I think Leo Fender would be happy and proud to see this because, in a sense, it's a logical progression of his original idea -- a guitar that could be built in a factory from interchangeable parts.

"probably not gonna be seen anywhere else.." *same strat on the wall behind.

unless baxter changed it last minute, he chose a rosewood fingerboard for the tele and when they sent it too him it has a maple fingerboard ? thats insane man

Wait a minute... Didn't you order rosewood on the Tele?

Diggin' the pickguard style on the Tele. The colors not so much, but like Grampa always said, "If we all liked the same thing everybody'd be hitting on your grandma." That Strat looks and sounds beautiful! Fender needs to offer reverse headstocks in their Mod Shop.

I did this for my Strat and it's exceeded my expectations in every way, so fun. I have a theory, maybe the mod shop is the proving ground for up-and-coming custom shop builders. I'm really picky and I don't see how my guitar could be any nicer. It's mine and I made it to my likes which was pretty simple. A '57 spec; all vintage hardware 2 tone sunburst, single ply guard, Fat 50's CS pickups and a maple neck with modern neck profile, perfect. No need to reinvent the wheel. Good to see Baxter play, excellent.

Would love a couple extra options from the Mod Shop, like being able to select the finish type (aka nitro to go with those couple of nitro neck options they offer) and 6-point trem. Also Custom Shop pickups.

Okay, that was thoroughly enjoyable to watch! Thank you!

I wish they gave you the option to add matching headstocks. I'd have bought a new jag already if they offered that option. If you can work any magic in that department I would appreciate it Baxter!

I ordered a Mod Shop Tele. I had so many versions in my cart, I purchased the wrong one! I called Fender customer service immediately and they fixed my mistake and I got the correct order. It took 3 months because production issues with the body, but it came a few weeks ago and it's just what I wanted thanks to Fender customer service.

The mod shop represents an extraordinary opportunity to do something more interesting than buying off the rack. Creating something unique (and more interesting) than Fender's standard offerings seems not too difficult to do. I do not believe that their aftermarket values will underperform American Standards to any significant degree, and indeed may well outperform them depending on the build.

Why does the tele have a maple neck, you had a rosewood board on there????

It seemed like you ordered a rosewood neck tele and got a maple neck. Did I miss something?

I'm the guy who goes to the mod shop and builds a guitar and never orders it. (As you suggested)I would rather go to my local music shop and order through them if the price is the same to support a small business.

Thank you!!! I’ll be taking this journey in a short while!!!! Love ❤️ that tele!!!

Thanks for posting! Didn't know about the mod shop. Now thinking about ordering one.

Great playin. Love the sound of that strat !

Outstanding info. don’t have the budget for a CS right now, but this is a very cool and viable option! Thanks Baxter!

Yep, I also took the Mod Shop plunge. Should be here in about a month. Sweet relief!

Awesome guitars. I could not pick a favorite between the two. I never would choose a white guitar but it looks awesome with that pick guard and those pickups. Nice work!!

That Daphne Blue Strat looks absolutely amazing with that roasted maple neck.

Wow! They made a Mod Shop neck plate. Now that’s innovation.

That was interesting. And fun too. I had been wondering about that part of their web site. Thanks.

This is SO fun! Thanks 🙏🏼 ❤️🙏🏼

It's good to see the mod shop has a lot more options. It was kinda pointless in the early days. I'm really glad they stuck with it.

I bought a Mod Shop Strat about a year ago. It looked just like I ordered it. The case candy wasn’t included. It played like crap. I had experimented with the Yosemite pickups and immediately hated them. A trip to our local whiz luthier and a good chunk of money later it was an expensive Strat. It finally played great though and now has Frailin pickups. That was my experience. I won’t be doing it again.

great groove and playing!

I bought a mod shop Strat. Best Strat I ever bought. Great to spec out. I could not walk into a store and buy what I ordered. I did the roasted maple neck with Crimson See Thru Red on the alder body HSS for me.

That experiment turned out very well, I'd say. Shame you can't use the mod shop outside the US.

Really amazed at the price. I guess I've spent too much time looking at Gibson's because I figured the Fender's would cost way more.

Oh my I just upgraded my Players Strat to a Am Pro II . Huge difference and totally worth it

Is it fair to say that this was your biggest budget vid to date? Also the 3-ply back plate is a nice surprise

Just an FYI that was not mentioned. The mod shop options change up every so often. They change neck options and pickup options.

This is a great option for lefties when our options off the rack are so limited! That Strat is amazing sounding.

They look awesome!

