2024 marks the platinum anniversary of the Stratocaster. To mark this auspicious milestone, the Fender Custom Shop introduces the Limited Edition 70th Anniversary Stratocaster.

In the spring of 1954, Fender introduced the Stratocaster, an instrument that would forever transform the music landscape. With its sleek, contoured double-cutaway body, three single-coil pickups, and groundbreaking synchronized tremolo, the Strat quickly cemented its place as a true icon over the next seven decades.

To honor the Stratocaster’s 70th anniversary, the Fender Custom Shop is unveiling a limited-edition collection that celebrates the remarkable heritage and lasting legacy of this legendary guitar.

We have to admit we're suckers for a Lake Placid Blue Strat. Dunno why exactly, there's just something about it - it has an elegance that pairs so well with the iconic contours of a Strat body. To each his own, we know, but we bet some of you feel the same.

This LTD '54 Strat does such a great job of nailing all the little details that make it feel like a first year Stratocaster - a fat but really comfy and well-shaped neck profile (the Custom Shop calls it a 70th Anniversary carve which to our hands feels like a very soft V to C); skirted knobs and a 'football' 5-way switch tip; an offset seam 2 piece Ash body; and a set of fantastic sounding '54 Hand-wound pickups.

Into a vintage Princeton Reverb we were immediately grabbed by that open, twangy, almost Tele-like tone that the early 50s Strats are known for. While some players may not prefer their bridge pickup to be tone pot-less, if you will, we actually really love what a Strat's bridge pickup sounds like when it's not paired to a tone control. It's just so clear and open and touch sensitive - and - rolling off your volume on the guitar just a smidge will help take off just a touch of top end if you need it.

We've been really impressed with these LTD 70th Anniversary guitars. They have all been outstanding instruments that are as good as anything we carry!