Newbie here..
I've just bought a CIJ Fender 68RI in a rare color of fiesta red..i wasnt sure why it's red because all i aknow is that the japanese 68's only come in black,sunburts and white.Serial Starts with R..now the guy whom i bought the guitar from told me that the body is basswood..that really confused me because again what i know is that the japanese 68's are made with alder body and not basswood..or maybe im wrong and maybe the new models are now made of basswood.the guitar sounds really awsome by the way,and i adjusted the string action to its lowest and there's no buzz at all but im afraid to take the neck off to see what wood the body is made of because i might ruin the setup of the neck.anybody here knows the real deal about the CIJ 68RI's? do they make the 68's with basswood nowadays?




the old owner put in some grapghtec saddles and string tree.but im going to put neww vintage style saddles and string tree to turn it into a real vintage look.

Hi rockcastle, welcome to the Forum.

Many Japanese Fenders have basswood bodies, which is claimed to be a
"different" basswood to that used in the West. See, "Note: a few words
about basswood", on this page:

http://www.guitaremporium.co.uk/index.p ... uitars&a=0

However, that page also suggests the 68RI comes in alder and doesn't
show a Fiesta option. So who knows what's going on with that?

Fender Japan does make a much bigger range of guitars than we
sometimes get to hear about. Still, I'd want a look in the neck pocket.
This may be a guitar with a story...

Cheers - C

thank you..maybe i'll try to scratch some paint off on the back routing to check if its really basswood.the guitar weighs 7.7 lbs and i read somewhere that alder bodied strat guitars weigh something like that and basswood less.but im not sure.Im really concerned about the body wood and the color because i bought this guitar for the purpose of making it into a malmsteen like strat but i started to have second thoughts when i got curious about the paint and things started running inside my head like "what if it is rare?" and i wouldnt want to ruin a rare guitar by doing some modifications like neck scalloping.but as soon as i find that its basswood and a repaint im gonna pursue the project and it'll be like having a japanese YJM strat without the signature.if its not a repaint and is alder then good.i'll be lucky either way.

Ooo - I wouldn't do that.

Really, just unscrew the neck and take a look. You will almost certainly
find an unpainted area there, and the markings may also tell you whether
the neck came with the body or not. I'm wondering whether you have
a 68RI neck on a 57RI body, for instance? The markings might tell you.

I doubt the weight will help you ID it, BTW. You'll weigh it, then post here
asking folks what their guitars weigh as a guide. The answers you get
back will have such a range you'll merely discover that each type of wood
comes in a fair variety of densities and weights. Some more than others.

Mind you, I wouldn't sweat this issue too much anyway. The bodywood
just ain't so vital here. I have Strats with ash, mahogany and basswood
bodies. I'd be deeply impressed by anyone who could identify them by
ear...

Cheers - C

you're right. i'll just enjoy the guitar.i'll just buy a cij 72 and do the project on that one.thanks man

I agree with Ceri all the way here. That is one bad $@! looking strat and Fender Japan from the guitars I have from them are always top shelf. I would find something else to do the YJM project with.

I agree with Ceri and I doubt you would no what you are looking at in a scratch through the paint anyway Not seeing much wood chararistics that way.

_________________
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

Well turns out its a 68ri neck on a 62ri body..

Ha! Sorted - mystery solved.

So what plans do you have for it?

Cheers - C

I dont know yet. so this is basswood? it's not alder right?

I wouldn't want to say for certain from that small visible area, but basswood would be a strong guess. Looks just like one I have which is definitely basswood.

Nice bod. I'd want to put a '57 or '62 neck on it and take it from there. How are the pickups?

Cheers - C

The Pickups were changed into WD single coil pickups by the old owner.though he only put in the middle and neck pickups.he put a Di marzio Chopper at the bridge. i only have a 1978 Greco strat copy and this is my first fender strat so im having a hard time deciding what to do with it.

Looks like alder to me.(20 year cabinetmaker) YMMV. Mike

_________________
The blues ain't nothin but a good man feelin bad.

I'd readily bow to the eye of a cabinetmaker.

I wish I'd had you with me at the lumber yard this morning, Mike.
Several unfamiliar (to me) timbers I had to look up when I got
home.

Amongst those I did know were a huge plank of wenge, just not
quite big enough for making one piece guitar bodies, so at
£230/$360 I didn't buy it. And a beautiful length of straight grained
maple which was about 1.5mm too narrow for neck blanks - d'oh!

I ordered some sycamore instead.

Cheers - C

Then Alder it is..
I decided not to pursue with the YJM project and just make the guitar look as good as it should be..

I've changed the bridge with new a Fender assembly with bent steel saddles
I also changed the String tree into a vintage style one.

Tomorrow i'll go to a luthier to have him change the bridge pickup and do a setup.
Man...(why do i have the biggest pictures?)