Fender Showmaster Scorpion | HH | 2003

Another rare model from Fender, one of 550 made. This is a set neck one unlike the common bolt ons. This is the Fender scorpion showmaster strat with matching headstock, made in Korea. The guitar has been very well kept with very light marks of use. Seems like it was rarely picked up in the last 20 years. The guitar plays great, and has been professionally set up at our store. It carries with it big beefy tones and has a mean look especially with that scorpion inlay which is a very interesting detail from Fender.
 
Super slim contoured basswood body, 24 jumbo frets, neck design, carved top, cream body and neck binding, scorpion inlays, 25.5” scale, strung body, hard bridge, 5-way pickup selection, black chrome hardware, Fender Black canyon Humbucker neck pickup, Fender Atomic II Humbucker bridge pickup.
There were 550 of these scorpion models made in 2003.
 
Some history about the model:
During the 1980s, superstrats were becoming popular amongst the many hard rock and metal guitarists, who needed the modifications to suit their individual playing styles. Soon, many guitar manufacturers began producing instruments with these modifications as standard. Most notable were the manufacturers Ibanez, Jackson/Charvel, Carvin and Yamaha. However, Fender itself had limited success thereabout. This was partially due to Fender's previous CBS ownership, which caused a drastic loss in Fender's quality and market share. The Showmaster was hence its most recent foray into the superstrat niche, and was introduced in 1998. Gene Baker, a master builder of Fender's Custom Shop at the time, was responsible for the creation of this set-neck, carved top version. Early Showmaster models (prototypes) were originally labeled as Stratocasters on their headstocks and are very rare. The Custom Shop Showmaster perimeter was a design supplied by John Suhr, another Senior master builder during that era. It started out as a US version of the Contemporary Stratocaster and featured two Fender Texas Special pickups in the neck and middle positions, a Seymour Duncan '59 Jeff Beck Trembucker in the lead position, a white pearloid pickguard and a deluxe locking tremolo bridge. Later after Suhr left it was turned into a back-routed carved set neck by Gene Baker. Suhr's new company Suhr Guitars actually cut the first 100 bodies for Fender.