Fender Custom Shop Limited Edition '59 Stratocaster HSS Relic Daphne Blue Metallic

This limited edition from the 2025 collection blends the character of a historically inspired Stratocaster with an HSS setup that consciously expands the classic concept. The two-piece selected alder body with an off-center glue seam meets a quartersawn AA flamed maple neck and an AAA rosewood fingerboard. It's not a single detail but the unusually coherent combination of traditional Fender DNA, Relic treatment and electronics that clearly set this instrument apart from a purely historically built Stratocaster.

Historical Reference Without a Rigid Replica

The '59 Stratocaster here doesn't aim to be an uncompromising copy of a single historic original. Instead, Fender combines typical design elements from that era with carefully selected Custom Shop specifications. The small headstock, vintage clay dots and classic four-bolt neck plate meet an 11/56 off-center V neck profile and a compound radius that runs from 7.25" to 9.5". This very mix makes the instrument stand out among historically inspired Custom Shop models: it stays firmly rooted in Fender tradition without being confined to a purely museum-style specification.

HSS With a Clear Fender Foundation

At the neck and in the middle position you'll find hand-wound Fender Custom Shop Fat '60s single coils, with the middle pickup wound RWRP. At the bridge sits a Seymour Duncan '59 SH-1B humbucker. This gives the Stratocaster a deliberately different focus than a classic SSS configuration. The five-way switch preserves the familiar Stratocaster control layout, while the bridge humbucker gives the construction its own distinct HSS character. The combination is an integral part of this limited edition and not a later modification.

Relic and Nitrocellulose as Part of the Concept

The Relic treatment is an integral part of this instrument. Nitrocellulose is used on both the body and the neck, supporting the consistently historically oriented choice of materials and finish. Hardware, tuners, pickguard and control elements are tuned to the aged overall character. The result doesn't feel like an ordinary production Stratocaster with artificially added wear; it reads as a coherently conceived Custom Shop piece where construction, surface and hardware were developed in concert.