Custom Shop Fenders are nice guitars, as are the American Deluxe guitars.
Used guitars typically don't hold their value compared to the price paid for the guitars when they were new. But, if you don't want to buy a used guitar, it is to be expected.
Would you miss the 22nd fret? Your Am Deluxe has one, but the guitar in the picture has a 21 fret neck.
I asked my local luthier for a custom handmade strat ( no assembled parts he builds everything neck & body , even the pick-ups are handwired ) , with a special neck tailored to my exact needs (specs from my most confortable guitar). He's ok to build one for me at 1400€ , a custom shop is the same but with assembled parts mostly quality warmoth ones but around 2500 to 4500 $.
If you already plan to sell it , go for a one that will keep it's value, luthier's guitars don't but IMO this will be my definitive strat, and it's worth thinking about it.
I own a Custom Shop strat. I'm very happy with it. It had hung in the shop for 3 years by the time I got it and needed the frets planing and a set up, but once it had passed through my local luthier's workshop I couldn't have been happier. Was it worth the money? Well, it was reduced from over £3000 to just under £2000 when I got it and now it rivals any of my other guitars and betters most of them. I don't buy to sell, so its true value is what it means to me, and in that sense it is priceless.
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My experience has been that finding "the" guitar is a personal experience that should encompass all options, including the cheaper builds. I've bought and sold countless higher end guitars because they just didn't work for me. On the other hand, my favorite strat is a MIM that I've customized with better parts ...
I have played many, so were so so and others were incredible. It depends on what you are looking for. I think they are good value for what you get. They are built by a smaller team and more hands on, plus better woods and more attention to detail than the USA line. They will hold their value if you keep them for 10 plus years. Guitars built by John Cruz seem to be more sought after.
Try many as they will all be different, then choose one you like and go have fun.
I have a Custom Shop Telecaster. It's great. The only Tele I've played that wasn't an old Fender or another 52 RI that remotely came close was a Suhr and it had a really different neck; making it more about difference in build than in quality.
I love mine because it's a 52 and has a huge neck and you don't find that on the Standard or Deluxe Fender Teles, or even the MIM ones.
I just want to point something out here.
No guitar is worth good money, no matter how expensive or grand it might be if it simply does not work for you. - the most important thing is the Bond, the guitar at that point matters not.
If you can play a $300 guitar better than a $4000 one then that cheaper one is better and will always outperform over price.
I own all customshop guitars, but have had masterbuilt ones too that felt nasty to me and was hung on my wall untill I finally parted with them.
Your paying for Love & quality with customshop guitars, its little things, like Rolled necks, goated frets not worn down after wood has shrunk on neck, neck radius & contours, wiring and general better parts (saddle/nut/switches) - but the sound is similar.
However Ive met and played with guys that play on squir's and get an UNBELIVEABLE tone...
So dont read into "it has a high price tag and fancy name therefore its better" as that can often lead to disappointment later, and something that is much harder to justify spending a lot of money towards.
As guitar players your born with GAS for them, sure I get that, - and I might sound like a complete hypercrit here as I have a wall of customshop/masterbuilt guitars... byt do I love them all.. NO.. the ones I play are unique to me, and feel good, and one of those is a mexican standard strat that whistles all over my masterbuilt cruz strat!.
But good luck, if that is your guitar then great! hopefully you will get to play it fully first. : )
*note, Im just trying to be the voice of reason here, trying to do the sensible approach to buying guitars.
i recently bought a Fender American Special Strat...like the cheapest US Fender available and im really happy with it. Quality is perfect!
I even prefered that over the Standart one..but thats just a taste thing
Your paying for Love & quality with customshop guitars, its little things, like Rolled necks, goated frets not worn down after wood has shrunk on neck, neck radius & contours, wiring and general better parts (saddle/nut/switches) - but the sound is similar.
I picked up a second hand MIM cabronita for a ~$300 (drunk bid, woke up with a "what did I buy feeling?"). As soon as I sat down with it, it was magic.
Fast-forward a year or so, I have another magic moment (Wayne's World style), when I stumble across a custom shop limited edition cabronita in a Tokyo guitar shop. That one cost 10x as much as the MIM. Is it better? Sure, and I love the little things (as pointed out above). Does it sound 10x better? Nah. But I could afford it and I have never regretted buying it. If it's not a stretch to pay the extra, why not?
Last years I'm more and more agree with @and44
I get the opinion too that the basic like hundreds of years the same:
1. Money says nothing but the price.
2. How can I play a guitar. Feels it good to play?
3. Can I reach what I want?
4. What's about the tone. And for electric-guitarrists it could be sensefull to change the PU, to be best.
That's all. So it can be a new Mexican Strat, a Pacifica, a used Japanese Strat and all enhanced with Kinman Impersonators, or the Fender Custom of course.
