Hi there. New guy here. I introduced myself over at the players' lounge and thought I'd dig right in with my first post here.

I've been plucky enough to weather the recession with a good job and a move back to my beloved SoCal. (I lived in other parts of the county for years).

Well, back home with this good job, I've been able to save some money and sell unused gear. I have a good amount of dough in the bank and I'm looking for pre-CBS strat. The market seems right these days.

I've always loved the 65s, because of their transitional nature, and the fact they are more often in my price range. I answered a classified in a reputable magazine and a seller brought one over to my place last night.

Well the guitar is in my price range. And the seller isn't trying to pass it off as completely original. No refin, possible refret, middle pickup a Lollar wound replica. A bucker route too.

But everything else he claims is original, and I'm looking for a player anyway.
Well, I trust the guy on the face of it. But I really want to at least take pictures of the innards and send them to a reputable place for photo appraisal, if not arrange an in-hand appraisal.

He says before we pull the guard and neck for photos, he wants my word I'll buy it if everything checks out. But I'm not ready to make that commitment because I think there might be degrees to which everything checks out. The seller has provided me some pictures of the innards, but I have no way of knowing if that's what I'll see after the purchase and the pictures are not that detailed.

There's another issue. The guitar has a nice tone. I have to admit, my beloved reissues sounded a tad harsh in comparison. The tone of this 65 did not absolutely floor me, however, and I'm wondering if it's better to just purchase a 65, appraised from a reputable dealer, and pay a a little more. And find one with a tone that makes it a must buy.

Opinions welcome.

Actually, I'm leaning against it because the tone of the guitar didn't kill me.

He is asking 8.5k.

What kind of amp did you try it through?

My '64 Strat is probably the best sounding Strat I own.

If it has a humbucker route, I gotta ask, does it have the original pickguard?

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

Not to put too fine a point on the issue, but unless the '65 Strat you're interested in shipped from Fullerton sometime between the 1st of January and the 4th of January 1965, it is not a "pre-CBS" guitar.

And no way would I consider shelling out 8+ large without full and prior documentation beforehand. Insisting on a pig-in-a-poke commitment is no way to do business and most reputable sellers understand this.

JMO

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

I agree with Retro, you're about to drop $8,500... you call the shots, not him.

On the same note, you're about to drop $8,500... you better be 100% sure it's the right guitar.

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Tune Low, Play Hard & Floor it!

"Not to put too fine a point on the issue, but unless the '65 Strat you're interested in shipped from Fullerton sometime between the 1st of January and the 4th of January 1965, it is not a "pre-CBS" guitar. "

I'm gonna have to agree to disagree with you on that one. This issue is pretty well discussed, so I don't really want to get in a back and forth on that.

Regardless, the transitional nature of a small headstock 65 is what makes it something I can afford, and dig. I don't like things to be too perfect.

I've told the seller of the guitar in question that I've decided against it. Just too many flags.

I was actually on my way to Norms and some other shops just as I started this thread. I saw some real promising Strats at these places, and judging from the response of the owners and staff, if I'm patient, I'll end up with a much better documented and cleaner Strat for my money.

So there we have it. The quest continues.

By the way, I also played a few killer Pre-war Gibson acoustics today. Yum. One of these might also grab my attention and money before a Strat. It's currently my second choice. But we shall see.

That's a great guitar, Nevin. I can see why you miss that guitar. I've let a few go myself that I wish I could get back, so I feel your pain.

Orville, I tried the 65 last night through my Deluxe Reverb Reissue, clean. It's loaded with a Celestion Alnico Blue and sounds so sweet.