This is a hands-on review and video demo of the Fender Co-Cal Speed Shop Stratocaster — a cool Strat I waited nearly 20 years to own. In this post, you’ll learn why this model caught my eye back in the day, hear how it sounds in the full video demo, and get my take after finally making it mine.

The 20-year wait

I waited nearly 20 years to buy this one, but it’s finally part of the collection! My brother and I saw the Fender So-Cal Speed Shop Stratocaster guitar in a catalog when it came out and we thought it was the coolest looking guitar ever. But, we weren’t really in guitar buying mode at that time, so it was a memory lost to time.

Then, when I was reminded of it, I knew that I had to make it mine. So, I searched for the cleanest one I could find. Many have dings and such from years of playing, but I wanted this to be a centerpiece for the collection. So, I paid a bit too much (I justified it because of the nice case it came with) and now it’s here forever!

Hear the rest of the story about this amazingly cool guitar in the video below.

Watch the video demo

More guitars like this

Watch the full Fender Co-Cal Speed Shop Strat demo on YouTube, and keep exploring with two more Strat-style reviews: the Fender Deluxe Player’s Stratocaster and the J Fusco Guitars “Partscaster”. You can also browse every review in the Guitar Reviews hub.