This is my experience, too.
What a guitar do I prefer? A guitar for life? Then, the value loss is completely indifferent.
Or do I want achieve a certain goal for best low costs. Then, the value loss is very is very crucial. Because in the first 10-15 years the loss in value is enormous!
I play a cheap Ibanez singlecoil guitar and next year it should get the Impensators. And I'm very sure after that enhancing I get a very good guitar for what I pay normally 1.500 bucks more.
Ok. There is no prestige. But for that I didn't looked.
My take is this: "quality" is over rated. Most quality issues can be fixed if necessary. But many of the quality issues that people fuss about don't matter anyway IMHO. I've played many "furniture basses" with 9-piece necks and exotic-wood laminate bodies that looked and played like a million bucks but sounded like they were made from MDF. I also can't deny the quality and craftsmanship of PRS, but I have yet to find one that has the right tone for me. On the other hand I own/owned many 60's Teiscos and 70's Fenders and Gibsons that absolutely crush, despite the big neck joints and pancake body constructions.
Shopping for guitars based only on specs is silly. It's like hiring an employee just because he/she went to Harvard, or like choosing a mate based only on their physical attributes. It might impress your friends, but is it really going to work out in the long run?
I was also looking for a Strat that I wouldn't end up selling or trading. The Am Deluxe was the only one of all the production models that offered what I was looking for, my other option would have been Custom Shop which is twice the price of the Deluxe.
It always depends on the specs you're looking for. Personally, I was looking for a compound radius neck (non laquer), modern saddles, locking tuners and THAT Stat sound. I will usually got for the cheapest (with no compromise on quality) guitar that offers exactly what I'm looking for. I would never pay more for a fancy paint job, inlays or bindings.
However Ive met and played with guys that play on squir's
ahah I'm one of these guys, I also own one of these 'classic vibe' modded with US pickups, and yes it's tone is pretty impressive, much more than the 94' american standard fender one (sold), I've recorded countless stuff with it, and even if make a track with another guitar, I often grab the squier to layer a few cleans or leads with it, as it stacks up so well on a mix ( Xtra clarity and punch) , much more that the 5000€ 70' Les Paul, now sleeping in a closet.
One more thing, never underestimate the fact that a good setup can revive a neglected instrument.
I support the idea of not only playing the most expensive stuff (and I also own some very cheap guitars that simply work for me), but there's no denying that the quality of the Custom Shop stuff is on a different level either imo.
I support the idea of not only playing the most expensive stuff (and I also own some very cheap guitars that simply work for me), but there's no denying that the quality of the Custom Shop stuff is on a different level either imo.
I owned and sold a mid-nineties American Standard Strat. It was OK, but I didn't play it enough so sold it cheaply to buy an entry-level DSLR to photograph my first son's birth.
The last few years I missed a strat again, so purchased a couple of Fenix by Young Chang "lawsuit" strat copies. One of them is very nice indeed, much better in sound and feel than the USA Std Strat I sold. Still, I couldn't quite quench my strat thirst and once I heard that the Custom Shop Strat had some of Abigail Ybarra's last pickups in it, I had to see/hear what the fuss was about. It is the last Strat I'll ever buy. For some reason, it just fits me perfectly and had all the features I was looking for.
For some reason, it just fits me perfectly and had all the features I was looking for.
That's the thing, regardless of price. 
My experience tells me that it's mostly more expensive guitars that offer that, however. I can say the same thing about my CS Tele and I can say as much about my Mayones, which really is in a league of its own in my opinion.
Depends on the specs, some of them have baseball bat like necks which you may not like, etc. they are all unique, there aren't two identical custom shops (while MIMs and American ones are all pretty much the same). Build quality is top notch. If you really want a proper custom shop Strat you need to order one to your specs, they will make anything. Quite long wait and lots of money.
I don't like off the shelf custom shop Strats lately because they are all "reliced". What's the point of this, I'll never understand, but reportedly majority of custom shop orders are for relic guitars as well. My girlfriend sums it up the best way "why would you want to pay £3000 for a broken guitar" ;).
Part of this is also about expectation...you spend £3000/£4000 on a guitar you expect it to be perfect, but as pointed out, this is about how it makes you feel.
The most expensive guitar I have was a custom made job to celebrate my 40th Birthday which is great. I have a squier Tele that I'll never part with and a Yamaha SG that I bought for £125 when they weren't popular which I'll put against any Gibson Les Paul.
Go with what feels right and it will be right, no one can tell you otherwise.
Let us know how you get on!
