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Post subject: 85 Contemporary Stratocaster
Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 10:25 am
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Hey guys,

So I've had this stratocaster for a while now. I got it as a gift about 7 years ago. Anyways, I was looking up the serial number a few months ago, and found it to be made in 85. Its Japanese made as well.

To my understanding the 85 Japanese Strats are worth some money. Any know what they would sell for?

The serial number is C001589. In case I'm wrong about the year. Thanks.
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HTML doesn't work I guess. here's a link to the image.
http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk15 ... 1276017619[/
http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk15 ... 1276018829


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Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 10:52 am
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I'd say around $600 to $700 range depending on condition. The mid 80's MIJ squires were selling around $400.

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Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 10:54 am
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DetroitBlues wrote:
I'd say around $600 to $700 range depending on condition. The mid 80's MIJ squires were selling around $400.



You sure its only worth 600-700.

Darn.


Last edited by mikes85 on Tue Jun 08, 2010 11:04 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 11:02 am
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Hi mikes85

Welcome to the forum, your right according to the serial no your guitar is a "made in japan" 85/86 model.

Best place to find a value guide is places like flea bay etc where others have gone before, a pure guess on my part would be at least £700 but could be more ?

.... Al


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Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 11:09 am
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Al 87 wrote:
Hi mikes85

Welcome to the forum, your right according to the serial no your guitar is a "made in japan" 85/86 model.

Best place to find a value guide is places like flea bay etc where others have gone before, a pure guess on my part would be at least £700 but could be more ?

.... Al


On ebay, im see some going for $1300 and some going for $600.
Im curious what the difference is. I know the 'A' Serial numbers are desired. So that could be the ones going for over $1000. I'm curious to know if the 'C' serials numbers are worth as much as the 'A'.


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 11:24 am
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Possibly pups/body wood may play a part,
not really sure, this is some info from a guy in the UK who deals in Japenese guitars.........from his website. Fareastguitars.co.uk


"Are you completely nonplussed by the variety of Fender Japan guitars appearing for sale on Ebay and elsewhere? Do the descriptions, specifications and prices confuse you? If so, here is my concise and incomplete (!) guide to what is what in the world of used Fender Japan Strats and Teles.

I suppose you could say that there are two basic ranges of Fender guitars floating about on the used market. The made for export models that were officially imported into the UK/Europe/US in large numbers between the mid 80's and late 90's, and the non-export, made for the Japanese market, guitars that have been privately imported in recent years.
Most of the used Fender Japan guitars you see offered for sale will have been made for export and imported into the UK between the mid 80's and late 90's. Of these most will carry the 'Made in Japan' mark but some will bear 'Crafted in Japan' because the change from MIJ to CIJ was made before official imports ceased.

The vast, and I mean vast, majority of these will have a basswood bodies. By the way, some vendors have, oddly, started to describe basswood as Japanese alder. It isn't. Basswood and Japanese alder are two distinctly different types of wood as a quick search on Google will reveal. There is nothing wrong with basswood but it certainly isn't Japanese alder.

Anyway, although most export Strats were basswood there are a very few exceptions: the Hank Marvin Signature and natural finish '68 Strats for instance. But, JV serials excluded, I have never yet come across an imported 54/57 or 62 Strat with anything other than a basswood body. They might exist, I have just never come across one except in the dreams of hopeful Ebay vendors. I have also never come across one of these imported guitars with a body finished in anything other than poly.

Again, with the exception of JV serial guitars, I have never come across an official import Strat or Tele with anything other than Japanese pickups. There seem to be two basic types. The 'vintage' style alnico magnet type which can be identified by have staggered poles, and the lower spec ceramic magnet type which do not have staggered poles.

I frequently see on Ebay what are, I am sure, ordinary import guitars with basswood bodies, Japanese pups and poly finishes, described as being either alder bodied, or US pickup loaded - or both! Giving the vendors the benefit of the doubt (if I really must), it is probable that they looked up the specification of current non-export models and thought their guitar must be same.

Make no mistake, these import guitars are well made and excellent value IF you can't run to one of the non-export models and IF you can get it at a reasonable price. What's a reasonable price? That's a hard one and at the end of the day entirely dependent upon what you are happy paying. However, you MUST be absolutely sure of the guitar's specification. Quiz the vendor before bidding. It's a fact the the couple of vendors who, like myself, regularly handle Fender Japan guitars will be able to give you a straight and credible answer. The same cannot always be said of someone who just has the one guitar to offload and is ignorant, or less than truthful, about its specification..

