Kavanagh Customs

We now also offer this body in a left-handed version. If you are after a left-handed version of this body to the exact same specification, please click here.

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.

Lake Placid Blue was one of these custom colours - originally a Cadillac DuPont paint, it was almost as popular as the Candy Apple Red finish available at the time which was alleged to be Leo's favourite of the custom colours.

What we have done is recreate this original 1960s colour using the same techniques concocted by Leo for his Candy Apple Red finish. It was also the most difficult to apply as it required three steps (as compared to the usual two):

• metallic base coat (silver was used until 1965)
• translucent blue colour coat
• clear coat

This would originally have been a two-step process where the dye and the silver are mixed together before application. The reason we've chosen to do it this way (this was only the traditional method for Candy Apple Red vintage Fender instruments) is that it allows for a much deeper and vivid metallic look, allowing the metallic particles to shine through the colour coat rather than being surrounded and stifled by the colour.

What we have here is our own faithful reproduction of those early '60s Lake Placid Blue bodies - templated from an original 1964 Fender Stratocaster and hand-carved to ensure that the contours are as close to vintage-accurate as possible. The alder body (off-centre joint) is also finished in this same three-step laborious and time-consuming manner, using genuine nitrocellulose so that it is literally as close as any guitar workshop anywhere can achieve to the genuine vintage article.

For us, this body is rare (and not something you'll find anyone else offering) - we only have a very limited supply of this particular colour (we mixed it ourselves!) and is not something we are likely to offer in great quantities so our limited batches always sell out extremely quickly. As with all our work, this has been totally hand-built, the wood used in our work is always carefully hand-selected for it's individual tonal properties and always comes from sustainable sources.

This would be the ideal starting point for that guitar project you've been promising yourself since last summer - all you need to do is relic it! The addition of the silver undercoat not only makes the colour more authentic but also means it's brilliant for relicing.

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.