Man, those 59 custom shop pickups sound GREAT

beautiful guitars, I love the mod shop ordered 3 guitars from there so far myself

That strat really looks and sounds nice. I may or may not be on fender website right now....

Great demo and excellent playing too. Really enjoyed this one. I love how you hold the two guitars up, side-by-side at the end. It helped me get a better idea of Sonic Blue vs Daphne Blue. I've used the Mod Shop myself and was very happy with the experience. Sadly, I just noticed Fender's base price for it is now $1999.99. Ouch!

That was completely cool and fun to watch! God help me if I ever come into a lot of money I would probably be ordering one every three months. Both guitars are great but I like the Strat better.

Love your playing, Baxter! 12:16

I loved your video ! Now there’s 20 Mod Shop videos ! lol 😂

Fender! When is the Mod Shop coming to Japan!? Let's have some international love.

If you guys did this again it would be cool to have the guitar on one of the wall stands in the back as a mini spoiler for all the people who examine the wall during the video. It would slightly spoil the reveal but it would be neat!

Blue is always the correct choice.

I gotta get outta here before I go over to the Fender site and do something crazy. Awesome guitars!

Awesome vid. I was checking out the mod shop. I want a butterscotch tele with a rosewood fretboard and this looks like the only way to get one.

How about a CasinoCaster? Huge guitar company with all kinds of sourcing options vs cool guitar shop with a couple of guys really passionate about guitars? While I appreciate you guys sharing this experience, but you said it Baxter- “make the guitar myself “ I’d go with the cool guitar shop in N.C. every time.

I dig it man. That 3-ply mint guard makes it too.

Thanks for the tip Baxter !

Very fun video!

Both great looking guitars! So.... Did you change your specs on the Tele or did they make a mistake on the fretboard?

I just put together a 60’s style sonic blue/mint/rosewood all nitro Tele (not mod shop). Delicious trifecta of color vibe! Next up a similar spec Strat in shell pink

Nice! Wish they would offer this to Canada

Luv that Tele!

This is very cool!

Well Baxter, they screwed you. Your order had a rosewood board. But I personally think the strat style tele deluxe neck would have finished it off nicely. Oh and why not shell pink? It's one of the perfect colors for a strat. Daphne blue is just as slick though. Both are amazing.

I like the maple board on the tele, good decision

My Pro Mod DK24 is at mod shop specs at Charvel prices. I love going on the Mod Shop page and building my dream guitar, putting her in my cart, shedding a little tear because I can’t afford it and go appreciate what I have. 😊

Nice guitars. I guess you changed your mind on the tele fingerboard. Looks and sounds great. Thanks.

Much respect sir. Very nice groove you're working on that there tele. What amp are you playing through? It sounds really good.

Haha yeah was momentarily like where is f-ing rosewood board!? Thanks for posting that in the notes ;)

You know your killing me. I bought a Squire just because it was Daphne Blue. I already owned a American Standard strat which is Olympic White? (I think yellow, but it fit me right off the wall, I didn't change anything). I also bought an American Special tele because I played one when I was a kid but had absolutely no money. But that Daphne Blue (I live it). Again I bought it for the color and have used it to learn fret work and soldering. I'm 66 know and had a dapne blue Mustang Bass 40 ish years ago. I sold it because I was having a family. 6 children and 14 grandchildren and counting!!!!! Thanks for the thrill!!!

Thanks Casino. ⚓️.

You are so lucky in the USA, here in the UK we don't have the option of ordering direct from Fender. I hope you are not in a hurry, i waited over 2 years for my Custom Shop strat!

I wish they’d do the mod shop with the american original or the the lacquer shot vintera. Something with lacquer. Whether people think it sounds different or not doesn’t matter, it just looks and feels better, and isn’t that half of what the mod shop is about?

They’ve removed a lot of the best options to craft truly unique guitars. You used to be able to get channel bound necks, same color painted headstock, etc. too bad. Nice picks though. Thanks

That Les Paul Telecaster has some serious mojo!!

