Bold, Battered, and Beaming with Breathtaking Bird's-eye Maple
Crafted by Fender Custom Shop Master Builder Austin MacNutt, this Masterbuilt ’69 Stratocaster boasts an expertly applied Heavy Relic finish that emulates the most battle-scarred vintage Strats in guitar history. This Strat (along with its right-handed fraternal twin) features a truly battered level of aging across its ash body — buckle rash doesn’t even begin to describe what this Strat’s been through! It’s an axe that’ll be sure to steal the eyes of any audience, especially if they happen to catch a glance of the swooping figuring on the bird's-eye maple 1960s-style oval C profile neck. Plus, the neck has been equally aged to the body for a friction-free feel while the bird's-eye maple fingerboard’s 9.5-inch radius and narrow-tall frets deliver a decidedly modern playing experience. As for the tone, a trio of Josefina hand-wound ’69 Strat single-coils captures the soulful sound that rocked the blue-rock scene back in the late 1960s. You also get an alluring collection of aesthetic appointments to push it all over the edge, including a big headstock, a golden vintage-style Strat tremolo unit, and gold F-stamped tuning machines.
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Classic Strat construction — with modern fixings
Who says they don’t build 'em like they used to? This Masterbuilt ’69 Stratocaster showcases exquisite period-inspired craftsmanship, featuring a solid ash body with a heavily distressed relic nitrocellulose lacquer finish. The neck and fingerboard, carved from birdseye maple, provide a robust foundation for comfortable playability. Additionally, this Masterbuilt Stratocaster’s ’60s-style oval C profile and 21-fret 9.5-inch-radius fingerboard are primed to accommodate your most intense finger maneuvers. The neck and fingerboard have also received the same relic treatment as the body, giving this Stratocaster the well-worn feel of a seasoned road warrior.
Harness the sound of Woodstock
When it comes to delivering exceptional tones, Sweetwater’s stable of Strat fanatics finds the Fender Custom Shop Masterbuilt ’69 Stratocaster to be a true treasure. The trio of hand-wound Josefina ’69 Strat single-coil pickups evokes the most iconic tones in rock ’n’ roll history, infusing your playing with the punchy, late-’60s blues-rock sound that defined the era — the legendary Woodstock tones. These Custom Shop pickups feature enamel-coated magnet wire for warm, vintage-flavored tones. Alnico V magnets and staggered pole pieces ensure enhanced dynamics, focused mids, and balanced output. Additionally, you get period-correct cloth wire and gray fiber bobbins.
Meet the Master Builder: Fender Custom Shop’s Austin MacNutt
Born into a family of musicians, Master Builder Austin MacNutt started playing guitar at age 10 on his father’s 1963 Fender Jaguar. He quickly developed a passion for improving its playability and tone, and by his teens, he became a sought-after repair tech for many bands passing through. After high school, he attended the Guitar Craft Academy in Hollywood, where he later taught. He then spent 11 years crafting boutique guitars for Ron Thorn at Thorn Guitars. From raw lumber selection, millwork, and CNC operation to fretwork and final assembly, Austin continues his craft alongside the matchless Master Builders in the Fender Custom Shop.
Fender Custom Shop Masterbuilt ’69 Stratocaster Features:
- Handcrafted by Fender Custom Shop Master Builder Austin MacNutt
- Captures the vintage vibe and sonic essence of a well-worn 1969 Stratocaster
- Comfortably contoured ash body coated in an attention-grabbing Heavy Relic nitro lacquer finish
- Beaming bird's-eye maple neck with big headstock, handpicked by Austin for its dazzling, swooping grain lines
- Full, slightly chunky 1960s-style oval C profile
- Bird's-eye maple fingerboard with a modernized configuration of a 9.5-in. radius and 21 narrow-tall frets
- Josefina hand-wound ’69 Strat single-coils authentically replicate the sound that shook blues-rock back in the late-1960s
- 5-way switch with RWRP middle pickup; tone switch on the treble pickup for enhanced sonic sculpting potential
- High-class gold hardware includes a vintage-style Stratocaster tremolo and F-stamped tuning machines
