thanks a bunch for watching and for sharing your thoughts.
I have a moderately relic'ed CS strat and I feel like the guitar has organically melded into a single unit., as opposed to parts bolted together. And of course it feels smooth, silky and soft.
I was offered an original 1966 Sunburst Stratocaster for about 11,000 🇬🇧 Pounds. It had its issues after years of sweat and beer poured into the pickups. It stank of ciggies and the bridge was rusted to fuck and was badly set up, needed a refret. It looked awesome because it was just old but once plugged it, it sounded terrible. So what’s my point? I decided to leave the old vintage original and ordered a Fender Custom Shop Journey Man relic in faded Fiesta Red for 4000USD and am happily ever after.
Hey Guys, love your channel. Being a huge Fender fan myself I can feel the love your side. And one day I'll own a Custom Shop (actually many many more lol) Keep it up and keep playing. Much respect from Cape Town, South Africa.
I saw a red Jet guitar you guys had on Reverb. Beautiful guitar for a fair price. I have a gray one. If you guys were near me I'd go over and talk trade. All the best.
Casino Guitars I would be interested to know if you believe that the advent of the Custom Shop has caused the quality of their non-custom shop guitars to get better? Another words was their a sort of trickle down effect?
I def see the value of a fender custom shop guitar. Selecting your own neck profile,frets, etc is awesome. The build quality is amazing. That being said, i feel that if you have the skills to do so, you are much better off building your own partscaster. I understand not everyone has the desire, or the ability to build something at all, much less to the quality standards of Fender Custom Shop, but its definitely a fun journey. I think... EVH or Clapton when i think of partscasters. Its not rocket science to put together a neck/body. Even the fender custom shop guys are not building these parts from scratch, the rough product comes out of a CNC machine. Def easy to go wrong with one though =P
After escaping the jaws of death from Coronavirus, I bought a Fender custom shop telecaster. No buyers remorse here. It's freaking awesome!! Life's too short to play firewood.
I have a custom shop Tele and a professional Strat. To me its hard to feel the difference since I am a new player. I love my fender gear. They both are amazing but I love the Strat better on how it looks since every mark that’s on it I put on it.
I would like to get a custom shop J bass , Ive seen them at CME , I could see having a relic bass too . The only thing that Frosts me though is when they have collector / investment only instruments like the Phil Lynott bass a custom shop level bass $15,000 , a little excessive .
If your starting out on guitar and your serious about it, buy a nice $500 guitar (good enough to make learning a little easier) until your starting to learn some good tunes. When you start jamming with other musicians you’ll immediately want to get a better one then you hit a lull. Buy a $1500 guitar and it’s cool but your still stuck and in 3 months you’ll have already discovered and explored all you can within that $1500 of guitar. At that point, if you still genuinely enjoy guitar like I’m talking about not being able to have one sitting next to you for more than a few minutes before getting an overwhelming urge to play it. Crunch some numbers look at financing whatever and Get ahold of a Custom Shop 55 journeyman strat like mine. Your all of a sudden in a world musically that you didn’t know existed. Your creativeness, skill level and guitar swagger just skyrocketed. Everything you do feels and sounds better. Everything you learn and discovered on it can be played on a $500 guitar but you wouldn’t have found on any other that the CS fender. Maybe two or even three or so years later you’ve paid it off and your still discovering new special things about it every time you pick it up. You look at the updated pricing of new and used ones now within two years of buying yours and realize that before long you would break even or make some money if you sell it (which you wouldn’t do at that point because you love it so much). It’s a good feeling. I promise. That’s my story of 30 years of playing. I play in several bands now and own several CS guitars. 1 strat, 1 Gibson, 2 Martins. I look at it like long term investments. New or used don’t matter. All of my guitars are worth more than I paid. Bought a Collings D2H Brazilian for $7k sold it for $9k 18 months later. Don’t be scared, if you love guitar make it happen. High end guitars have a great market. You’ll loose your ass on cheap guitars.
This was such a good chat. I could not agree more, besides the attention to detail, the acoustics was definitely different..not to mention all my other good quality strats are for sale. CS just ruined me.
Hey fellas, really enjoy your channel. I love going to my local guitar shops and shooting the breeze with the folks there. Under COVID-19 conditions, that is not an option so it is really cool that I found you all. You seem like really genuine people, I would feel comfortable purchasing a high end guitar from you. You both seem really cool. That said I have a question. I'm looking for a custom Tele, looking at Whitfield, Nacho, Danocaster etc. A branded Fender custom shop would be awesome too, but about 1k more. What are your thoughts on these custom t-style builders
I have only seen 5 or 6 heavy relic Fenders at my local Guitar Center and none of them looked close to real wear patterns. I'm sure good ones are out there though. Regarding those cool vintage neck profiles... I WISH I had known about them growing up. No one I knew had a vintage instrument and new guitars always had slim necks. I feel gipped. Most of my collection is now in the chunkier style and I love playing more than ever now,
GC unfortunately doesn’t get the best of the FCS pieces as that’s not really their bag. And I was the same with neck profiles...I didn’t know about them until way later in life then...the pearly gates opened and I became obsessed with them! It’s a fun world and we love it! Sincere thanks for watching and taking the time to comment and share your thoughts with us! Have a super morning/day!
