Fender 60 Strat CAR Relic

Fender 60 Strat CAR Relic review

The Fender 60 Strat CAR Relic is a U.S.-made Custom Shop guitar based on a 1960 Stratocaster. Its listed price is 4699, and it has been available since September 2024. The specifications describe a familiar Strat-style layout with Candy Apple Red finish, a two-piece alder body, a maple neck, and a rosewood fingerboard. The product information does not include customer reviews, so this assessment is limited to the construction and features provided.

The Relic finish is part of the model's stated specification, but no further details are supplied about the extent or placement of its wear. That makes it difficult to judge the finish treatment from the data alone. The Candy Apple Red color is paired with a three-ply mint green pickguard, a combination that gives the guitar a clearly period-inspired appearance. Nickel hardware completes the stated visual specification.

Body, neck, and fingerboard

The body is made from selected alder in a two-piece construction. The listing gives no separate top material, which is consistent with the description of a solid alder body rather than a body with a distinct top layer. The bolt-on neck is made from "Plain-Grain" maple. Fender specifies a 1960s-style oval C neck profile, a shape description that identifies the design but does not provide measurements for thickness at the first or twelfth fret.

The rosewood fingerboard is listed as 9 mm AAA rosewood. Its 241 mm, or 9.5-inch, radius is a concrete detail for players comparing fretboard geometry. The guitar has 21 narrow-tall 6105 frets. Fender also specifies a bone nut, but provides no nut-width measurement. Without that dimension or a neck-thickness chart, buyers should not assume the neck will match another instrument based on the profile name alone.

The 648 mm, or 25.5-inch, scale is the standard long scale associated with this Stratocaster format. Scale length affects string tension relative to shorter-scale instruments when using the same strings and tuning. The available information does not state the factory string gauges or setup, so those details would need to be confirmed separately if they are important to a purchase.

Pickups and controls

The pickup system consists of three hand-wound Custom Shop '60 Stratocaster single-coil pickups in an SSS arrangement. A five-way switch selects the available pickup combinations, with one volume control and two tone controls providing the stated adjustments. The specifications do not give pickup output, magnet type, wiring details, or measured frequency response. As a result, the model name and pickup type establish the basic configuration, but not a complete picture of how the guitar will sound through a particular amplifier or recording chain.

The three-pickup layout and five-way switching offer the familiar range of selection found on this style of guitar. The separate tone controls allow more than one pickup position to have tone adjustment, although the listing does not specify which control is assigned to which pickup. Players who need exact wiring information should request a diagram or confirmation from the seller rather than rely on assumptions about a typical Stratocaster circuit.

Tremolo and hardware

Fender lists a Custom Shop vintage synchronized tremolo and vintage-style tuning machines. The tremolo description identifies the intended hardware style, but no information is supplied about bridge setup, arm inclusion, spring count, or adjustment range. Those factors can affect how the bridge behaves in use, so the listed specification alone cannot establish its setup or performance. The hardware is nickel, and the guitar includes no bag.

What the specifications establish

The package includes a Deluxe hardshell case, an important distinction from the separate bag field, which is marked as not included. The product is listed as one piece, with item number 598988. Its central points are clear: a U.S.-made Custom Shop 1960 Stratocaster model, selected alder body, maple bolt-on neck, rosewood fingerboard, three hand-wound single-coil pickups, and vintage-style tremolo hardware.

There are also meaningful limits to what the listing can tell a buyer. It does not give the guitar's weight, neck dimensions, finish-wear map, pickup measurements, or setup specifications. Those omissions do not indicate a problem, but they leave practical questions unanswered. Anyone considering the 60 Strat CAR Relic should verify current condition, setup, and any desired dimensional details with the retailer. Based strictly on the supplied information, it is a specification-rich Custom Shop interpretation of the 1960 Stratocaster, with its case included and no customer feedback available to supplement the technical description.