2009 Fender Custom Shop Masterbuilt '57 Stratocaster NOS — Built by Greg Fessler | AAAA Quilted Ash Body | Two-Color Sunburst | Abigail Ybarra Pickups | Serial CZ511059

The Instrument

This is a 2009 Fender Custom Shop Masterbuilt '57 Stratocaster NOS (New Old Stock), hand-built by Master Builder Greg Fessler — one of the most respected and celebrated craftsmen in the Custom Shop's history. Serial number CZ511059. Certificate of Authenticity and complete Shop Floor Traveler documentation included.

What makes this instrument genuinely singular is the body wood: an ash body with an AAAA quilted top — a specification so uncommon on a Stratocaster that most players will never encounter another example in their lifetime. Standard Stratocasters, even Custom Shop instruments, are built with alder or plain swamp ash. This guitar was ordered with a figured quilted ash top that produces a visual effect more commonly associated with archtop jazz guitars or premium Les Pauls than with a bolt-neck Fender. Beneath a rich, deep two-color sunburst in high-gloss nitrocellulose lacquer, the quilt figure radiates from the lower bout upward, catching light with a three-dimensional depth that photographs cannot fully convey. The burst transitions from deep black at the edges through a warm amber-tobacco center, with the underlying quilt figure visible throughout. It is, without qualification, one of the most visually arresting Stratocasters you will encounter on the secondary market.

Documented Specifications (From Shop Floor Traveler)

Feature Specifications:

Builder: Greg Fessler (Master Builder)

Model: '57 Stratocaster NOS

Date: February 23, 2009

Serial: CZ511059

Body: Ash, Quilted AAAA Top (figured)

Body: ColorTwo-Color Sunburst

Body Finish: Nitro Lacquer

Neck: Custom — Birdseye AAA MapleNeck FinishNitro Lacquer, Light TintNeck Profile'57 Style Soft "V"

Fingerboard: Maple, 12" radius

Frets: 21Nut Width1.650"

Neck Thickness (1st fret).807"Neck Thickness (12th fret).965"

Inlays: 12th fret Abalone dotsHeadstock Decal'56–'60 Strat NOS with 12th fret Abalone dots

Bridge: American Vintage Strat tremolo

Tuners: Vintage Strat nickel

Hardware: Chrome/nickel

Pickguard: 1-ply white vintage

Knobs: Vintage whitePots250k, 10% taper split

Neck Plate: Fender Custom Shop (chrome)

String Nut: Micarta Black, .250"Fret WireDunlop 6150 24"

Case: G&G Tweed, orange interior

The Neck

The neck on this instrument warrants particular attention. It is constructed from AAA birdseye maple — a wood selection that is itself exceedingly rare in production and semi-custom instruments. The birdseye figure is dense and consistent from heel to headstock, visible on both the back of the neck and the face of the headstock, which has received a light nitro tint to preserve the natural warmth of the maple. The neck profile follows the period-correct '57 soft "V" shape — fuller and more substantial than a modern "C" — and is finished in nitrocellulose lacquer for a natural, fast feel. The abalone dot inlays at fret positions add a further premium touch consistent throughout the instrument.

Pickups

The Fat 50's — wound by Abigail Ybarra, the legendary Custom Shop pickup winder whose work defined the sound of Fender's finest instruments for decades — deliver the warm, full, harmonically complex voice the neck and middle positions demand. The hand-wound Texas Special at the bridge provides the edge, cut, and authority that the bridge position requires for everything from clean shimmer to overdriven Texas blues. This is not a stock pickup configuration; it is a deliberate, thoughtful combination that makes this guitar immediately gig-ready and tonally versatile. Clean, glassy, articulate in the outer positions; famously musical and quack-laden in positions 2 and 4. The mid pickup is reverse-wound/reverse-polarity for hum cancellation in positions 2 and 4, per vintage-correct specification. This is the pickup voice the '57 Strat was always meant to have.

Condition

Excellent — NOS (New Old Stock) specification. The finish is vibrant and clean with no meaningful wear. Small blemish on the bottom of the guitar. The frets show minimal use. The neck is straight. All hardware is original and shows no tarnish or corrosion. The instrument has clearly been stored and handled with care.

Case & Documentation

Includes the original G&G tweed hardshell case (orange interior) in very good condition, Fender Certificate of Authenticity (dated 02/23/09, signed by Greg Fessler), complete two-page Shop Floor Traveler with all build specifications, tremolo arm, tremolo block, strap button, owner's manual, Fender Custom Shop sticker, and additional case candy as pictured.

Summary

A Greg Fessler Masterbuilt '57 Stratocaster is already a benchmark instrument in the Custom Shop hierarchy. This particular example adds two features — a AAAA quilted ash body and an birdseye maple neck — that place it in a category that has no meaningful competition on the current market. Add Abigail Ybarra pickups and complete original documentation, and the result is a one-of-a-kind instrument for the serious player or collector who understands exactly what they are acquiring.

No trades. Ships fully insured in original case.