It's funny for me to watch you guys, gentlemen that I really enjoy, talk about the Custom Shop..... cuz you get Glassy-Eyed and the Dream is still very much alive. :) It's only then that I realize that I'm not still 40 years old. One area that you might want to explore is the transition period from Vince Cunetto making the "Relics" to the Custom Shop making them. It was comical. :) I started with Fender in the late 80's and there truly is a pretty accurate correlation between the Music Industry and guys wearing Polyester Leisure suits selling Used Cars. I used to attend "Guitar Shows" and bust dealers putting Fender Logo Decals and dating stamps on Hondo Guitars and selling them like Hot Cakes. MANY of those guitars are still out there....being sold for the 17th time as the real deal. Tell us everything you know about Mars Music. :) GC in ALL forms needs to Lock the doors and say goodbye. When MAJOR Manufacturers are being kept alive by selling Foot Pedals because GC owes them Millions of Dollars, ..... it's time to End it. The Perfect Storm is here....Covid, the Internet, Amazon, Reverb, eBay, etc. I LOVE the same dealers that you mentioned.......Dealers with a Conscience. I'd ask that you keep one other Option in your heads though.....What's gonna' happen to all those empty GC buildings? How many "Brands" do the Top Several Manufacturers own? Enuff to keep their own Retail Outlets VERY well Stocked? Huh? Sleep Well. :)
Yeah - you may as well go the whole way and get hand-wound pickups if you’re going to the lengths of getting a CS. If I ever get one, they may be Fat 60s......then they’d also be different from my other Strats!
@@kcd2120 The 57 Mary Kaye and 59 Slab Board Strats I have both have hand wound “57” and “59” Josefinas. I don’t think they could be beat for what I need them for.
Having owed 60s Strats in the 60s as well as a couple of 60s Jazzmasters, I'd say that the American Vintage, American Original and Custom Shops of the past few years are as good or better than the real ones. I'm sure they're much more consistently tuneful instruments.
I own a 1995 Custom Shop American Classic in Champagne Burst. It's got a beautiful figured maple neck with a rosewood board, but that's about it. The Texas Special pickups don't sound that special to me and the body wood is so soft that one of the neck bolt holes was shipped stripped and had to be drilled out and doweled and half the pickup screw holes were stripped too. Why I bought it is a long story but price was 1 G back then. I'd much rather play my American Standard that's about 6 years old. It plays great and has a more bright but not brittle jangly distinctive Strat sound.
Yes, most likely a US...:) Thanks a ton for watching and of course sir John is a master. We feel like he perfected the reliving process and made it happen for the whole team.
It's weird how you guys say you picked up a CS and that was it for you. I've picked up a bunch of CS guitars and there's only one that comes to mind that I actually liked. Every one seems to have a massive neck that's brutally uncomfortable. The second part is I've never been able to justify the cost/value ratio of a CS guitar. I've just now gotten a couple of the AO60s series and those to me are friggin phenomenal guitars.
MinivanMegafun100 first we have to agree with the American originals! Live those pieces:) they are perhaps the best bang for your buck in the electric guitar world. Larger necks have been popular for the past 5 years it seems and we both love them but the funny thing is bitch of my necks are rather small. Sincere thanks for sharing your thoughts and congrats on your guitars as well!
I have just got one, the feel is ok, but it plays not as smooth as my ultra that I no longer have, the custom shops are pretty dull in the high frequency, and a bit boomy in the bass...so how can that be....
Would love to hear a comparison between Fender Custom Shop and G&L Custom Shop. I currently play a G&L Legacy Deluxe (US Built) and its my best playing guitar, even over my CE24 PRS.
I’ve got a US Legacy too, absolutely ruined me. Fiesta Red, “vintage tint” Birdseye neck, it’s just a stunner of a guitar. The CLF-100 pickups are just something else and I’m a huge pickup snob even though I suck. They are very very very good and really punch the midrange that fenders generally don’t do. They’re relatively high output for a strat pickup at around 7.1 or so ohms. It’s just a different sound and a “modern” version of the strat, just like Leo intended it to be. That being said, which obviously you know because you own one lol, I got one of my dream guitars about a year ago and that’s the Wildwood AVRI Thin skin ‘59 strat. I wanted a nitro, vintage inspired strat because that’s just what I picture and what I dream of playing. I did not expect the two to be as different as they are. These come with custom shop ‘54 pickups and I gotta say, I hated them from the moment I plugged it in. I was so used to the G&L sound that it just sounded so dull and lacking to me. I’ve kept them in so I could get used to it and see if it would grow on me and I could shape it but I’ve given up and currently looking for some pickups to try. Anyway, while neither are custom shops, I’ve had about 4-5 strats in the last couple of years, even one with a 2 point bridge and it still can’t compete with the Legacy. I say you need both. Look into the Thin Skin line Wildwood does maybe if you don’t want to go custom shop money. I hate to say that when I’m on the Casino channel because I love these guys , but wildwood is the only place you can get them. The newer American Original series is also Nitro, vintage style but with a 9.5 radius like the Wildwood thin skins so it’s a great mix. Going from the 12” on the G&L you’re used to, you may not want a 7.25 so that would be perfect, and I’ve seen two of the white transparent blonde that they’re doing in person and it’s incredible. You can see the wood underneath and it’s just stunning in person. I know I’m rambling but I was just trying to input some random things that I picked up on with mine. The G&L really is the modern strat. It plays like it, it feels like it, the trem is super light and super smooth, the body shape is slightly different, the neck sits out of the pocket a little more, small things like that and the Fender’s I’ve had are just not that special. Now I know I got a really good G&L but I paid $800 for it used and it was mint. You can’t get a fender to match the quality and fit and finish for that price range. I’ve tried. Even built some stuff. They’re good, but not Legacy USA good. Just different. And the AVRI I have has just changed my life. I love everything about it, except the pickups. They’ve grown on me, but just meh. But the feel, the vibe it brings, the look and inspiration I get is just completely different than the G&L. Get both. You will not be disappointed and will find uses for both!
