Fender Custom Shop 1955 Journeyman Stratocaster Relic Faded Foam Green 2017

A beautifully judged Fender Custom Shop take on a mid-50s Strat, finished in Aged Foam Green with the Journeyman Relic treatment — enough wear to give it that properly played-in feel without looking like it’s been dragged behind a van.

This is a really lovely example of what the Fender Custom Shop does so well. At 7lb 6oz it’s a comfortable weight, with a beautifully substantial ’54 U-profile neck — a proper handful, but beautifully shaped and immediately comfortable rather than simply being big for the sake of it.

Plugged in, the guitar-only hand-wound ’55 pickups with Alnico III magnets deliver exactly what you’d hope for: open, articulate vintage Strat tones, plenty of character and that slightly sweeter response you get from a really good set of lower-powered Strat pickups.

Then there’s the finish, which gives this particular ’55 a rather interesting historical twist. It’s Foam Green — importantly, not the more commonly used “Seafoam Green” — and there’s a nice bit of Fender geekery behind it. Foam Green didn’t appear on Fender’s official custom-colour chart until 1960 and was based on a 1956 Buick automotive colour, so strictly speaking you couldn’t have bought a 1955 Strat in this exact shade.

But that rather misses the point.

Before Fender formalised its custom-colour range, players could order a Strat in a DuPont Duco colour of their choice for a 5% upcharge. Special-colour Fenders existed right back to the earliest days of the Strat.

So this Strat is what might have happened if Foam Green had been sitting on the automotive paint shelf a year earlier and a particularly adventurous customer had ordered it on their new ’55 Strat. Historically impossible by twelve months or so but historically plausible in spirit. And very cool indeed.

Condition is A1 throughout. Being a Journeyman Relic, of course, the ageing is already part of the package, but there’s nothing here to detract from the original Custom Shop finish or presentation.

Supplied with its original Fender Custom Shop hardcase and Certificate of Authenticity.

• Brand: Fender Custom Shop
• Model: 1955 Journeyman Stratocaster Relic
• Origin: USA
• Year: 2017
• Serial No: CZ530206
• Weight: 7lb 6oz / 3.36kg
• Finish: Journeyman Relic Faded Foam Green nitrocellulose lacquer
• Body: Ash
• Pickguard: Eggshell White Relic
• Neck: Quartersawn Maple
• Profile: 54 U
• Neck Thickness: .900″ 1st fret / .990″ 12th fret
• Fretboard: Maple, 9.5″ Radius
• Scale length: 25.5″
• Frets: 21 6105
• Bridge Pickup: Fender Custom Shop Hand-Wound 55 Low Gain Alnico 3
• Middle Pickup: Fender Custom Shop Hand-Wound 55 Low Gain Alnico 3
• Neck Pickup: Fender Custom Shop Hand-Wound 55 Low Gain Alnico 3
• Controls: 1 volume, 2 tones, 5-way selector switch
• Bridge: Standard Strat Tremolo
• Tuners: Vintage Fender-logo
• Case: Original Tweed Hardcase
• Paperwork: Certificate of Authenticity & original Shop Floor Traveller