Maybe I should have titled that one "Is this Strat real?"...sorry...a little tongue in cheek sarcasm there.


Hey Ya'll,
Well with my recent comments in threads about fakes as well as my recent "How to spot a fake" thread, along with the comments I've recently made in a few MIM vs. MIA debates, it looks like I came full circle today. I hit the local spring guitar show here in Northern Ohio this morning...I was hoping to find either a mid-80's MIJ Contemporary or at least the neck for the body I already have, but that's not what I walked out with (never saw either anyways).


Now I do have to say that this show wasn't really as good as the last two...not really a lot of "steals" at this one but just as I was getting ready to leave, I realized the one guy had a new Strat in front of his table that he hadn't had the first few times I walked past. Apparently he had just taken it in on trade... '03 Fender MIM Standard. Here's a few pics...












Ok...please accept my apologies for these shots not being up to my usual "artistic standard"...I was just trying to get some quick snap shots of her to document the first day home and all (and yes, I blurred the serial number intentionally).

Basically I got her for $200 after a bit of "horse trading"...traded an old Tetomas acoustic I had here at the house which I had gotten for free and an Epi gig bag and such (also was free). Not a "steal" by any means but certainly a -good bargain-. And yes, despite my confidence in my own abilities with spotting a "fake" as I've been going on about lately, I did pull the neck when I got her home just to make extra sure...she's "real Fender" through and through . The -only- thing I've been able to find wrong with her is there is one good ding in the finish on the body near the neck...I may have to fill that and buff it out, otherwise she's pretty near mint condition.

I can't say the plastics are all original...haven't pulled the guard yet but I can deal with the look on this one. I was almost thinking about slapping some gold hardware on it and an SRV pickguard then selling her on Ebay for $850! LOL!!! Just kidding...that was sarcasm in case no one caught it.

Anyways, she plays really sweet (although after having played .010's for a while now, those .009's feel -really- thin, LOL!) and she sounds good enough. She -is- going to need a new trem block so I'm not really going to judge the pickups too close until I get the block replaced....I'll probably take a look at Ebay later this week and if I can't find anything there, I'll probably just order another Callaham. Otherwise, $200...no complaints.

Like I said...be smart...know what your looking at...don't let your greed over come your common sense. The bargains -are- out there, ya just gotta know what to look for and be smart about doing it.

Peace,
Jim

Guitar Fetish has trem blocks for cheap. I have placed 3 orders with them over the past year and I find them to be a reliable store. I have not tried one of these blocks though. I bought a callaham last year, but if these cheaper ones were available, I would have surely tried one first.

http://store.guitarfetish.com/upstandbrtrb.html

_________________

I think a lot of that look may simply be in the picture...maybe the way the flash reflected or something (I did use the on camera flash instead of one of my good flashes). The wood is very nicely figured...almost kind of looks like a nice curly maple, but looking at the guitar in person, it's not really as "pronounced" as it looks in those pictures.

I'll try and get some better...or at least more "artsy" pictures of her later. It's probably time I bring all the guitars up from the studio anyways and get a couple of up to date "family portraits"





Thanks for the reference. I know I've seen that link pop up here from time to time but I wouldn't have thought to look at them for the trem blocks. I'm kind of looking at those bronze blocks...hmmmm...for the price I may very well end up ordering 1 of each that way if I don't like the bronze, I can swap it back to the steel right away.

I already do have one of the Callaham's myself on my '96 MIM and I do have to say that it made a *HUGE* difference on that guitar over the stock trem block (which was also the high sized zinc alloy). I was really blown away by the difference in sustain and even in tone.

Peace,
Jim

Nice find!!!! Love the look of the body.

_________________
Chet Feathers

Authorized TonePros Dealer
Authorized WD Music Products Dealer
F/A Official Southpaw Compliance Certification Tester http://faamps.com/

http://www.facebook.com/cafeathers


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

I'm not seeing any pictures... just empty white space.... strange..

_________________
"Epitaph on a blues musician’s tombstone: “I didn’t wake up this morning”" Davy Knowles


facebook.com/313DBC

Give it a little while and try again...the pics are loading via Imageshack and they can get...errmmmm....a little flaky sometimes. At the moment I'm writing this, the pictures do seem to be there so try hitting your reload button when you try again.

Peace,
Jim

That figuring is called 'Burl' and it is a nice example, nice score Jim!!

_________________
I'm not an expert, but I play one on the internet.

It must have been my work server blocking the pics. Nice looking guitar. I would choose a different pickguard, but it has a little bit of that SRV vibe... Good birdseye contour to the body...

_________________
"Epitaph on a blues musician’s tombstone: “I didn’t wake up this morning”" Davy Knowles


facebook.com/313DBC

I'm kind of going back and forth on the pickguard...I actually still have the white 3 ply from my '96 and I think I like that better but my wife say's she likes the black...and it does kind of match the look of her bass a little. I'll probably break it all down when I go to change the trem block and decide then.

I thought it looked like Bird's Eye maple. I love that color with the black pickguard.

_________________
"Hope is the thing with feathers, that perches in the soul..."

-Emily Dickinson

I actually just dropped the folks at Fender a line in regards to the body wood and fretboard here. I would think that if it's an MIM Standard as it otherwise appears, it should be alder but the figuring on this puppy just seems really out of sorts with that...I don't think I've ever seen alder with that much figuring. Another thing too is I got to looking at the fretboard and compared it with a couple of my other rosewood fretboards...it really looks much lighter and much more "red" than any of my other rosewood fretboards...almost looks more like a Pau Ferro than rosewood. It'll be interesting to see what the folks at Fender have to say on it...I'll post back here if I get a response.

I'm still not sure about the black pickguard though....


Peace,
Jim