Up for sale, a 1989 Fender Stratocaster Order Made model ST72-95DM in excellent, 100% original condition and in perfect working order. One of the earliest examples of a Yngwie Malmsteen spec'd Stratocaster offered by Fender Japan, the ST72-95DM model is extremely rare, seen here in a non-catalog custom color Sonic Blue finish that has aged significantly to a deeply yellowed hue.
This Stratocaster was made during the golden age of Fender Japan production at the Fujigen factory; the Order Made program represented a sort of custom shop with non-catalog finish and component options. The ST72-95DM features a scalloped maple fretboard and a pair of DiMarzio HS-3 (DP117) single coil pickups in the neck and bridge positions.
Tonewoods include a basswood body and one-piece maple neck, and this guitar has an authoritative, cutting acoustic presence that translates well through the stock pickup complement. The pickups comprise a pair of USA-made DiMarzio HS-3 (DP117) stacked single coil pickups in the neck and bridge positions, with Fender Japan's ST-Current single coil sandwiched in between. The Dimarzio DP117s offers hum-free performance with a broad low end that's warm and tight with a smooth, glassy treble response. These qualities combine perfectly with a heavily distorted amp, because the sound won’t get muddy or messy, and the DP117 boasts a staggered pole piece design. This ST72-95DM weighs 7lbs 4oz, professionally setup here at Mike & Mike’s Guitar Bar with 10-46 strings, slinky action, and spot-on intonation.
The maple neck has a slender C-shaped profile carve with well-rounded shoulders and lightly rolled fretboard edges, measuring .825” deep at the 1st fret and .915” at the 12th. The scalloped fretboard has a vintage-spec 7 1/4“ radius, and the stock slender fretwire is in great shape, only exhibiting light wear beneath the plain strings on the crowns of frets 1-3. This guitar plays cleanly up the 25 1/2“ scale with a straight neck and a responsive, optimally-adjusted truss rod, and the bone nut measures 1.650” (42mm) in width. The large ‘70s-syle headstock features a block logo and bullet truss rod adjustment, and the “F”-stamped tuning machines turn smoothly and hold pitch as they should. The “Made in Japan” text and F-prefix serial are present above the three-bolt neck plate, and the neck heel and pocket retain the model and matching Order Made stamps, also exhibiting the original unaged shade of Sonic Blue on the edges of the neck pocket.
All of the electronics function as intended; the pickups are wired to the stock harness with untouched solder joints and full-size Japanese pots that date to March, 1989. The pickups are governed by a five-way selector switch and standard Volume/Tone/Tone controls. Plastics comprise the evenly-aged trio of knobs and three-ply white pickguard, which has some requisite scuffing on the treble side of the strum path. The vibrato has a full-size block, actuating smoothly and bouncing quickly back to pitch, with a faint dusting of patina on the bridge base and block saddles.
The Sonic Blue finish has shifted far from its original hue, and cosmetic wear is limited to some minor dings and light finish scratches on the body as a whole. The neck profile retains its smooth gloss, with a few tiny shallow marks along the profile length that have no impact on playability.
A Gator-brand gigbag is included.