Guitar Stuff!

"Be suspicious of the litigious."

― Stewart Stafford

I need to disinfect my blog from yesterday's post.

I'm going to talk about two Fender related things today, one of which is my most recent build, and the other is a legal story about the Stratocaster body and other S-type guitar builders like LsL, PRS, Suhr, Tom Anderson, and many others. 

Part I: New Build

When I'm in the mood for a new build, I enjoy using Fender's MOD Shop to mock up designs. Though it's meant for ordering custom guitars — which I've done — the interface is so intuitive that it makes an excellent preview tool. I spend a lot of time just playing around with hypotheticals to see how different combinations look.

Perfect. It's a '57 neck, '57 pickups, and an Arctic White Stratocaster body.

I found a "near-mint" open-box Fender USA Arctic White Strat body on eBay for a reasonable price.

Here's the final build:

I already had the neck and pickups leftover from another project, so the investment was fairly minimal. The hardest part is almost always neck alignment, but this time it fit great without having to make any neck pocket adjustments. Of white guitar colors, Arctic is my favorite. 

Plays great!

Part II: Fender's Legal Challenge

Before I get into what's going on with Fender right now, I should state that I love their guitars, amps, pedals, and other gear, as well as their iconic and legendary history. Though I've owned instruments made by other guitar companies, Fender is by far my favorite. Having said that, it kind of pains me to see them go after "the little guys" like LsL guitars over the shape of guitar bodies.

Earlier this year, Fender took a Chinese company to court in Germany. The Chinese company didn't even bother showing up, so Fender won by default. But here's the kicker — they didn't win on trademark grounds. Nope. They somehow convinced the German court that the Stratocaster body shape is actually "protected art" under European copyright law. 

Armed with this victory, Fender's lawyers went on a rampage in May, firing off threatening letters to guitar builders worldwide. And we're not just talking about cheap knockoff operations — they hit up respected boutique builders like LSL Instruments, a small team who've been crafting premium Strat-style guitars for years. They're also going after PRS, which is much larger manufacturer.

It needs to be mentioned that back in March 2009, the U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeals Board handed Fender a massive defeat.  In the ruling the judges basically told Fender, "You are way too late." They ruled that because Fender had allowed other companies to copy those body shapes for decades without stopping them, the outlines had become generic.

Fender's new legal challenge has provoked significant backlash from the guitar community. Small builders are terrified because they don't have the cash to fight a legal battle with a giant like Fender. In fact, LsL put up a GoFundMe page for donations online just to cover their legal fees. There are even videos showing some players sanding Fender logos off their guitars, which is rather extreme.

Fender is trying to calm everyone down by saying they're only going after exact clones — guitars that match Stratocaster measurements. But nobody really knows where they're going to draw the line. PRS received the cease and desist letter because they offer an S-Type guitar called the Silver Sky. It's not really an exact clone, millimeter to millimeter, but the untrained eye probably wouldn't be able to spot the differences. PRS has their own headstock design, but we'll see if that's enough. 

Fender Stratocaster on the left, PRS Silver Sky on the right:

Suffice to say, Fender's legal challenge has divided guitar players worldwide. Those on Fender's side agree with the position that they designed the Stratocaster body and it should have legal protections, despite the 2009 loss and waiting so long. On the other side, many players contend that boutique companies are building higher quality S-type guitars than Fender, and if Fender wants to compete they need to up their game. Many are viewing Fender as a corporate bully that wants to monopolize the market. The pandemic guitar bubble did not last.

Fender got a new CEO in February and that might be the source of this move against other companies building S-type guitars. Perhaps that's the case, but they've cared about it since at least 2009's loss. When it comes to the history of the Stratocaster, many are asking the legit question: "Why didn't Leo Fender do this back in 1954?" It's true that he did patent and trademark things like the headstock and tremolo system, so why not the body shape?

I'm not a lawyer, but I agree with those who say it's too late to dial the legal clock back 70 years in an attempt to copyright and trademark the Stratocaster body today. Leo Fender didn't view himself as an artist creating sculptures; he saw himself as an engineer making a practical, modular tool for working musicians. He likely didn't anticipate that the double-cutaway body shape would become a permanent, multi-billion-dollar cultural icon that companies would fight over 70 years later.

We'll see!

Photos © 2026 Mike McDowell

The Best!

This again!?

It's like ...

I actually still have my Tupperware Shape-O Ball — I found it tucked away in my storage. Functional, but a bit of wear on the shapes ... still beautiful. It really was my favorite toy as a child and I got quite good at it before moving onto Candy Land and Chutes & Ladders. 