I feel bad reading the comments. I didn't realize getting a Fender Custom Shop guitar was so unattainable by so many people. I have 7 of them and 3 Gibson Custom Shops. To me they are not expensive. They are actually pretty affordable when you think about it. Get into buying Muscle Cars or Yachts if you want to see what expensive is all about. $5,000 wouldn't even pay for a full tank of gas for some high-end motor yachts.
Master built? Probably 4500+ but that's just based off of some basic knowledge of the market so I might be way off. A custom shop guitar that fender sells through their custom shop is usually below 4000 but they all retail for somewhere around that mark. Again, though, the master built guitars are a bit more expensive.
@@christiandiehl6804 Masterbuilt (first hand) for ONLY 4500+??!!! I doubt that very highly.. A “first hand” MB Has got to start somewhere around 7G area...
@@learnmusic488 I said 4500+. I'm aware most would be significantly more than the regular custom shop models, but with a relatively general, non spec'd out model, it probably goes somewhere around there (I could be wrong I've never ordered or owned a masterbuilt.)
@@christiandiehl6804 I’m not sure what the current starting price is for a Master Built Fender Custom Shop guitar, but I know a few years ago the starting price was $5,000. As you said that was just for a basic model that could have been Team Built, but the buyer wanted a specific Master Builder to build it. My guess was a that now it is closer to $6,000. Anything outside of the Team Built options will be considerably more expensive depending on the specifications.
I recently purchased a CS 62/63 strat. It’s awesome , but I couldn’t help but notice it states to be “Limited Edition” Why would they make this distinction , as I thought all of their CS guitars are considered limited edition? Just a random question , thanks! - David from LA
Markonefifteen ofcourse price is. A standard Gibson guitar is made in a complete different way. A standard Les Paul has more wood, binding, inlays, mother of pearl on the headstock, more pick ups, glew, nitrocellulose laquer... A standard Fender Strat has none of that. It is made way cheaper. Custom Shop Gibsons are most of the time also made with much more extra’s then Fender.
I got a question, I’m trying to reach a conclusion about the American vintage. I have a 56’ from 2012 (gen 2 series) , how does that compare to a custom shop equivalent? Is it close to the mark? Or very far off? I love the feel and tone, and I feel like I remember reading somewhere about fender using the original machines to make them for the avri series...was it all just a dream? Lol
Two years late, but I have a CS strat and my brother just got the American vintage 2. The CS is miles away something else. I went with the NOS, rather than the relic.
Get yourself a classic Vibe from about 10 years ago and do some cheap mods, tuners, bridge saddles, pots, nut, switch craft selector, and some caps to your preference. $250-500 in and your blowing those over priced wall hangers off the stage.
@@jsdhesmith2011 Hey, if you don't have the means to afford one, then do what you can. I have played all varieties of guitars and know my custom shop tele is BY FAR the best tele I've ever played. And I played it the first time not even knowing it was a custom shop. You just seem like a bitter person.
Hey tom if you go to www.casinoguitars.com we have a place where you can fill what you are looking for with your info and we shoot you a call or email with a quote! Or just shoot an email to shop@casinoguitars.com we can get you started!
I’m saving my money for a custom shop Strat as a reward for quitting smoking. Should be able to afford it in less than a year
That’s awesome and congratulations!!!
@@CasinoGuitars Are Starcasters available through the Custom Shop or is that a Masterbuild thing?
@@sidestyle05
If you go to the Fender Custom Shop website you can download an order guide that covers all of the options for team built models. I haven’t looked at the 2021 guide, but in 2020 the Starcaster body style wasn’t one in f the body choices for team built models.
Personally, I would like the Custom Shop to build me an exact replica of my 1957 Fender Mandocaster. Unfortunately, I am certain that I could buy another vintage one for less than it would cost to get one Master Built by the Custom Shop.
Good for you sir,I’m a respiratory therapist
That's incredible! Hope you get the Strat you really want.
Just a random compliment from North East England - I enjoy all of Casino's videos but the Baxter and Jonathan stuff is like I'm sitting around drinking coffee with the guys and learning about guitars and laughing a lot. Brilliant, guys. Stay well.
Steve Smith sincere thanks for the kind words! We really appreciate that and have a blast making these videos. It warms our wee hearts to hear nice things and again, thanks for taking the time to join us for a bit! Best to you and yours and we’ll see you soon out there!
