Is there any real difference other than the poly finish and the Texas Specials? I myself recently bough a highway one only to find that Fender was releasing the American Special which has a more durable guitar finish.
Is the sound the same with the two, or is one weaker than the other?

why nobody reply, im really interested in the topic.

we have already had like 10 of these threads.
look it up.

It's down to personal preference - try out an AS and see if you prefer it to the H1.

The necks seem to be the same, and pups can be changed with ease - if you prefer the poly finish, the the American Special is the one to go for.

i got the opportunity to try both side-by-side a few days ago, i just haven't gotten around to fully reviewing them. i tried both through a Blues Deluxe Reverb.

first off, the finish on the AS is fantastic. it looks and feels like a very light coat of poly (it is very similar to the USA standard, if not just a little thicker). i know i could just check whether it was a poly or a nitro finish, but it looked like a poly finish...not as overdone as a MIM standard but not as nice a sheen as an MIA. underneath the poly, as with all MIA's, are three pieces of solid alder, and from the looks of it they were matched well. i feel like the USA standard bodies and the AS bodies are pretty much interchangeable. i noticed a nice deep belly cut and smooth contour lines.

the neck is very nice. if you've played a HWY1, then you know what the AS feels like...i played them side by side and there was no difference to the feel. like USA standards, however, the fretboard is glossed and plays very nicely. the back of the neck is satin. call me crazy, but the big headstock is actually growing on me! i dunno if it is just because this guitar looks better with the gloss finish and gloss neck, but the big CBS style is kinda cool...its probably me just looking at my jimi hendrix band of gypsies wallpaper though.

tone...well hey, its a strat with texas specials. they sound pretty amazing compared to the HWY1 pups....nice and glassy, not too overpowering but with a ton of presence. the alnico 3's always sounded strange to me, and it was one of the things that kept me away from buying a HWY1, but the texas specials definitely add a ton of spirit to this guitar. the electronics also seemed a little more reliable than the HWY1, with clean switching and good pots for volume and tone. no noise from the electronics, and the greasebucket circuitry...well its ok, even though i never liked greasebuckets before. the AS hums a bit more than the HWY1, but maybe that's from the hotter pickups.

overall, it is a very nice guitar! i was really surprised that i liked it so much, considering i don't like HWY1s at all. it was fun to play and looked pretty stellar. is it worth the extra money? i dunno, i was able to work my local dealer down to about $720, which was pretty killer (i didn't buy it). considering i'm in kind of a mod mode and i think of the price + whatever mods id want to make (callaham block, maybe normal circuitry), it still seems like a great deal. you can probably get a HWY1 for cheap really soon though, grab some texas specials, and then take the body to a buffing wheel and have your own glossy thin skin nitro-ish finish on it.

if i wasn't on such a kick for my 335 copy ive been modding, i would probably have serious GAS for this thing, but seeing as my own awesome strat is hanging out in a corner a lot these days, i'm feeling like it would be wiser to wait a while and see how these babies age.

i like 'em though.

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Gear list:
2004 Epiphone Casino
----Peerless, USA electronics
2001 "Firewood" ES-335
----USA electronics, Gibson and DiMarzio PAFs
2001 Cort NTL20 Jumbo Acoustic
2007 Hofner Copy
Vox AC4TV/V112TV
Voice
Fingers
Cowbell

As previous post noted I agree with the AS maybe a better version. I loved the resonance of HWY1 when unplugged, but what kept me away was when I plugged it in the tone was just not what I was looking for out of those alnico 3 pickups.

Another item was the neck with super huge frets did not work for me either since I would be playing sharp. I am not sure was it me giving the death grip to the guitar or just was not set up properly.

I have to try that AS now, hmmmm. At least for the pickups. This will allow me to mix and match Texas Specials and CS69 that I have in my MIM std. That is the pickup combo that I have been looking for.

i wonder if the paint will wear like on the Highway One? or will it be more durable like one the standard strat?

Given the fact that the American Special has a polyurethane finish and the Highway 1 has a nitrocellulose finish, I'd the answer is that the paint will not wear like the H1 finish will.

Guys, you can look up the specs for any currently produced Fender guitar on this very site. Doing so can answer many of the questions you may have about the differences between one model and another.

Saying that the Ameican Special neck is like a HWY One is not a plus to me. Then I don't understand the statement about side by side there was no real difference to the feel like USA Standards The HYW One neck feels nothing like a American Standard I am guessing thats not what you meant. My main problem with the HWY was those monster size frets they have. Been better with the Medium jumbo.

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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

i looked but they don't say which paints will wear and which won't. if they do mention it on this very site can you please give us - the not so technical minded ones - the link to where they mention that polyurethane finish will be more durable than nitrocellulose finish or vise verse? thanks!

Do a search on this forum, and you'll soon see that the poly is the more durable finish; the main complaint about the H1 is the fragility of the nitro finish compared to the poly (as found on American Standards and Specials). There are several threads where this point is made - just do a search for "nitrocellulose" or "thin skin", and have a look at the results, and you'll get the idea.

Also, check them out for yourself - the nitro is thinner without a topcoat, the poly is covered in a much thicker layer of clearcoat.

http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... ocellulose

http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... 48&start=0

http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... ocellulose

http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... ocellulose

http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... ocellulose

http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... ocellulose

http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... ocellulose

http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... ocellulose