Fender Yngwie Malmsteen Signature Strat, made in Japan 1995. There's not many more iconic (and polarising!) shred-masters than Sweden's legendary Yngwie Malmsteen... he's the epitome of the neoclassical metal style and only the second guitarist, after Eric Clapton, to be honoured with a signature Fender model. This has all those instantly-Yngwie features: Dimarzio pickups, a yellow-white finish and a scalloped fretboard. The scalloped board on this opens up some amazing possibilities: you can bend notes more cleanly and further without issues, easily bending two whole tones; plus the possibility for vibrato is greatly increased... you can apply vibrato to whole chords or single notes within chords with a squeeze of the fingers. It also cleans up your attack and allows for cleaner sliding around the neck. The pickups balance beautifully; there's a crispy-clear attack and definition that's easy to enjoy and really lets the subtleties of your playing shine through. The steel block bridge adds some body and low-end to the smooth midrange of the shredder-preferred basswood body... this really does sound great. There's a few miles on the clock here; the checking lines along the body look especially cool. These aren't getting any more common, and they're certainly not getting any less collectable or any less fun to play. Claim it, never cut your hair again, and shred til your dead!

Model: Fender Yngwie Malmsteen Signature '57 Stratocaster (ST57-140YM)
Made: Japan, 1995, Fujigen Plant, (serial S019097)
Finish: pearl yellow white (PWH), 1-ply white guard
Body: basswood
Neck: one piece maple, scalloped fingerboard (factory), moderate '57 profile
Weight: 3.5kg approx
Mods: none
Pickups: Dimarzio HS-3 passive single coils (bridge and neck), Fender Japan ST Single (middle); all original
Case: basic non-original gig bag

Cosmetic condition notes: moderate finish wear. There's some chips on the end of the headstock and near the low-E peg, as well as a dent near the nut. The neck is fairly clean with only minor marks. The back has a fair few short shallow scratches spread almost evenly around the body and a minor lacquer crack off the neck pocket; nothing nasty though. The front has some long checking lines running from the edge of the body, as well as a neck up from the neck pickup. There's quite a few marks around the edges, the most notable are along the top in the body-carve area (especially directly up from the bridge), near the rear strap pin and around from the knobs. Overall: good condition (7/10).

Playing condition notes: Action is low, neck is straight, intonation is good, truss rod works. All electrics tested and working properly. Frets have some minor wear but are looking pretty good, 8/10 for life left. Wearing fresh 10/46s.