The second they add Mustang to this shop, I'm in. Oh, and it better mean that I can make a modern Competition Mustang w/matching headstock in modern metallic finishes with a pearlescent stripe this time to make it just more bang. Add the Performer redesigned bridge for the Mustang, change the tuners to Schaller F branded locking, like on American Ultras. Why can't Fender sell its own guitars better than it already does? Its like for every time they come out with something great, it takes 20, sometimes 30 years to get around to obvious work that needs done to legacy models. Like the Panorama bridge for the new Jazzmasters, its not like what they did couldn't have been done since at least early, mid 60's from a mechanical perspective. What I mean is, sometimes, its just obvious what to do. Reissuing a modern Competition Mustang would be one of those obvious things. Why things like that don't happen, like a Kurt Cobain Jaguar in the 90's, is beyond anybody. Why is there no walnut Telecaster always on offer? Its one of the most sought after collected models, yet, its rare as could be. It has only had two issuances over the history of the model, and looks similar to the George Harrison Rosewood tele, but is distinguishable easily from afar by the fact that these had Nickle Silver hardware, not the gold plating of the Rosewood editions. Why no modern that, but I can get a Korina exotic wood one? Lol its so silly what is simply not made for what is seemingly for no reason other than just because when you look at way more expensive woods being produced with not a second though, in various combinations. See what I mean? Just a salty fanboy that keeps looking at questionable marketing and model development strategies that just simply could dabble both in the no brainer and the modern super nice exotic at the same time. Why get half the dollars you will absolutely rake in either way, when you can rake in all the dollars by doing both. Oh, and recall, Leo loved lefties, don't leave em' behind. A smart company would sell a DYI lefty to right kit that would encourage reverse playing of lefty guitars, and raise the options for our southpaw friends as well as let us all do the Albert King/Jimi Hendrix reverse guitar, cool cat vibe. This is why, I wanna get on at Fender and offer my... insight into these areas that need... improvement.

What is the tone knob wiring configuration on the mod shop strats? Is it neck+middle to tone 1 and bridge to tone 2?

Great video. QUESTION What is the difference between a American strat and mod shop or custom shop? Are they really that much better ???

I would definitely like to do my Tele this way. I might be hitting y'all up for suggestions down the line here a bit. Great Video Baxter!!!

Beautiful strat. Which pickups did you go with? I'm trying to decide.

I just ordered a hard tail from the mod shop! Can you tell us what the switch setup was from the factory on the strat? Is it a standard 5 way or does it have the american professional ii style push push to add neck?

Love you guys ;)

Very cool.... but pray tell, what is the tele on the back wall with the gold finish, buckers, and crushed gold pickguard? And what is the blue thinline withthe aluminum? Neck? Those have been taunting me every video!

I wonder when they'll get the Pro II guitars on there. Notice that the Jazzmaster doesn't have the rhythm circuit.

Man, the time it takes for things to update makes me wonder how that 28.8 dial up modem is working out for you.

I play around in the Mod Shop website at least once a week. I really wish they would offer metallic purple as an option. I would buy one in a heartbeat

Fender needs to add some of those John 5 options to the Mod shop.

Does anyone know what tier of fender guitar you get in terms of Player vs Performer vs Professional? Do the mod shop guitars match up to one of these or is it sort of its own thing?

What’s the thickness like on that roasted neck? I’m considering a hard tail HSS Strat with that neck

I would have done this but they don't offer mini humbucker pickups or vintage tinted maple necks. Building my own.

That’s fun!

I like roasted maple necks but I like them dark. Since it's random what shade you'll get, I could never buy one unless I see it in person first. Edit: jeeez that strat sounds perfect. Wonder what amp is being used.

This was a really cool idea and this is not your fault but man, I was really disappointed seeing the lack of overall options from Fender on both of these. On Jags or Jazzmasters I would have understood the lack of overall options a bit more, but for a strat and tele I felt there simply wasn't enough variety available. They also got the tele neck wrong... Stratosphere still seems to be the better option

I really wish they would let you put the 6 screw bridge on strats. not a big fan of 2 point

It looked like you ordered a rose wood fret board but both came with maple fret boards? Whats up with that?

Hi. How I can get a medium jumbo fret on Those. The web page won’t let you choose..

What amp were you using for that demo? any pedals?? I really like the tone you have there.

I ordered an amp from Fender this past winter, and at first they told me mid March...now it's mid May ;-(

Awww yeah Baxter with the daphne blue. BAXTER KNOWS WHATS UP.

It’s pretty cool how, even with humbuckers, the Tele still sounds like a Tele.

It sucks that this isn't available for us Canadians. The region lock on Fender's website doesn't even let us go in and play with the builder. Also: Didn't you order the Tele with a rosewood board? The one that showed up is maple.

I am so annoyed that they won't let people outside the US access this part of the website. Even if they won't sell it to us....I'd still love to play with the program

Next you will have to do the Same with Warmoth and Parts casters

what happened to the rosewood fingerboard on the tele?

Honestly I love a 3 tone sunburst Strat

Do they have a payment plan at your store and the neck was supposed to be rosewood

My modShop order appears to have been assembled with NOS "Crafted in China" body and neck. I paid $1600 for an "Assembled in Corona" Squire. I can't look at it without feeling like a sucker. If you like yours, never open it up.