Hi EveryOne!

My name's Sufian and I'm from Libya (where there's no Fender dealers or even any other guitar maintenance shops). I bought my Strat a year a go and since no one here can help me on customizing my guitar, I've decided to join this forum.

Guys, I only know how to play on guitar but not how to maintain it, so please excuse my shortage of knowledge.

first of all, I want to know what year did my guitar made in (S/N: S 958860)

Also, I would like to learn how to maintain the tremolo to be more flexy.

I;m not sure if there's a thread in this forum talking about sort of things, but I'd appreciate it if somebody let me know about it.

Thanks

Welcome!

1978 or 1979 is the year your guitar was made.

There is no exact forum for setups and such. The questions are asked and answered wherever they may be.

About your tremolo:

1. How far off the guitar is your tremolo plate now?
2. How may springs are you using for the tremolo (in the back of the guitar)?
3. What gauge strings do you use?

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You dig?

Welcome here! Is your guitar Made in Japan or Made in USA?

If you float your trem, using 3 springs in the back gets it as flexy as it can be. More springs is less flexy, more stiffy.

Do you have the owners manual? That's a good place to start for info, then there are plenty of good books, and the INTERNET (google is your friend)!

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

Welcome aboard my friend! You will find some helpful people here.

Welcome to the forum

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The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.

Thomas Jefferson

Pleased to meet you and may everyone be good to you as they have been to me . This is THE PLACE on planet earth to be in, and you will learn a lot and never be ripped off as long as you come here before you buy anything. Stay cool shakes hand from Vinny Pop

Welcome to the Forum. Plenty of people here to answer your question. Also check this out for a guide:

http://www.fender.com/support/stratocaster.php

RK

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RK

2007 Fender Highway 1
2012 American Deluxe
2015 MIM Dave Murray HHH
2010 Fender Blacktop
1987 Fender Avalon Acoustic
2012 Marshall DSL 15 watt head

Thank you guys for the worm welcoming

I think I'm finally in the right place

Thanks again.

Hi Martian, Thanks for your reply.

1. I'm not sure if I understand this, but the Trem is fitted to the body.
2. 5 springs.
3. D'Addario .009

Thanks again.

You're welcome.

Remove #2 and # 4 springs from the tremolo entirely. On the tremolo block, leave springs #1, #3 and #5 just where they are.

Up at the claw, unclip #1 spring and clip it to #2 tab; unclip #5 spring from the claw and clip it to #4 tab.

Now, if your tremolo block has lifted off the body, tighten both claw screws approximately a quarter of a turn each and retune your guitar.

If after removing the two springs, etc, the tremolo is still resting on the body, loosen both claw screws approximately a quarter of a turn each and retune your guitar.

From this point on, adjusting those two claw screws will fine tune the tremolo to your liking. Remember to keep retuning with every adjustment to those screws.

Also, as has been pointed out here, refer to:

http://www.fender.com/support/stratocaster.php

This should be considered as a basic reference and not an absolute as everyone has their personal preferences which could never be covered in this guide.

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Thanks a lot Martian, that was really very helpful

Glad to help!

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