Fender Custom Shop '51 Nocaster Relic P90 Blue Sparkle
Fender Custom Shop '51 Nocaster Relic P90 Blue Sparkle
Serial Number: R143053
Weight: 6.8 lbs.
The Fender Custom Shop '51 Nocaster Relic in Blue Sparkle is a unique take on the guitar that started it all: a blue sparkle top over natural back and sides in nitrocellulose lacquer with a light relic, the flake catching stage light in a way no solid color ever will. The body is roasted ash, torrefied for stability and a drier, more resonant response than untreated ash, and at 6.8 lbs. this Nocaster sits right in the sweet spot — light enough for a four-set night, heavy enough to have real bottom end. A black 50s Tele pickguard cut for a P90 completes a look that reads vintage from ten feet and custom from three.
The neck is AAA birdseye maple in the substantial Nocaster "U" carve (.950" at the 1st fret, 1.00" at the 12th fret) under light-relic'd nitro, the kind of neck that gives you something to push against and lets a heavy vibrato really sing. The one-piece AAA birdseye maple fretboard carries black Micarta dot inlays over a period-correct 9.5" radius, with 21 6150 medium jumbo frets, a 25.5" scale, and a 1.650" bone nut. Four-bolt construction and a 51/52 Tele bridge with three barrel saddles keep the platform faithful to 1951, and vintage tuners with the Fender logo in relic'd nickel hardware finish the job. Everything here is built to feel like it's already had a life on the road.
This Nocaster as departs from the script with the electronics. The stock '51 Nocaster single-coil sits in the bridge, delivering the raw, wiry twang and cutting midrange bark that defined the original — but the neck position carries a Seymour Duncan Antiquity P90 instead of the usual covered Tele neck pickup, and the swap transforms the guitar's range. Where a standard Nocaster neck pickup is dark and polite, the Antiquity P90 is thick, throaty, and aggressive, with the growl and midrange push that made P90s the choice for players who wanted single-coil clarity with humbucker attitude. Run through the volume, tone, and 3-way blade selector, the middle position blends the two into something neither pickup does alone. Whether you're a roots and Americana player who needs authentic Tele bridge twang with a neck pickup that can actually carry a solo, a rock or blues guitarist chasing P90 grind in a Tele platform, or a collector after a Custom Shop Nocaster in a finish you won't see twice at a jam, this one covers ground a standard '51 can't. This Fender Custom Shop '51 Nocaster Relic (Serial #R143053) includes its original Fender Custom Shop tweed hardshell case. Order today from Brian's Guitars, your authorized Fender Custom Shop dealer.
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Body
Type: Solidbody
Shape: '51 Nocaster
Body Material: Roasted Ash
Finish: Nitrocellulose Lacquer, Light Relic
Color: Blue Sparkle, Natural Back and Sides
Neck
Material: AAA Birdseye Maple
Shape: Nocaster "U"
Dimensions: .950" at the 1st fret, 1.00" at the 12th fret
Joint: 4-Bolt
Fretboard Material: AAA Birdseye Maple
Neck Finish: Nitrocellulose Lacquer, Light Relic
Headstock: Tele, Vintage Silver Fender Tele Decal
Inlay: Black Micarta Dots
Radius: 9.5"
Frets: 21, 6150 Medium Jumbo
Scale Length: 25.5"
Nut Width: 1.650"
Nut Material: Bone
Hardware
Bridge/Tailpiece: 51/52 Tele Bridge, 3 Barrel Saddles
Tuners: Vintage w/ Fender Logo
Hardware Finish: Nickel, Relic
Pickguard: 50s Tele P90, Black
Electronics
Neck Pickup: Seymour Duncan Antiquity P90 Single-Coil
Bridge Pickup: '51 Nocaster Single-Coil
Controls: Volume and Tone, 3-way Blade Pickup Selector
Other
Case/Gigbag: Fender Custom Shop Tweed Hardshell Case