Some day i will buy a guitar from casino guitars, cause by now..,..you guys are like my pals....cheers from Mexico 👍🏻
I have a CS Nocaster from 2018. The best guitar I have ever played! It will stay with me my whole life.
I too, love the Custom Shop. My dealer told me to expect the Tele I ordered in about 6 months. It showed up 18 months after I ordered it. Likely a dealer issue rather than the CS. BUT, I do love my Tele. Great guitar.
Jim Haubert here, I have a Rory Gallagher Custom Shop Strat and you are absolutely correct, you cannot go wrong with the Custom Shop!! Mine is pro quality, just fits in my hand, feels real natural the whole way up the fretboard!!! It has a 25 1/2" scale length but feels like 24 3/4", great strat honk to it, went through a bunch of Fender strats in my life but this one is just different, comfortable like an old pair of shoes!! Don't care that it's a relic, just the best guitar that I have ever owned or played and I have gone through a ton of them!!!
I was wearing a pair of jeans with holes in the knees and a guy stopped me and said "you must do really hard labor..." I replied: Yeah, being a blues lawyer is rough.
I love my 64 L series custom shop fender strat. Closet classic with 7.25 radius - vintage feel all the way. It came with Josefina pickups!
Relic guitars are in just like classic cars with patina. The best ones really are really resto-mods with modern brakes, engine, trans, etc. if you're going to drive it all the time. Custom shop guitars are great for a players to take on stage.
Wrong. Vintage is what you want to play. Custom shop is Second choice
For years I was in the camp of "why would I spend that much money, I love my Mexican-made Fenders even more than the American-mades I've bought, isn't Custom Shop just a fancier American?" Turns out, no, absolutely not. Long story short, my most magically awesome guitar is my Custom Shop Strat. And I also own a higher priced Gibson Custom Shop R9 LP (which I also love but I play my Mexi-Strat more often). I was even inspired to write a letter to the Fender Custom Shop guys and thank them for changing my life. It's that good. Needless to say, that's the one guitar I would keep if I had to liquidate all but one. No hesitation.
Someday you will step up to a real vintage one
I just got a ‘65 CS strat. Rosewood ‘65 “C” neck with a lacquered fretboard, walnut finished body black 3-ply pick guard. No relic, NOS is what it’s called. Hand wound Diablo pick-ups. It’s beautiful. I also have a ‘68 CS ES-335 VOS vintage sunburst. The strat blows it out of the water. Don’t get me wrong, the Gibson is fantastic but the fender is on some other level of guitar I never knew existed.
I got one, but if they really sound better???....i find mine a bit dull and boomy....its a 60s cs..
Thanks so much for the discussion! Having lusted after a Custom Shop 63 (my birth year) Tele for decades, and after having seen countless online discussions "debating" the "value" of the relic process, I appreciate your sharing your insights about what makes the Custom Shop relics special. So nice to hear experienced voices for a change. Keep rocking guys!
Thank you Scott! We absolutely love the pieces they make and there is an unreal level of magic in their pieces as well! Having been lucky enough to watch them work it really is an artwork to create what they do. I hope you get that 63 one year and if you ever need any help let us know!
I too just celebrated my 60th year and my long time plan was to treat myself to a ‘63 CS Strat. But I just couldn’t bring myself to spend the cash, even though I can afford it. I’m just a home player, and although it’s my passion, I just can’t bring myself to pull the trigger on one. But I still love all the videos you guys make. Some very good unbiased information as always.
I love this format! It's like getting drunk with a few friends at the bar and chatting about guitars. It just turns out that y'all know a lot more about guitars than my friends do :)
I can attest, concur, worth the extra money! Was interested in a Suhr and someone said "why not get a Fender?" I did and it is the bomb!
The blue strat in the back, it's perfect.
A favorite channel. Covers guitars in a interesting freewheeling 360 degree manner covering the technicals to the emotional, and all in between. Great stuff!
love you guys...... have a great shop here , its like hanging out there, but just at times when they are closed.
im not big on relics. I like the NOS and then aging it myself. but i do wanna get a custom shop strat mainly cause im left handed and its a nightmare finding a guitar i wanna buy. awesome vid boys.
I got a CS Stratocaster fiesta red rosewood board NOS best guitar I’ve ever had and there been a lot Gibson,PRS etc go for it.
@@tomguitar1963 that's Awesome yeah I bought a CS last year love it I love all my guitars but yeah the CS r amazing and im actually thinking about buying a new one now for my Bday lol... looking to grab a 64' 3burst strat CS. fiesta red rosewood NOS is another strat i want badly gladly u got one bet its beautiful.
Just got my first custom shop, a 55 tele journeyman, and its absolutely amazing!
I ordered a 61 Strat in shell pink yesterday. It’s just gotta cross the country. Hopefully it makes it here before everything’s locked down
I got into building guitars from getting that woah feeling. After I built my first I was like why do I buy them? It was amazing to me. I couldnt stop
One of my dream guitars is a Custom Shop Stratocaster with scalloped frets, no finish on the neck, Floyd Rose, reliced and several other details that I will not bore y'all with but I cannot afford to spend that kind of money on a guitar.
