Kavanagh Customs

We now also offer this body in a left-handed version. If you are after a left-handed Fiesta Red Nitrocellulose "Marvin" Alder Body for Fender Stratocaster (exactly the same specifications as this body but the other way around!), please click here.

Hank Marvin's original guitar was a 1959 Fender Stratocaster in Fiesta Red, with gold hardware, an alder body and a capped maple neck (see here for the matching neck in vintage tinted nitrocellulose, or here for the same neck in non-tinted nitrocellulose).

This is our reissue of the guitar that he used to create his famous and unique sound.

Up until 1960, Fender offered customers the option to have their new instrument (at the time these were: the Telecaster, the Precision Bass and the Stratocaster) finished in any colour of their choosing. In 1960 Fender introduced their very own selection of 'custom' paint options.

Fiesta Red was one of these colours - made famous by the likes of Hank Marvin, this is our tribute to that famous guitarist. Whatever you do, don't expect a 'Fire Engine Red' finish - Fiesta Red isn't that bright. The finish is, however, laid down in very thin coats without any undercoat which gives these bodies a very unique semi-transparent look about them. Not transparent, not even terribly noticeable until you get up-close, but all the same the alder grain patterns come through just that little bit in certain l;ights.

Why have we done it like this? Because that's the way the very first original Fiesta Red Fender Stratocasters were done. The white base coat was a later addition and it's because of this white base coat that most of the original 1960s 'Fiesta Red' Stratocasters still around have faded to a salmon-pink colour. This finish won't!

What we have here is our own faithful reproduction of those early-60s Stratocaster bodies: a hand-carved select alder body (with off-set centre joint) finished in Fiesta Red with no base coat - just as they did originally.

The template for these bodies was taken from an original 1962 pre-CBS body ('The original contour body') and it's shape is almost exact in every way. The routing is the classic three single-coils, keeping as much wood as possible present to ensure the very best possible resonance and tone.

This would be the ideal starting or ending point for that guitar project you've been promising yourself ever since last Christmas and without the white undercoat, it's also very suitable for an authentic relic, if you're that way inclined..!

We can also additionally provide a relicing service for this item if you aren't happy doing such things yourself yet still want a true used vintage appearance, just contact us to find out more!

Please note that this is not a Fender product, nor is it made in a sweatshop in the Far East by children getting paid 10p a day - it's much, much better than that. Like all our items, it has been carefully hand built to exacting standards and dimensions to ensure the highest possible quality, and the perfect fit for Fender, Squier and 98% of the Fender-copy market. We comply directly with Fender's own neck pocket dimensions (see the diagram on the left), although there may still be a small amount of work necessary to ensure a perfect fit.

If you have any doubt over whether any of our work is suitable or not for you, drop us a line, we're always happy to help.

This body has been left completely undrilled to ensure that it is suitable for anyone and everyone's needs - you can fit any type of scratchplate you like without having empty holes left under the scratchplate, you can fit a three or four-bolt neck, you can fit the tremolo system of your choice without the need to worry if the screw and string spacing is compatible with your body, or if the holes in your neck and body will line up. The advantages are endless and most importantly: it guarentees compatibility with the rest of your guitar. Please note that our Telecaster bodies do not come with the string holes pre-drills as standard - making them ideal for top-loading bridges, or else a very easy task to modify in your own home to accomodate a through-body stringing bridge.

Don't see exactly the part you're after?

We can build it for you to your exact specifications - nothing is too weird or whacky!

Contact us for a totally free quote and a chat about your requirements, and click here to see our price lists for custom-builds.

We can also supply all the parts you need to complete your guitar project, from fretwire and string trees to custom-wound pickups and polishing cloths! We will be expanding our shop in the near future so that you can conveniently purchase all these items at once but for the moment, contact us and tell us what it is you're after and we will happily arrange or source the parts you need for you.