J.W. Black on His Fender Custom Shop Founders Design Stratocaster

In celebration of the 30th aniversary of the Fender Custom Shop, eight of the original master builders who started what would become known as the "Dream Factory" came together to build their ultimate guitar.

Releasing one of these guitars a month from March to the end of 2017, the Founders Design Project has garnered plenty of attention for the builders' incredible creations. And J.W. Black's Founders Design Stratocaster is no different.

When Black was looking for inspiration, he recalled the early days of the Custom Shop, which he joined in May of 1989. Back then, Black had been building guitars for a large number of doctor/lawyer clientele.

"They were a weekend warrior guitar player collector group, and when you talked to them, you knew they were making a special gift for themselves," he said. "This represents what I was doing at the time."

Black's '50s-style Stratocaster features a lightweight ash body with a Tobacco Burst color. Players will immediately notice the 5A quilt maple top true to his FMT models, alongside a 5A birdseye maple neck and ‘50s Stratocaster headstock. In addition, the golden hardware includes vintage-style staggered tuning machines.

"It’s still about Leo (Fender)and how he served the musician," he said. "It’s taking his greatest designs and just adding modern twists, artist input, player input, and coming up with something that honors his original concept, but brings it up to standards for the modern player."

Get a close look at J.W. Black's Founders Design Stratocaster in the video above.