I just purchased a new 2022. Custom shop 1960 jazz bass, I get it in 3 days I don’t know what to expect, but I am excited…….
love my custom shop tele thin line. my favorite out of about 20 guitars
I went to my local store and paid down every month for almost a year and a half for a mint FCS George Harrison 61 Closet Classic Strat. Its just a different feel about these guitars. I am so lucky to have it.
Just got a 2016 1960 relic aztec gold telecaster and................I LOVE IT!
I just received my first custom shop 63. It's hard to articulate, but it feels different, sounds clear and alive. Do I think it's the pinnacle of Stratocasters,NO but it's definitely special. I don't feel they are worth the money, cool but upon reflection I'd rather spend that money on a boutique S type guitar if you buying not as an investment
LOVE your channel! To weigh in, I just cannot stomach a relic’d guitar. The sole reason I haven’t purchased a NOVO is that. Man, I hate wear on my American Pros and Elites. LOL.
People that buy relics are posers in my book!
Tried a Fender Custom strat shop recently & was really disappointed. The low E strings almost falling off the fretboard & the frets ends are quite sharp. It was a brand new guitar, 2021 model. Quite light actually but can’t really justify $5700 sgd for the quality.
Id like to see a blind test between well set up non CS against CS.
I have always wanted a Custom Shop Tele. I have also always wanted to be rich enough to afford one! ;) Maybe one day ;)
I used to be opposed to the relic guitars too. At my local shop I picked up and played a 1960 faded fiesta red journeyman relic strat with the finish worn off the neck and it felt so good. The feel is 100% the thing with it. I'd get the NOS hardware and the journeyman relic for sure. I'll have that in a 1960 faded sonic blue tele with the heel contour and a 9.5" fretboard please and thank you.
I agree with you on the Journeyman offerings as I am the owner of a ‘60 CS Journey Tele. The feel and look is fantastic as is the sound. It’s “just right” in terms of its appearance.
We couldn't agree more Jimmy! Once you get your hands on one you truly are ruined for the rest of your time here on this guitar playing Earth! Thanks a bunch for watching and for sharing your thoughts.
I love the Fender Custom Shop too! They're great!
I have a moderately relic'ed CS strat and I feel like the guitar has organically melded into a single unit., as opposed to parts bolted together. And of course it feels smooth, silky and soft.
Sounds like you got a journeyman relic. Mine is too.
I was offered an original 1966 Sunburst Stratocaster for about 11,000 🇬🇧 Pounds. It had its issues after years of sweat and beer poured into the pickups. It stank of ciggies and the bridge was rusted to fuck and was badly set up, needed a refret. It looked awesome because it was just old but once plugged it, it sounded terrible.
So what’s my point?
I decided to leave the old vintage original and ordered a Fender Custom Shop Journey Man relic in faded Fiesta Red for 4000USD and am happily ever after.
Casino Guitars is a GREAT
place to snag a Fender Custom Shop too!!! Thanks for the videos guys!!
Thanks a bunch Tony! We love making the videos and sincere thanks fro watching!
Hey Guys, love your channel. Being a huge Fender fan myself I can feel the love your side. And one day I'll own a Custom Shop (actually many many more lol) Keep it up and keep playing.
Much respect from Cape Town, South Africa.
I saw a red Jet guitar you guys had on Reverb. Beautiful guitar for a fair price. I have a gray one. If you guys were near me I'd go over and talk trade. All the best.
Casino Guitars I would be interested to know if you believe that the advent of the Custom Shop has caused the quality of their non-custom shop guitars to get better? Another words was their a sort of trickle down effect?
I def see the value of a fender custom shop guitar. Selecting your own neck profile,frets, etc is awesome. The build quality is amazing.
That being said, i feel that if you have the skills to do so, you are much better off building your own partscaster. I understand not everyone has the desire, or the ability to build something at all, much less to the quality standards of Fender Custom Shop, but its definitely a fun journey.
I think... EVH or Clapton when i think of partscasters. Its not rocket science to put together a neck/body. Even the fender custom shop guys are not building these parts from scratch, the rough product comes out of a CNC machine.
Def easy to go wrong with one though =P
Gilmour’s Black Strat is another great example of a total Partscaster, too - it had so many different necks and various modifications in its time.
2 pieces of wood bolted together $5000 dollars. Great deal!!
I don’t even have a custom shop and my fender is awesome. Have to say my gibson have always been awesome too
My first amp was a Peavey Rage in the 90s.
Great job guys. I own two tele custom shops .My favorite guitars. Right up there with my 58 Les Paul Jr. 😁
After escaping the jaws of death from Coronavirus, I bought a Fender custom shop telecaster. No buyers remorse here. It's freaking awesome!! Life's too short to play firewood.
Love that and agree and…glad you made it through, sincerely!
I've said it once and I'll say it again.... I love my Fender Road Worn 60s Stratocaster
They are good and keep getting better I think
We couldn't agree more Sir Peter! Love love love them!
Yep, love em.
I have a custom shop Tele and a professional Strat. To me its hard to feel the difference since I am a new player. I love my fender gear. They both are amazing but I love the Strat better on how it looks since every mark that’s on it I put on it.
If you want a Custom, the real trouble is be able to try the option you have. Who gets to try all neck,fret, pickup choices for example.
I would like to get a custom shop J bass , Ive seen them at CME , I could see having a relic bass too .
