John Mayer's black relic strat

I don't like relic jobs, but here's a video of John Mayer explaining how and why he and masterbuilder John Cruz made his black strat at Fender's Custom Shop.

http://youtu.be/gLMnWxw1Qpg


Though I wonder if the lack of lacquer really matters that much. Well, Fender is building Am Std and Deluxe with a thinner finish now... I figure there's gotta be at least some reason.

Gloss skins don't get much thinner than even the 2011 AmStd Tele I have, attested to by the tiny chips at the bottom--maybe where I sat it too hard into the floor stand? Seriously thin for a production instrument like that. Almost glad those chips are there so I could see how thin the coating is.