After practicing with it for a few hours, I roped in a few friends for a little competition. Let's just say the results were highly conclusive. I am the best. There they were trying to convince themselves that the star block could fit into the round hole — ha ha! So dumb! But me? I was breezing through it, shape after shape. I was the only one who consistently got all the shapes into the ball on the first try. It was a beautiful, if slightly pathetic, display of raw cognitive dominance over my adversaries. They were playing checkers; I was playing 4D chess with shapes!

Naturally, I had to brag on social media right away ...

I would rather that a reporter ask him "What are the three primary modes of logical inference, and could you provide an example for each?"

 

#satire #unimpressed #godhelpusall

Back to The Hollow!

"Lots of people go mad in January. Not as many as in May, of course. Nor June. But January is your third most common month for madness."

― Karen Joy

Baxter's Hollow, now draped in the full splendor of spring, remains a place of profound beauty. Yet, as I noted previously, a visit no longer yields the bird diversity it once did. It would be satisfying to conclude the month of May on a cheerful note, but birding has become a source of sadness nearly as often as it is a joy. Do new birders feel it?

Perhaps I'm focusing more so on misses rather than hits. A single Cerulean Warbler did sing near the first bridge — always a welcome find at Baxter's. Having said that, I can't help but recall when Hooded, Kentucky, Canada, Mourning, and Worm-eating Warblers were relatively easy to find here. But these aren't the only missing voices in the hollow today. Naturally, the Baraboo Hills span a considerable area, so it's likely these species still breed nearby, just not along the deteriorating road that follows Otter Creek. At least, that's a hope I have.

A Great Blue Heron was standing almost motionless in the shallows of the creek, occasionally surveying the water for prey. I know there are one or two trout species navigating these currents, but for such an opportunistic hunter, indifference is the rule when it comes to meals.

Several Mourning Cloaks were puddling on the damp substrate near the second bridge. Mixed in with them were some duskywings and crescents.

Acadian Flycatchers were present in modest numbers. Their diminutive pee-tsup song suggests a punctuation to the avian choir to my anthropomorphic ears, but all the other birds keep right on singing. It's interesting how some species get by with such a simple song while others have incredibly complex ones. It's largely the habitat they occupy, but competition and mate selection are factors. Song differences can reflect evolutionary trade-offs where complexity represents a different solution to distinct ecological challenges rather than inherent superiority. 

The forest canopy's dappled light offers a perfect example of how a songbird can appear more green than it truly is. Without its distinctive song, this bird might be mistaken for a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. Empidonax flycatchers are difficult to identify by sight alone, but the careful observer can often unravel their identity through the subtle clues of location, seasonal timing, and specific habitat preferences — each piece of evidence helping to solve what might otherwise be an avian puzzle.

 

But add a little sunlight ... 

And Ovenbirds!

This is a warbler species that still comes to the hollow in good numbers. Their estimated global population is 26 million, which is a lot of teacher teacher teacher calls.

Perhaps I got carried away photographing them ...

You gotta love their colorful head feathers ...

This Eastern Towhee bears a mark of a narrow escape — a survivor's tale etched into its side. Did a cat have it in its mouth and the bird managed to break free? Perhaps an accipiter's talons failed to secure their grip. Whatever peril it faced, the bird showed no signs of diminished spirit, its drink-your-tea song ringing through the understory. Below the branch where it perched, a delicate spider web glistened, but you'll need to click to see it in the larger version. When I shared these images with Lori, her immediate reaction summed it up perfectly: "What a badass bird!" To be sure, he got lucky. 

The ubiquitous Eastern Wood-Pewee!

A diffuser would have helped with the ladyslippers, but I captured better images of them a few weeks ago anyway. It's my experience that the plant simply doesn't photograph well in direct sunlight. Still, they're always a cool sight to see.

After Baxter's, a decision was made to check on the tiger beetles at Sauk Prairie State Recreational Area. The three expected species were present: Big Sand, Oblique-lined, and Festive.

While Festive Tiger Beetles can display remarkable color diversity across their range, the specimens at this particular site consistently show a reddish or ruby hue. This striking uniformity suggests their coloration may not be an adaptation to match the immediate substrate, as one might expect with typical camouflage. Perhaps they have evolved to mimic other prominent elements in their environment — specifically, reddish hues of surrounding rocks or flowers. At other locations I explore, they're generally mixed with brown or green accents.

Though the purpose is purely thermoregulation, I can't help but chuckle whenever a tiger beetle uses my shadow for a cool-down. Should you find yourself in this situation, be mindful they're not advancing with aggression, but simply seeking respite from the heat.

Later in the day, this Festive was photographed at the Sauk Canoe Launch ...

