I need Fender to answer this. There are too many questions. I've been scouring Google looking at other MIJ Strats and some of them do have the wide double dot on the 12th. Not many, but I found a few. I haven't found any that have the logo and text on the head, so that's a concern.

I don't know if this means anything, but the neck also feels a little wider than what I'm used to. I usually play Les Pauls. My only other Strat is an old Squier (that actually plays nice) and the neck feels slightly wider. I've heard of wider frets, does anyone have any insight on that?

As soon as I get a response from Fender I'll post it up. The guitar plays fine. The neck needs to be adjusted, I haven't had a chance to dial it in yet. The electronics are solid too - clean and crisp.

Do the bridge saddles say Fender?

Take some pictures under the pickguard.
I'd love to know if those pickups are actually Fender Noisless pickups!


Here's an older thread I started on Chinese fakes:
http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... hp?t=20964

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

Why did the pictures of the guitar in question disappear?

Oh, well, good luck with it.

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

The sheer amount of 'is this real' threads we see from people who never resurface leads me to believe that were being used as guinea pigs. Maybe not in this case but some certainly seem to have a 'get past these guys and it will fool most' air to them.

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No no and no

A conspiracy theory!

Well, I suppose that could be true, but that's giving some of these guys more intellectual credit than they deserve!

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

Are you describing the guys testing the fake strats or the forum members trying to debunk them?

Tell the truth, now [/quote]

Well, if I was describing the forum members, I would have said "that's giving us more intellectual credit than we deserve!"

And dat's the truth!

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

Then theres always the 'how do i spot a fake' threads. Especialy the 'seen a strat how do i know its legit?' type where they refuse to post a link to the sale for fear that one of us will buy it. Seen a couple of them around christmas time. I think they just want to know what people in the know look for so they can address them areas.

Yep im cynical and paranoid. It stops me getting ripped off.

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No no and no

No, I'm keeping the guitar. According to Fender the guitar was a Chinese replica but the Noiseless hot pickups and other Fender hardware is real. I'll just hang onto it for now. Not sure how I'll ever sell it.

If those are real Fender Noiseless pickups, then you weren't ripped off too badly.

Those Chinese fakes are getting better and better. But luckily they aren't perfect and can be spotted .... if a guy knows what to look for, of course.

I'd sure like to put those pics on my Chinese fakes thread. Can I get them for my photos site?

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.