simple question... will they both fit both or are the holes in completely diff places?

Short answer: depends on the body. Vintage bodies are typically drilled with 8 holes, more modern ones are drilled with 11. Depends on what you have.

I agree with BigJay...and don't forget about the increased sustain.

And that depends on the placement of the screw hole that is between the middle and neck pickups. If the hole is centered between the pickups you get more of a '60s tone, if the the hole is closer to the middle pickup you get more of a modern tone.

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Chet Feathers

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I didn't Lose my mind, I traded it for this guitar.

Boys, this is just so wrong. We all know, more mass equals more sustain. It is legendary that sustain decreased when they switched to 11 holes; it's the whole reason '50s Strats are so prized.

Unicorns: that's something else that's legendary...

Cheers - C

I must respectfully disagree. More holes mean less mass, less mass means less sustain. Simple physics!

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But you can increase sustain if you use nickel plated screws instead of chrome plated screws for the pickguard.

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Chet Feathers

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I didn't Lose my mind, I traded it for this guitar.

Seriously......

Some holes will match up, some won't.

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Chet Feathers

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I didn't Lose my mind, I traded it for this guitar.

Depends on the tone you are looking for, '60's or modern.

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Chet Feathers

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I didn't Lose my mind, I traded it for this guitar.

1994 Strat Plus with 11 holes is what it'll be going on to...

im wanting to get a plain white pickguard for it and hopefully something that has some age to it, not brand new... but everything on ebay is cheaper for 8 holes for some reason

Yeah you'll need the 11. They are more expensive for some reason, but you should be able to find one for $25-$35 bucks or something, and if you look for some off-brands, you might be able to find a used one with some age. I'll hunt around online for you too and let you know if I see something. Check out this dude's Ebay store- another Forum member built his strat with some of his parts, and it looks like he has a ton of stuff:

http://stores.ebay.com/The-STRATosphere

Careful selecting a pickguard -- I changed the 8-hole pickguard in my CP 50s from the original single-ply white to a 4-ply tortoise shell pickguard. Tone is now much darker and not vintage at all... I don't think tortoise shell pickguards were available in Strats in the '50s which explains the problem... that's my story and I'm stickin' to it...

It's easier to make an 8 screw pickguard work on an 11 hole body than the other way around.

That's because the typical 8 hole body is missing a little "shoulder" of wood in the control cavity ... right where one of the 11 screws would go.

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My other guitar is a Strat.