Fender Custom Shop 1952 Telecaster "Chicago Special" Deluxe Closet Classic Super Aged White Blonde

It is no secret that the Fender Custom Shop has been creating some of the best instruments since 1987. In keeping with the true spirit of Leo’s original vision of the company, each instrument is built with the highest level of care and excellence. Here at Chicago Music Exchange, we have collaborated with the best minds at Fender to build the best instruments from top to bottom, tirelessly going over each spec to ensure that we offer you the best of what Fender has to offer.

Featuring measurements and components we hand-selected from across history, our “CME Spec” and "Chicago Special" Fender Custom Shop guitars highlight important years in the development of core models like the Stratocaster, Telecaster and Jazzmaster. We capture the energy and essence of their respective eras with iconic fingerboard radii and period-correct plastics, matched headstocks and slab fingerboards, classic finishes and not-so-classic colorways. But that’s just the beginning of what makes our Fender Custom Shop guitars so special.  
We take customization a step further with rift sawn necks for added resonance and expanded control sets for tonal versatility, and every "Chicago Special" Fender Custom Shop guitar features our own custom Chicago Special pickups, designed in conjunction with Fender Custom Shop Vice President of Product Development Mike Lewis.

"Chicago Special" Tele® pickup

• Potted in shellac for open wide range frequency response
• 43 gauge enamel wire
• BRIDGE: Wide diameter AlNiCo 3 magnets combined with thinner 43 gauge enamel wire equals 'hot juicy tone'

NOS (New Old Stock) is built without any relic or wear at all. For vintage-inspired instruments, it feels as if you went back in time and bought it new in the golden-era. Most are finished with nitrocellulose lacquer and in those instances you should expect the finish to age similarly to their vintage counterparts. However, some modern-era Custom Shop creations in NOS are finished in polyurethane, which is far more durable and will likely remain glossy and lustrous for decades to come with proper care.

Deluxe Closet Classic
Deluxe Closet Classic is a house favorite here at CME. It shows its age like a fine wine, built for those who want to more clearly feel the life of the instrument, but without all those forced dings and dents. Maintaining many of the subtleties of a traditional Closet Classic such as less brilliance to the finish, slight discoloration of plastics, and mild oxidation of metal parts, this aging package adds notably more extensive and lush finish checking that you will see and feel throughout. (*Note. Our photographs sometimes do not capture finish checking as well as we’d like, so please get in touch with us for an in-hand description and additional photographs.)

General

Body

Neck

Electronics

Hardware