Monday, May 17, 2010

1959 Fender Stratocaster Style Body 'Faded '59'



This new body mimics the look of a faded 1959 Vintage Fender Stratocaster. It features a very deep tobacco brown outer, a faded and receded red burst, and an amber center. This is an Ash body so it combines the best attributes of the '54-'55 Ash Strats with the beauty of the faded '59 3-tone burst. At Fiesta Finishes, we can do any degree of fading that the customer desires. From a bright red NOS look, to an extremely faded, almost two-tone look.

5 comments:

  1. Paul's expertise and attention to details is
    unmatched in the industry to say the least. I
    have never seen more beautiful guitar bodies.
    I think he is by far and away one of the top
    finishers I have come in contact with in my
    life.

    Thomas Cicatelli ( Tommie Chick )

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  2. Hi, according to my research, this is not a correct fender 59 faded sunburst, the amber center was used in early 50's not in 59. The 59 sunburst was known for a hand stained yellow center, faded rusty red and dark outer edge. Can you do a faded sunburts like this? if yes how much does it cost and what is the turnaround time, thanks

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  3. Hi, you are partially right. This isn't a true '59 finish because it's on an Ash body, not Alder as used in '59. Basically, what you see here is a hybrid, unique finish, like a '54 Strat style finish with the third color added, a slightly faded red as you would see on a '59. Fender did use yellow stain the '59 bodies because they were Alder wood. They did not stain the Ash bodies, as the grain is beautiful on it's own. Ash wood is whiter, while Alder wood is more reddish. And yes, I can do a correct '59 finish, but it will be on Alder wood, not Ash. I would not yellow stain an Ash body. Pricing varies depending on your body, what finish is on there, etc. Turnaround is 1-2 weeks to complete work and 2 weeks to cure before shipping, 3-4 weeks total.

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  4. Hi Paul,

    Well, that's not totally right either!... Although rare, 1959 Stratocasters made of ash wood and finished in 3TSB are known to exist.

    Fender changed to alder as standard wood in mid-1956 but retained the ash wood mainly for blond finishes, some custom color bodies and custom orders.

    Also, not all '59 Strats have the red color faded in the 3TSB finish. This was caused by a faulty chemical reaction in the red pigment used by Fender (and Gibson) in 1959. This red pigment was also quite inconsistent and didn't fade exactly in the same way in all finishes. Actually, a few of them were able to retain the red color with a clear separation up to this day.

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  5. My experience with 3TSB is this, in
    the 1950s, Fender was experimenting
    with the red color nitro. There are
    a few ash bodies in 3 tone burst,
    but the ones I have seen are not as
    nice as some of the Alder ones.
    However, what Fiesta Finishes will
    do is light years beyond those days. Just tell Paul what you want
    and he will get it done. The Strat
    he did for me was a one piece body
    made of light ash finished in a
    3 tone burst that matched perfectly
    with the Clapton neck on it. He also made sure the color looked nice with the ash body as well. A year later and I am still in love
    with the work on mine.

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