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Post subject: Newer Highway One owners, discuss your tweaks here!!
Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2007 9:26 am
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I've had my Fender Highway One now for several months and I've played it just a little, I play mostly acoustic. But I would love to hear some of the tweaks and adjustments you've figured out with all this "greasebucket" tone circuit, reverse wound pickup etc...
I'd like to hear what pickup combos you like and tone control adjustments you use for say blues or rock, whatever you like.... I put 2 extra springs in the back to get the bridge flush but dedided this morning to start messing around with the tremolo so I took them out and lifted the bridge just a little...


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Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2007 10:41 am
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I have said it all along the HWY-1 Strat is the perfect platform to build the perfect players guitar!!!!

having said that, I shure hope fender brings back the original specs Hwy some day!!!!!!!

Think Surf Green !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
and a maple neck this time please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2007 11:33 am
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The only thing I did to my Tele was order some staggered saddles and I am about to get some Nocaster pickups for it.


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Posted: Fri Dec 21, 2007 8:35 am
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So far I just raised the pick ups. I lowered the action with the truss rod and I switched to .008's for strings. I am amazed by the tone it has! I bought my first strat new in June of 1987. It was an American Standard in Gun Metal Blue. This 2007 Upgraded Modded HWY One sounds so much better. What a surprise! BTW I like the 69 headstock. The large headstock is what Jimi had at Woodstock. I prefer to call it a 69 than a 70s.


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Posted: Fri Dec 21, 2007 9:15 am
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I blocked off the tremolo (all six screw are flush & 5 springs) and had the first tone control changed to control the neck and middle pickup.


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Posted: Fri Dec 21, 2007 9:32 am
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Location: Vacaville, CA USA
I have one of the late 2006 upgraded Highway 1 Strats. I did some cosmetic changes to mine, the pups electronics are still stock.


Before pics:

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After pics:

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Posted: Fri Dec 21, 2007 12:35 pm
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All I did was take off the back plate, and put on some super slinkies.

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Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2007 12:36 pm
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Tweak: I got rid of the satin finish by rubbing it to a glossy finish (using 3M automotive polishing compound).


BTW, my Highway One is an Amber colored HSS made in late 1995, with the 60th emblem on the back of the headstock.

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Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2007 12:49 pm
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orvilleowner wrote:
Tweak: I got rid of the satin finish by rubbing it to a glossy finish (using 3M automotive polishing compound).


BTW, my Highway One is an Amber colored HSS made in late 1995, with the 60th emblem on the back of the headstock.


you are aware that they didnt start making highway one guitars before 2000 and if it has a 60th emblem on the back of the headstock its a 2006 model......

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Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2007 1:02 pm
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Oh, nuts, I made a Decade Off typo :!: :o

Of course, I meant to type "2005" instead of "1995."
The dates on the neck, body, pickguard are Nov and Dec 2005.
The serial number is a "Z5."

I won't go back to edit it. Good catch!

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Posted: Thu Dec 27, 2007 2:24 pm
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Out of the box, my Highway One sounded good, but the action was a little higher than I wanted and the tremolo was loose - no need to use the bar all I had to do was move and I had the vibrato. The bridge pickup sounded weaker than the others with a very vintage tone.

I took off the back cover and put in five springs. Now, the trem is totally stable. Initially, the added springs dropped the bridge flush and I played it that way for a couple of days noticing the bridge pickup was a lot more what I was looking for from a fat blues pickup. So, I raised the bridge pickup a lot and then re-floated the bridge to about 1/2 the height of the factory 1/8 inch, which is about 1/16th. I then checked everything using the measures in the Fender manual reference string height at the 17th fret, string height at the pickups, to make sure it was all specing out. Perfectly fine, even though I was just eyeballing it when I dialed it in.

How's it play?

No fretting out or anything from low action. I had a little rattle at frets 5-7 out of the box and wasn't sure what it was, but graphiting the heck out of the nut takes care of it and it's one smooth sounding guitar with great hum cancelling in the neck-mid and bridge-mid.

My guitar can do a great clean tone with my Blues Junior set at like 4s on the volume (preamp) and master (amp). It'll break your heart on a song built around open d-minor or d chords and notes off the arpeggio.

It can do a great fat blues tone with the volume (preamp) dialed up to about 8-9 with the fat switch in and the master (amp) dialed back to avoid blowing the walls out.

It can do a great modern rock, high-gain sound with volume (preamp) up at 11 and the fat switch in. You can screw up all you want then and it still sounds like a chord - maybe a dissonant one - and nobody can tell it's wrong. Who says you need a Gibson for that?


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Post subject:
Posted: Fri Dec 28, 2007 9:35 am
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Nothing yet but thinking of replacing the bridge. Love the original sound.


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