Crews OST Lips, vintage white, made in Japan 2013. The Crews brand is a project of major Japanese instrument store Musicland Key, produced at the famed Terada factory that builds all the high-end Gretsch guitars, among others. Everything they do is done as custom orders and limited runs; only a handful of these guitars get made each year. This one is a pretty unusual one: part of a limited run made as an unofficial tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'Charley' Strat, made in 1983  by his longtime guitar by SRV's longtime guitar tech Charley Wirz. The original guitar was a white Strat-style with a hardtail bridge and a set of three Danelectro lipstick single coils, so that's what we have here too. As with all Crews stuff, the execution is eye-wateringly good. The body is two-piece centre joined alder, finished in a yellowed white with a semi-gloss 'cloudy lacquer' topcoat, which allows a bit of the grain to show through and has a similar appearance and feel to a french polish. The neck is a gorgeous piece of tightly grained, high grade quartersawn maple, carved by hand to a moderate rounded C shape and paired with a streaky slab of Madagascar rosewood for the board. It feels amazing in the hands, the finish is luxurious and it resonates like a bell. The hardtail bridge adds a bit of natural sustain and midrange focus to the tone, while the lipstick style pickups outline the tone with a weighty low end and a glistening treble. It seemed appropriate to string it up with 11s and tune it to Eb standard, and oh boy, it's an absolute dream to play and hear. It's no exaggeration to put this in the same quality bracket as stuff by Fender Custom Shop or Suhr, it really is an exceptional instrument. Don't count on ever seeing another one!

Model: Crews Maniac Sound OST Lips
Made: 2013, Japan, Terada factory (serial 130118)
Finish: vintage white, 'cloudy lacquer' nitro semi-gloss finish
Body: alder, 2-piece centre join
Neck: rock maple, Madagascar Rosewood slab board, 25.5" scale, 8.25" radius, 60s C shape, 42mm nut
Weight: 3.605kg
Mods: none
Pickups: Crews Lipstick single coil x3
Case: Crews deluxe hard case inc docs and a giant hula-girl sticker

Cosmetic condition notes: minor finish wear. The headstock has some minor dimples on the end and back. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands with no major marks, minor dimples on the back only. The back has no major marks, just some minor dimples around the ferrules. The sides have some minor rub wear and dimples in the elbow area and near the jack. The front has a couple of scuffs in the elbow area and behind the bridge and some standard play wear on the guard and horns. Overall: excellent condition (9/10). 

Playing condition notes: Action is low, neck is straight, intonation is good, truss rod works. All electronics tested and working properly. The frets have minor wear only, 9/10 for fret life left. Wearing fresh 11/49 Moonshiners strings and tuned to Eb standard.