The only thing that Frosts me though is when they have collector / investment only instruments like the Phil Lynott bass a custom shop level bass $15,000 , a little excessive .
Look at that shirt Baxter is wearing he has joined the five watt world!!!
Another reason you cannot go wrong with custom shop is that it will hold its value
I do actually know a guy that plays an original 1959 stratocaster at bar gigs. Lol it's a really clean example too..
Can you imagine getting a $30000 guitar stolen at a $500 gig.... If you turn your head it is gone
@@keithadams812 I think they play for free. It's a beautiful stratocaster though.
If your starting out on guitar and your serious about it, buy a nice $500 guitar (good enough to make learning a little easier) until your starting to learn some good tunes. When you start jamming with other musicians you’ll immediately want to get a better one then you hit a lull. Buy a $1500 guitar and it’s cool but your still stuck and in 3 months you’ll have already discovered and explored all you can within that $1500 of guitar. At that point, if you still genuinely enjoy guitar like I’m talking about not being able to have one sitting next to you for more than a few minutes before getting an overwhelming urge to play it. Crunch some numbers look at financing whatever and Get ahold of a Custom Shop 55 journeyman strat like mine. Your all of a sudden in a world musically that you didn’t know existed. Your creativeness, skill level and guitar swagger just skyrocketed. Everything you do feels and sounds better. Everything you learn and discovered on it can be played on a $500 guitar but you wouldn’t have found on any other that the CS fender. Maybe two or even three or so years later you’ve paid it off and your still discovering new special things about it every time you pick it up. You look at the updated pricing of new and used ones now within two years of buying yours and realize that before long you would break even or make some money if you sell it (which you wouldn’t do at that point because you love it so much). It’s a good feeling. I promise. That’s my story of 30 years of playing. I play in several bands now and own several CS guitars. 1 strat, 1 Gibson, 2 Martins. I look at it like long term investments. New or used don’t matter. All of my guitars are worth more than I paid. Bought a Collings D2H Brazilian for $7k sold it for $9k 18 months later. Don’t be scared, if you love guitar make it happen. High end guitars have a great market. You’ll loose your ass on cheap guitars.
This was such a good chat. I could not agree more, besides the attention to detail, the acoustics was definitely different..not to mention all my other good quality strats are for sale. CS just ruined me.
Hey fellas, really enjoy your channel. I love going to my local guitar shops and shooting the breeze with the folks there. Under COVID-19 conditions, that is not an option so it is really cool that I found you all. You seem like really genuine people, I would feel comfortable purchasing a high end guitar from you. You both seem really cool. That said I have a question. I'm looking for a custom Tele, looking at Whitfield, Nacho, Danocaster etc. A branded Fender custom shop would be awesome too, but about 1k more. What are your thoughts on these custom t-style builders
They did an excellent video on Boutique vs Partscasters. I would honestly pay the extra money, and get a CS guitar
I have only seen 5 or 6 heavy relic Fenders at my local Guitar Center and none of them looked close to real wear patterns. I'm sure good ones are out there though. Regarding those cool vintage neck profiles... I WISH I had known about them growing up. No one I knew had a vintage instrument and new guitars always had slim necks. I feel gipped. Most of my collection is now in the chunkier style and I love playing more than ever now,
GC unfortunately doesn’t get the best of the FCS pieces as that’s not really their bag. And I was the same with neck profiles...I didn’t know about them until way later in life then...the pearly gates opened and I became obsessed with them! It’s a fun world and we love it! Sincere thanks for watching and taking the time to comment and share your thoughts with us! Have a super morning/day!
Was this done before or after the "why you don't need a custom shop!" vid? haha🤣
I'm from Charleston, SC! Did you get that guitar from Money Man Pawn?
It's funny for me to watch you guys, gentlemen that I really enjoy, talk about the Custom Shop..... cuz you get Glassy-Eyed and the Dream is still very much alive. :) It's only then that I realize that I'm not still 40 years old. One area that you might want to explore is the transition period from Vince Cunetto making the "Relics" to the Custom Shop making them. It was comical. :) I started with Fender in the late 80's and there truly is a pretty accurate correlation between the Music Industry and guys wearing Polyester Leisure suits selling Used Cars. I used to attend "Guitar Shows" and bust dealers putting Fender Logo Decals and dating stamps on Hondo Guitars and selling them like Hot Cakes. MANY of those guitars are still out there....being sold for the 17th time as the real deal. Tell us everything you know about Mars Music. :) GC in ALL forms needs to Lock the doors and say goodbye. When MAJOR Manufacturers are being kept alive by selling Foot Pedals because GC owes them Millions of Dollars, ..... it's time to End it. The Perfect Storm is here....Covid, the Internet, Amazon, Reverb, eBay, etc. I LOVE the same dealers that you mentioned.......Dealers with a Conscience. I'd ask that you keep one other Option in your heads though.....What's gonna' happen to all those empty GC buildings? How many "Brands" do the Top Several Manufacturers own? Enuff to keep their own Retail Outlets VERY well Stocked? Huh? Sleep Well. :)
The Fender Custom Shop makes the best hand wound pickups I’ve ever heard. You have to get them from a guitar, otherwise you can’t just buy them.
Yeah - you may as well go the whole way and get hand-wound pickups if you’re going to the lengths of getting a CS. If I ever get one, they may be Fat 60s......then they’d also be different from my other Strats!
