Fender Custom Shop Dale Wilson Masterbuilt 1951 ‘51 Nocaster HS Relic Nocaster Blonde

Fender Custom Shop Dale Wilson Masterbuilt 1951 ’51 Nocaster HS Relic Nocaster Blonde

DALE WILSON

Dale Wilson arrived at Fender in 2003, joined the Custom Shop in 2005 and became a Master Builder in 2011. Building guitars has been a driving passion for the California native since childhood. “Ever since I can remember, I’ve always loved guitars,” he said. “I didn’t dream of being a rock star; I dreamed of building the ultimate guitar. I was equally enthralled with the guitars just as much as I was with the players.”

Woodworking runs in the Wilson family, and the requisite Custom Shop zeal for outstanding craftsmanship has long been part of Dale’s DNA. He did repair work and mods in a small guitar shop right out of high school in the late 1980s; subsequently moving on to stints at Dobro and Rickenbacker before arriving at Fender, where he worked on Guild, Gretsch and Benedetto guitars before beginning his apprenticeship with various Custom Shop Master Builders.

He enjoys calling upon his extensive and varied experience as a craftsman to create highly distinctive guitars such as the Resophonic Thinline Telecaster®. Wilson also built five beautiful custom guitars for the January 2011 NAMM Show while still an apprentice and was asked to sign the back of the headstocks, garnering him his Master Builder status.