NGD - 2015 Fender Road Worn Stratocaster black!

[cliffenstein]

Picked up a super cool black 2015 Road Worn Stratocaster...previous owner had shielded the electronics cavity, upgraded the pickups (Seymour Duncan APS1 & 2 in the neck/middle and Porter vintage custom in the bridge), replaced the neck plate with a 5 digit numbered one (which would correspond to 1961, so either the number had some personal significance or it was just a random number), and even replaced the butterfly string tree with a proper 50's round one). Bridge was already decked and all 5 springs were on it, exactly as I set my strats.

I picked up a set of Gotoh SD91 Magnum Lock tuners and gave them the Muriatic Acid aging treatment. Since single coil bridge pickups don't work for what I play, I replaced that excellent Porter bridge pickup with my usual black Seymour Duncan JB Jr (which I scratched up a bit with my sandpaper block it to match with the aesthetics of the guitar). Finally, I had the volume knob moved down one spot and filled the hole with a nylon plug (scuffed and minwaxed to look better against the Fender aged pickguard).

Soft V neck is super comfortable to play and measures at .89 at the first fret and .92 at the 12th. I love the easy playability that these 6105 frets bring to the neck. On this guitar, they're totally level and show no divot marks.

There's some chipping around 4 of the tuner holes which doesn't bother me at all...fits the motif.

I haven't weighed the guitar but it's nice and light.

Killer guitar!

PICS:

 

[cliffenstein]

I went ahead and purchased proper Road Worn pickup covers, switch tip and knobs, but while waiting for them it dawned on me to try the same scuff with sandpaper block and rub dark walnut minwax on and off with a paper towel treatment on the current plastic parts that I did with the plug. So dumb that I didn't think of that until after purchasing replacement parts. Here are the results...I think it looks pretty good and I don't think I need those replacement parts now.

 

[jeremy]

looks cool! betcha it sounds cool too.

 

[cliffenstein]

looks cool! betcha it sounds cool too.

JB Jr...yes sir, it does!

 

[Fender_Punk]

Nice score! I love the soft V necks Fender makes, both my Teles have one. That being a '50s Strat, is the fretboard a 7.25" radius? Do you fret out on bends?

 

[cliffenstein]

Nice score! I love the soft V necks Fender makes, both my Teles have one. That being a '50s Strat, is the fretboard a 7.25" radius? Do you fret out on bends?

Thank you! 7.25" fretboard radius, yes sir...but it has the bigger 6105 frets. I have a great tech and this thing is set up super well...there's not an ounce of fretting out on this guitar.

 

[Fender_Punk]

Thank you! 7.25" fretboard radius, yes sir...but it has the bigger 6105 frets. I have a great tech and this thing is set up super well...there's not an ounce of fretting out on this guitar.

That's great, because it looks like a great candidate for playing Pink Floyd solos. Great pickup configuration too. Well done!

 

[Napthol]

I wish Fender would have never discontinued the original Road Worn Strats. They were great. I don't go for these Vintera Road Worns.

 

[Mincer]

I wish Fender would have never discontinued the original Road Worn Strats. They were great. I don't go for these Vintera Road Worns.

I think there were a lot of people who didn't like them, but every one I'd played was fantastic.

 

[cliffenstein]

I wish Fender would have never discontinued the original Road Worn Strats. They were great. I don't go for these Vintera Road Worns.

I agree...real proper nitro at that price point...amazing. Ultimately, though, they have to keep sales going. Part of their business model is figuring out how to sell a product that is made to last a lifetime to the same people every few years. They clearly have found a way to do that.

 

[cliffenstein]

I think there were a lot of people who didn't like them, but every one I'd played was fantastic.

I wonder how much of that was online conjecture by people who didn't even try them. Then of course, there's the issue of some of the people who bought them just flat not not realizing the POTENTIAL in what they had bought.

I just played my 3rd show with this guitar...I'm literally blown away by it.

 

[Securb]

I dig the mojo on that Strat. I know I could get through a set playing it with a smile on my face.

 

[Mincer]

I wonder how much of that was online conjecture by people who didn't even try them. Then of course, there's the issue of some of the people who bought them just flat not not realizing the POTENTIAL in what they had bought.

I just played my 3rd show with this guitar...I'm literally blown away by it.

It is almost all online conjecture. That's what drives the musical instrument industry.

 

[cliffenstein]

It is almost all online conjecture. That's what drives the musical instrument industry.

It's a crazy thing...people lose out on so much.

 

[Mincer]

It's a crazy thing...people lose out on so much.

In the end, if people feel like something might be cheaply made, they won't even go try it.

 

[Mikelamury]

Nice locking tuners! I've never seen a set like that before...

 

[cliffenstein]

Nice locking tuners! I've never seen a set like that before...

They're knickel plated drop in replacements made by Gotoh. I aged them by sandpapering the shine off, then putting muriatic acid solution in a plastic bowl with the tuners inside a smaller plastic bowl floating in the bigger bowl with a lid on top to trap acidic gases. After several hours of the gases working on the tuners, I removed the tuners from the smaller bowl, rinsed them off with cool tap water and let them dry on a paper towel. Final step was popping them in a ziploc baggy and then into a small cardboard box. After shaking the box around for a minute or so, out came the tuners and voila! I was left with perfectly aged high-quality locking tuners that look like they came on the guitar stock.

 

[cliffenstein]

In the end, if people feel like something might be cheaply made, they won't even go try it.

So much of that, though, is driven by the opinions of people online that prospective buyers don't even know. It's nuts.

 

[Aceman]

Freaking awesome!!!!! Really nice road worn work. Everything about it just screams mojo and player!!!!

 

[misterwhizzy]

I really like the look of that guitar. I didn't even know plugs for unused holes existed. I might have to get one for my Strat. I can't play a guitar that has a knob that keeps me from resting my hand on the bridge.