@@kcd2120 The 57 Mary Kaye and 59 Slab Board Strats I have both have hand wound “57” and “59” Josefinas. I don’t think they could be beat for what I need them for.
the sexiest thing ever it’s my Fender custom shop 61 heavy relic … and no , it’s not a vintage it’s custom shop 😊😊😊😊
Nice! Cannot go wrong with a simple standard strat. 😍😍
Robert Clark indeed, that’s how I started back in the days also. Until that day....
@@marchel9322 Thats funny:)
We feel you there, love the ol classic!
Woohoo. Indeed. Hhahahaha
You guys are in NC right? You should order a fiesta red over sunburst and I’ll be there to pick it up in a few months lol greetings from Raleigh
im picturing baxter at home with curlers in his hair drinking coffee before the show.
Thanks for great content, I watch all the videos.
Having owed 60s Strats in the 60s as well as a couple of 60s Jazzmasters, I'd say that the American Vintage, American Original and Custom Shops of the past few years are as good or better than the real ones. I'm sure they're much more consistently tuneful instruments.
American Vintage ii 61 Strat is solid and is my #1 axe now!
I own a 1995 Custom Shop American Classic in Champagne Burst. It's got a beautiful figured maple neck with a rosewood board, but that's about it. The Texas Special pickups don't sound that special to me and the body wood is so soft that one of the neck bolt holes was shipped stripped and had to be drilled out and doweled and half the pickup screw holes were stripped too. Why I bought it is a long story but price was 1 G back then. I'd much rather play my American Standard that's about 6 years old. It plays great and has a more bright but not brittle jangly distinctive Strat sound.
I got one custom tele but I love my 73 it up there
Jon Cruz favorite personal Axe,...Squier Strat. To this day! 80s model. Probably US lol
Yes, most likely a US...:)
Thanks a ton for watching and of course sir John is a master. We feel like he perfected the reliving process and made it happen for the whole team.
It's weird how you guys say you picked up a CS and that was it for you. I've picked up a bunch of CS guitars and there's only one that comes to mind that I actually liked. Every one seems to have a massive neck that's brutally uncomfortable. The second part is I've never been able to justify the cost/value ratio of a CS guitar. I've just now gotten a couple of the AO60s series and those to me are friggin phenomenal guitars.
MinivanMegafun100 first we have to agree with the American originals! Live those pieces:) they are perhaps the best bang for your buck in the electric guitar world.
Larger necks have been popular for the past 5 years it seems and we both love them but the funny thing is bitch of my necks are rather small.
Sincere thanks for sharing your thoughts and congrats on your guitars as well!
I have just got one, the feel is ok, but it plays not as smooth as my ultra that I no longer have, the custom shops are pretty dull in the high frequency, and a bit boomy in the bass...so how can that be....
Love the Birds nest
Also John really reminds me of the guy from the whiskey tribe channel. Pretty sure yall are almost the same people
You and I both know Jonathan would win in an arm wrestling contest
Would love to hear a comparison between Fender Custom Shop and G&L Custom Shop. I currently play a G&L Legacy Deluxe (US Built) and its my best playing guitar, even over my CE24 PRS.
I’ve got a US Legacy too, absolutely ruined me. Fiesta Red, “vintage tint” Birdseye neck, it’s just a stunner of a guitar. The CLF-100 pickups are just something else and I’m a huge pickup snob even though I suck. They are very very very good and really punch the midrange that fenders generally don’t do. They’re relatively high output for a strat pickup at around 7.1 or so ohms. It’s just a different sound and a “modern” version of the strat, just like Leo intended it to be. That being said, which obviously you know because you own one lol, I got one of my dream guitars about a year ago and that’s the Wildwood AVRI Thin skin ‘59 strat. I wanted a nitro, vintage inspired strat because that’s just what I picture and what I dream of playing. I did not expect the two to be as different as they are. These come with custom shop ‘54 pickups and I gotta say, I hated them from the moment I plugged it in. I was so used to the G&L sound that it just sounded so dull and lacking to me. I’ve kept them in so I could get used to it and see if it would grow on me and I could shape it but I’ve given up and currently looking for some pickups to try. Anyway, while neither are custom shops, I’ve had about 4-5 strats in the last couple of years, even one with a 2 point bridge and it still can’t compete with the Legacy. I say you need both. Look into the Thin Skin line Wildwood does maybe if you don’t want to go custom shop money. I hate to say that when I’m on the Casino channel because I love these guys , but wildwood is the only place you can get them. The newer American Original series is also Nitro, vintage style but with a 9.5 radius like the Wildwood thin skins so it’s a great mix. Going from the 12” on the G&L you’re used to, you may not want a 7.25 so that would be perfect, and I’ve seen two of the white transparent blonde that they’re doing in person and it’s incredible. You can see the wood underneath and it’s just stunning in person. I know I’m rambling but I was just trying to input some random things that I picked up on with mine. The G&L really is the modern strat. It plays like it, it feels like it, the trem is super light and super smooth, the body shape is slightly different, the neck sits out of the pocket a little more, small things like that and the Fender’s I’ve had are just not that special. Now I know I got a really good G&L but I paid $800 for it used and it was mint. You can’t get a fender to match the quality and fit and finish for that price range. I’ve tried. Even built some stuff. They’re good, but not Legacy USA good. Just different. And the AVRI I have has just changed my life. I love everything about it, except the pickups. They’ve grown on me, but just meh. But the feel, the vibe it brings, the look and inspiration I get is just completely different than the G&L. Get both. You will not be disappointed and will find uses for both!
you should do a bass video
Love my David Gilmoir relic custom shop...leaves ya comfortably numb
Custom shop guitars, almost always worth it. However the custom shop burger I got from Sonic the other day, not so much
Peavey Rage! My first amp
How different would you say would a Custom Shop be from say an artist series such as “The Edge” model?
