That was the best back and forth banter I've read in a long time. Bravo everyone. Good stuff

I have both "The Stratocaster handbook' and "How to Make Your Electric Guitar Play Great" excellent reference guides. that said, if you are only going to buy one of them, make it "How to make Your Electric Guitar Play Great"

It actually gives a better guide to setting up a Stratocaster. Don't get me wrong, either will help you learn, but Dan Erlewine is not only a tech extraordinaire, but an excellent teacher. His book details exactly the steps used to set up your Strat exactly as they were done from the factory, plus tells you how to make any adjustments from there that you may want.

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I'm not an expert, but I play one on the internet.

I have checked the almighty thing known as youtube and figured out everything I need for guitar setup....adjusted the bridge, adjusted the pups....all is well.......I am an advocate of doing it yourself as of now...in terms of my guitar....I'm still not changing a transmission

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Your Fender HSS Standard Stratocaster in Electron Blue was made at the Fender Ensenada Plant in Mexico in the Year: 2008.
Final Assembly Date: July 30th, 2008
Model Number: 013 4700 587
Serial # MZ8031252

Trauma makes a good point. YouTube has DIY videos for just about every aspect of guitar maintenance and repair and I've even seen complete refinishing vids.

The point, though, should be well taken. Before I ever tried doing it myself I was nervous. Then I just decided that the worst case scenario would be that I'd have to take it to a tech and have him put it back together.

since then I've done major mods on several project guitars including changing pots, p'ups, all the hardware, etc.

I think having that type of intimacy with my guitar makes me a better player and I'm glad I took it upon myself to learn.

I actually learned about set ups the hard way, having gear break down in remote locations in northern Canada. you have no choice, learn how or go without. But with reference material that is available now, like youtube this site, and the above mentioned books, I think anyone with a little practice can do an absolutely pro level job.

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I'm not an expert, but I play one on the internet.

Hey guys,
At first I would take my Strat to a pro tech and have him do it. After twice being disappointed with his work (he seemed to set it up to his preferences rather than what I would tell him I wanted) I began to tinker with his setup and raise the action, drop the pups, ect. Now trust me I didn't just jump into this headfirst, but I learned alot on this forum, internet sites, and youtube videos before making any adjustments. I also recently purchased The Fender Stratocaster Handbook and used it as well for reference and setup suggestions. Today I went out and bought a couple of sets of Ernie Ball Power Slinky 11s and restrung my guitar with those. It took some work with the differences in string tension (my old strings were D'Addario 10s) but I now have it set up perfectly (at least in my eyes and I am a perfectionist when it comes to my guitar's setups) and didn't have to pay the $75 dollars my local tech charges. So if you use the ample resources the internet provides plus advice from guys like nikininja, CV, and Ceri just to name a few you can easily learn to setup your own guitar. And it is really nice to play a guitar that feels like it was made for you. Anyway just my thoughts on the subject. Oh on a different note, in one of the packs of strings I bought the .011 string was missing. The envelope was there but no string. This isn't common with Ernie Ball is it? I've always been a D'Addario man so I don't know much about the Slinkys. But if they're good enough for Clapton they must be okay strings because he can play alright.

Russ

i just bought a new bridge for my mim strat.

and now i have to learn how to set it up and i'm completely baffled by the set up guide in the support page here D=

mannn oh mann.

I love my guitar tech like my wife loves her hair dresser. The guy has done everything from set ups to pup swaps and re fretting for me over the last 10+ years. He knows exactly how I like my gits set up, and I know he will set them up perfectly. If he doesn't set it up perfectly to my specs, he fixes it. When I need service, I take it to pro because I know I will get exactly what I want. Yeah, I can and have done truss rod/ intonation adjustments myself, but I swear by my tech.

I'm sure there are plenty of players that feel the same way. I'll bet that The Edge hasn't changed a string on one of his own guitars in decades!

My primary motivation for learning was to keep the dough in my pocket. Set-ups, intonation and even swapping p'ups and pots I've learned to do for myself an do it the way I like it.

Re-fretting or re-setting the neck? Routing the body to put in a Floyd Rose? No. For that I'll go to an experienced pro. It's like anything else. I'm not going to build a second story on my house but, by the same token, I don't need to call a carpenter to put up a set of bookshelves.

That's not really a fair comparison though, is it? Guitar players of that stature pay someone a substantial amount of money to set up their guitars perfectly, every time. Even though some on this board are willing to sell their first born to keep their guitar tech, I think it's generally fair to suggest that most techs will not set your guitar up exactly the way you want it. Unless you're able to cultivate a long-term relationship with the tech, it's a Brobdingnagian task. The way I set my own instruments up is the result of countless hours of tinkering that, in turn, resulted in me being able to do it quickly and efficiently. Though the Edge's tech can probably change strings faster than me, I'd wager he changes his own strings when he's at home -- totally different circumstances. Someone willing to take the time to learn will generally do just as good a job on their own instrument as any professional tech.