For instance, I recently emailed a couple of guys selling obviously import Strats and asked how come they were supposed to be fitted with US Texas Specials. One replied that he wasn't actually sure the pups were Texas Specials but they sounded nice! The other replied that he had replaced the originals with Texas Specials. That's fair enough but modifications like that should really be mentioned in the auction description.

Here are a couple of tips for you. The US pickups fitted to Strats and Teles have cloth covered wire back to the pots. So, as far as Strats and Teles are concerned, plastic covered wire equals Japanese, cloth covered wire equals US. Also, Strat pick-guards loaded with Texas Specials have a red circular sticker on the underside. Those loaded with US Vintage pups do not.

Frankly, although the export guitars are excellent and relatively plentiful, I would recommend you go for one of the higher spec non-export guitars every time. Why? Because one day a few years ago I directly compared my beloved (at the time) Hank Marvin Signature with a similar spec Strat loaded with US pickups. I'd always thought the HM's $@! pups sounded good but, frankly, the US pups completely outshone them in every respect. The US pups sounded fuller, clearer... they had the wow factor. This is just my personal opinion, but I reckon the although Fender Japan's build quality is second to none, Fender US wind a better Strat pickup. So in a non-export Fender Japan guitar you have the best of both worlds.

Just another word about Japanese pickups.... I have to admit that I find their Telecaster and bass pickups get closer to the US sound than their Strat pickups. In the case of the Telecaster perhaps that is because a slightly 'thinner' sounding pup delivers the Tele 'chickin' pickin' sound we expect."


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 11:46 am
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Thank you so much!

I have been running around the internet looking for someone to have an answer or at least some information.

Many good tips in there!

Thanks again!


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Post subject: Re: 85 Contemporary Stratocaster
Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 12:09 pm
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mikes85 wrote:
HTML doesn't work I guess.


No problem, mate. Just remove the last address lines. Simple and effective like a child's toy.

Here you go:

Image

Image


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 1:15 pm
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I would estimate the value at $400-600.

I have paid between $300-700 for my 3 Left Handed Mid 80's Strats.

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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 1:17 pm
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Al 87 wrote:
Possibly pups/body wood may play a part,
not really sure, this is some info from a guy in the UK who deals in Japenese guitars.........from his website. Fareastguitars.co.uk


"Are you completely nonplussed by the variety of Fender Japan guitars appearing for sale on Ebay and elsewhere? Do the descriptions, specifications and prices confuse you? If so, here is my concise and incomplete (!) guide to what is what in the world of used Fender Japan Strats and Teles.

I suppose you could say that there are two basic ranges of Fender guitars floating about on the used market. The made for export models that were officially imported into the UK/Europe/US in large numbers between the mid 80's and late 90's, and the non-export, made for the Japanese market, guitars that have been privately imported in recent years.
Most of the used Fender Japan guitars you see offered for sale will have been made for export and imported into the UK between the mid 80's and late 90's. Of these most will carry the 'Made in Japan' mark but some will bear 'Crafted in Japan' because the change from MIJ to CIJ was made before official imports ceased.

The vast, and I mean vast, majority of these will have a basswood bodies. By the way, some vendors have, oddly, started to describe basswood as Japanese alder. It isn't. Basswood and Japanese alder are two distinctly different types of wood as a quick search on Google will reveal. There is nothing wrong with basswood but it certainly isn't Japanese alder.

Anyway, although most export Strats were basswood there are a very few exceptions: the Hank Marvin Signature and natural finish '68 Strats for instance. But, JV serials excluded, I have never yet come across an imported 54/57 or 62 Strat with anything other than a basswood body. They might exist, I have just never come across one except in the dreams of hopeful Ebay vendors. I have also never come across one of these imported guitars with a body finished in anything other than poly.

Again, with the exception of JV serial guitars, I have never come across an official import Strat or Tele with anything other than Japanese pickups. There seem to be two basic types. The 'vintage' style alnico magnet type which can be identified by have staggered poles, and the lower spec ceramic magnet type which do not have staggered poles.