I feel bad reading the comments. I didn't realize getting a Fender Custom Shop guitar was so unattainable by so many people. I have 7 of them and 3 Gibson Custom Shops. To me they are not expensive. They are actually pretty affordable when you think about it. Get into buying Muscle Cars or Yachts if you want to see what expensive is all about. $5,000 wouldn't even pay for a full tank of gas for some high-end motor yachts.
I’ve got a don rich silver sparkle tele but I went new old stock. No need to relic.
Had an offer on a cs strat in holoflakes but couldn't come up with the cash to match the asking price.
What kind of price would you be looking at for team-built and master-built guitars new?
Master built? Probably 4500+ but that's just based off of some basic knowledge of the market so I might be way off. A custom shop guitar that fender sells through their custom shop is usually below 4000 but they all retail for somewhere around that mark. Again, though, the master built guitars are a bit more expensive.
You can get a used team built custom shop guitar from $2,500-$2,700
@@christiandiehl6804 Masterbuilt (first hand) for ONLY 4500+??!!!
I doubt that very highly..
A “first hand” MB Has got to start somewhere around 7G area...
@@learnmusic488 I said 4500+. I'm aware most would be significantly more than the regular custom shop models, but with a relatively general, non spec'd out model, it probably goes somewhere around there (I could be wrong I've never ordered or owned a masterbuilt.)
@@christiandiehl6804
I’m not sure what the current starting price is for a Master Built Fender Custom Shop guitar, but I know a few years ago the starting price was $5,000. As you said that was just for a basic model that could have been Team Built, but the buyer wanted a specific Master Builder to build it. My guess was a that now it is closer to $6,000. Anything outside of the Team Built options will be considerably more expensive depending on the specifications.
Love Fender, but please Fender do rear route guitars, not just Troublemakers. Love 72 tele deluxe.
How do y'all feel about buying from a master builder that makes custom shop quality relics?
Ill tune in for the daily Casino Guitars Jibber Jabber... its a guitar world out there
Thanks a bunch Steve...we are here to jibber jabber all day long!
They evidently don't make the NOS much any more. Except for red Hank Marvin Strat.
A pity though. I would like a postmodern Strat in NOS instead of journeyman relic'd.
Would love one but... I am poor
Yea! Trust casino guitars to represent.
I recently purchased a CS 62/63 strat. It’s awesome , but I couldn’t help but notice it states to be “Limited Edition”
Why would they make this distinction , as I thought all of their CS guitars are considered limited edition? Just a random question , thanks!
- David from LA
Price and QC is beyond anything compared to the Gibson custom shop.
Markonefifteen ofcourse price is. A standard Gibson guitar is made in a complete different way. A standard Les Paul has more wood, binding, inlays, mother of pearl on the headstock, more pick ups, glew, nitrocellulose laquer... A standard Fender Strat has none of that. It is made way cheaper. Custom Shop Gibsons are most of the time also made with much more extra’s then Fender.
Fender Custom Shop, two pieces of wood bolted together $5000 dollars.
I got a question, I’m trying to reach a conclusion about the American vintage. I have a 56’ from 2012 (gen 2 series) , how does that compare to a custom shop equivalent? Is it close to the mark? Or very far off? I love the feel and tone, and I feel like I remember reading somewhere about fender using the original machines to make them for the avri series...was it all just a dream? Lol
Two years late, but I have a CS strat and my brother just got the American vintage 2. The CS is miles away something else. I went with the NOS, rather than the relic.
I really want to buy a Fender Custom Shop guitar. Does Casino Guitars offer credit/financing?
One day!
Get yourself a classic Vibe from about 10 years ago and do some cheap mods, tuners, bridge saddles, pots, nut, switch craft selector, and some caps to your preference. $250-500 in and your blowing those over priced wall hangers off the stage.
Not even close.
@@lathspell87 I know the truth hurts
@@jsdhesmith2011 Whatever helps you sleep at night.
@@lathspell87 Knowing I didn’t over spend on a guitar definitely helps me sleep better at night.
@@jsdhesmith2011 Hey, if you don't have the means to afford one, then do what you can. I have played all varieties of guitars and know my custom shop tele is BY FAR the best tele I've ever played. And I played it the first time not even knowing it was a custom shop.
You just seem like a bitter person.
Any news on the black strat give away?
How do I start the process of ordering a custom shop?
Hey tom if you go to www.casinoguitars.com we have a place where you can fill what you are looking for with your info and we shoot you a call or email with a quote! Or just shoot an email to shop@casinoguitars.com we can get you started!
You should have shown some examples