Similar color, but not quite as saturated on the head and thorax. Maculations vary, too, and this one has more prominent front ones compared to the Sauk Rec specimen. 

While scouting the beach for tiger beetles, I found my first Shoreline Wolf Spider of the year. Though comparatively small compared to how large they can get, they're still a menacing looking critter. 

Especially up close ...

And Blue Toadflax ...

And that's May!

 

Overall, it was a memorable month of exploration, observation, and photography. For the naturalist, May is a month of almost overwhelming abundance, where each walk brings discoveries and familiar places reveal their secrets in bursts of life. It's a time of transition, where the promise of spring is fulfilled and the lush, green world settles into the steady rhythm of summer.

 

But how much less will there by next May, and the one after that, and so on? 

 

All images © 2026 Mike McDowell

Woodland Gems!

"I think on a deeper level, the reason we're not more upset about the world ending environmentally is, I think all of us, in our hearts really know that we did everything we could. You know, we really ... right? I mean, we really did. I mean, think about it. We ... you know, we brought our own bags to the supermarket ... yeah, that's about it!"

— Marc Maron

Part I: May 2026 Lessons

I rarely chase bird alerts these days, but I did head to Hoyt Park in Madison for a Black-throated Blue Warbler. Of course, the universe laughed — just two days later, Dottie and I found one at the Pheasant Branch Creek Corridor. After soaking in its nifty song and gorgeous feathers, Dottie said, 'Trust the Branch!' I guess that's the ultimate takeaway. Over time, missing this species at Pheasant Branch has proven to be the exception and not the rule. Even if they slip by in spring, there's always a second window of opportunity when they head back south in the fall. Why chase?

Lesson learned, I suppose. But honestly, what's the big deal? Every county has its hardcore contingent — the birders who chase absolutely everything deemed 'worthy' just to hold onto their spot on the eBird leaderboard. The platform encourages it. Right there in the 'Explore' section, it literally invites you to 'Compare with the top eBirders in your region.' It's hard to ignore the competitive nudge.

Top birders, eh? Maybe by list size, but not necessarily by the depth of their field skills and knowledge.

True text exchange, but I changed names to protect the innocent:

Me: "Lots of disconcerting MIAs at Baxter's Hollow today."

Rudy: "Which ones in particular?"

Me: "No Winter Wrens, no cuckoos. Many warbler species that used to nest there, not present."

Rudy: "You are making me sad about the MIA birds. Marion Ketter Bale was saying the same thing to me last week. Very sad."

Me: "People are not yet sad enough."

It will keep getting worse. Or in a perverse sense does that mean better? Contemporary birding cherishes the rarity — more rarities means better birding! Right? Seldom do we contextually appreciate evolution's success stories like Yellow-rumps, yellowthroats, or Red-eyed Vireos. But even they, one day, will eventually become extinct. It's a tragedy of birding becoming a spectator sport of extinction. But if you know anything about Cosmology, the Earth eventually gets annihilated.

So is it nihilistic despair or liberating acceptance?

I'll spare you the sad data, but recently I provided an AI chatBot with this query:

• Year I was born (1966).
• All North American wood warblers.
• Current estimated population sizes.
• Rates of decline.
• Projected year of extinction if nothing is done to reverse declines.

A few were within my lifetime, and you can probably guess which.

Part II: Indian Lake Park

There's a unique bittersweetness to the end of bird migration. On one hand, waves of neotropical travelers have moved on from southern Wisconsin. On the other hand, the pressure is off! Instead of chasing a Black-throated Blue Warbler (my favorite bird), I can slow my pace, focus on the insect world, and just enjoy Nature without a checklist.

I spy with my unmagnified eye ...

Showy Orchis (Galearis spectabilis)

Such a gorgeous orchid!

Naturalists and botanists adhere to an unwritten rule: never share the exact location of a wild orchid. Though keeping secrets feels counterintuitive, publicizing these spots invites trouble. Well-meaning but misguided people often dig them up to transplant them at home, where they quickly die because the soil composition isn't right.

The Enemy lurks ...

But Poison Ivy should be eradicated from the planet! 

Virginia Creeper can conceal the vile vine ...

Whenever I see a woodland trail illuminated and shadowed like this, I instantly think of Six-spotted Tiger Beetle — they use the shady spots to cool off, and the sunny spots to hunt.

Naturally, they were present ...

Unlike most tiger beetles in Wisconsin that stick strictly to sandy terrain, the Six-spotted Tiger Beetle is frequently found on logs, rocks, and foliage. In fact, they occasionally pick a favorite leaf to use as a personal lookout, spinning around on it to scan the area for passing prey.

Next up, a report from Baxter's Hollow.

All images © 2026 Mike McDowell