I frequently see on Ebay what are, I am sure, ordinary import guitars with basswood bodies, Japanese pups and poly finishes, described as being either alder bodied, or US pickup loaded - or both! Giving the vendors the benefit of the doubt (if I really must), it is probable that they looked up the specification of current non-export models and thought their guitar must be same.

Make no mistake, these import guitars are well made and excellent value IF you can't run to one of the non-export models and IF you can get it at a reasonable price. What's a reasonable price? That's a hard one and at the end of the day entirely dependent upon what you are happy paying. However, you MUST be absolutely sure of the guitar's specification. Quiz the vendor before bidding. It's a fact the the couple of vendors who, like myself, regularly handle Fender Japan guitars will be able to give you a straight and credible answer. The same cannot always be said of someone who just has the one guitar to offload and is ignorant, or less than truthful, about its specification..

For instance, I recently emailed a couple of guys selling obviously import Strats and asked how come they were supposed to be fitted with US Texas Specials. One replied that he wasn't actually sure the pups were Texas Specials but they sounded nice! The other replied that he had replaced the originals with Texas Specials. That's fair enough but modifications like that should really be mentioned in the auction description.

Here are a couple of tips for you. The US pickups fitted to Strats and Teles have cloth covered wire back to the pots. So, as far as Strats and Teles are concerned, plastic covered wire equals Japanese, cloth covered wire equals US. Also, Strat pick-guards loaded with Texas Specials have a red circular sticker on the underside. Those loaded with US Vintage pups do not.

Frankly, although the export guitars are excellent and relatively plentiful, I would recommend you go for one of the higher spec non-export guitars every time. Why? Because one day a few years ago I directly compared my beloved (at the time) Hank Marvin Signature with a similar spec Strat loaded with US pickups. I'd always thought the HM's $@! pups sounded good but, frankly, the US pups completely outshone them in every respect. The US pups sounded fuller, clearer... they had the wow factor. This is just my personal opinion, but I reckon the although Fender Japan's build quality is second to none, Fender US wind a better Strat pickup. So in a non-export Fender Japan guitar you have the best of both worlds.

Just another word about Japanese pickups.... I have to admit that I find their Telecaster and bass pickups get closer to the US sound than their Strat pickups. In the case of the Telecaster perhaps that is because a slightly 'thinner' sounding pup delivers the Tele 'chickin' pickin' sound we expect."


Interesting reading. I would take the info as his own opinion. Just like I have my own opinion.

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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 8:52 pm
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I totally agree with Ca Feathers - much of the info is opinion based, some may be factual. I can tell you first hand, that not all MIJ Strats had Japanese only pickups in them, and not all us made pickups have cloth covered wire. How do I know this? I own both, a US made '79 and a Made in Japan E-series. As for worth - to someone it could be worth $15,000 - is it likely? No. It is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it. Unfortunately the' bay tends to dictate values a bit too much (on everything), so people think a similar item they own HAS to be worth at least X- amount of money. This isn't always the case.


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 9:43 pm
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I really appreciate all the feedback. I dont plan on selling the guitar, it was my first guitar. Im sure you all know what that is like. I was just curious at the "what if" factor. It's also nice to do some further research into the guitar, get some history on it :)


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2010 9:54 pm
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mikes85 wrote:
I really appreciate all the feedback. I dont plan on selling the guitar, it was my first guitar. Im sure you all know what that is like. I was just curious at the "what if" factor. It's also nice to do some further research into the guitar, get some history on it :)


In my personal opinion mid 80's MIJ Strats are some of the finest Strats Fender ever made. I guess that's why I have 3 (so far).

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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2010 11:00 am
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This popped into my e mail inbox as a "related item" so i thought id post it for the benefit of peeps interested in the original post.

Think its a similar guitar going by the blurry pics :)

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... FP:GB:1348


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2010 11:06 am
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I've had my 85 Strat Contemporary (1 x humbucker and 2 x single coil) since about '93 and have done many a gig with it. Before buying it, I must have played about 50 different Strats and countless other guitars but this one just felt and sounded right. It's got faults sure (tremelo system is not as accurate as I'd like it to be - maybe that can be adjusted?) but I wouldn't change it now, it's become part of me!


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