Cheers Mark - it combines my three hobbies I guess: playing guitar, repairing and building guitars, and photography! I'm pleased with how it turned out - it sounds great and plays beautifully. It took a bit of work and still has some chips and dings, but chicks dig scars...

Just to add, I've read a lot of negative stuff about the Spyder trem system, but I can't say I agree with it. I have found it easy to set up and adjust, it feels very solid (its a big chunk of metal, which I think helps with sustain) and it stays in tune. For instance, I'm still waiting for the micro tuners but can't say its been a hassle without them. Mine also has individual saddle adjustment too, so you can adjust the overall height of the trem with the two poles, plus adjust each saddle on its own to account for the fretboard radius. The end result is a slightly-lower-than-spec action of 1.5mm at the 17th fret - sweet!

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Mater tua criceta fuit, et pater tuo redoluit bacarum sambucus

Hey guys just got the strat back from the shop and it's looking good. Here are some pictures to check out, it is not a respray but original color, has the made in japan decal and is serial E808XXX. Neck cavity shows pencil marked 557, fender, red letter C, and 562 with pencil marked line through it. Neck heel shows red letter B, St-557 f and a blue letter U in the corner. Hoping to hear from you guys to hear what you think. Cheers

http://i1300.photobucket.com/albums/ag9 ... G_0072.jpg

http://i1300.photobucket.com/albums/ag9 ... G_0071.jpg

http://i1300.photobucket.com/albums/ag9 ... G_0069.jpg

http://i1300.photobucket.com/albums/ag9 ... 0061-1.jpg

http://i1300.photobucket.com/albums/ag9 ... G_0065.jpg

http://i1300.photobucket.com/albums/ag9 ... G_0064.jpg

http://i1300.photobucket.com/albums/ag9 ... G_0061.jpg

http://i1300.photobucket.com/albums/ag9 ... G_0058.jpg

Hey Mark and Nobby Hoping to hear form you guys and get your opinion on the guitar, its an odd colour and configuration the only I can find on the internet. The rest of the photos are in the post before this one.

I had no idea these guitars were such a mystery! I mean, I know that I personally have had a hard time finding info over the years, but I didn't know so much detective work was going on.

I own a black one with a white pickguard, with the Kahler Spyder, the Gotoh tuners, and the lower locking nut. The serial number begins with E9. I am the original owner. The guitar was purchased at a shop in Surrey, B.C., Canada, circa 1990. All the major parts are stock. Only the pickup selector switch and a few odd screws and bolts have been replaced over the years. I can't post any photos because I don't have the guitar here with me.

It doesn't have the MIJ decal, but I was told it was made in Japan, so I didn't question that. Years later, someone working on it at a shop told me it was actually made in the U.S. So, naturally, I have been confused about that ever since.

I love this guitar. It is the best one I have ever owned and I will never (willingly) part with it.

G'day Whimsyking, It's good to hear from you. Your story is similar to that of so many other owners of these. This thread has brought together many examples of these oddball Strats. I was trying to prove my guitar to be legitimate and I think I achieved that to some degree.
If you ever get the chance please add photos. Thanks mate.

@ MIJSTRAT, Yours appears to be identical to the guitars in question. The Blue looks good. I guess the ones with the MIJ decal were intended for export and had a wider color range.
One thing I've noticed is that the ones with no decal have matching numbers on both the neck and pocket, that is ST562, whereas the the MIJ decal examples have 557 on the neck and 562 on the pocket. What does this mean? ......um.
Those Evans pickups would have to be a later addition. I've never seen them before.

Goodonyaz ...Mark.

Mark, I've been rooting around in the old Japanese "twang" catalogues too and have found both a reference to Kahler and an image of the spyder trem in the 1989 catalogue(pages 22-23), here:
http://tinyurl.com/cpkfdcs

The Spyder seems to be a feature of a series of guitars called "Pro Feel" - but our guitars are clearly NOT Pro Feel guitars, as they had a body cutaway at the neck joint too, which ours don't have. In the 1990 catalogue, the Spyder looks to have been replaced with a Fender-stamped EX-TREM-40C, which looks a lot more like an original floyd rose than the Kahler unit.

The earlier 1987 catalogue lists a series called the "Boxer" series. That series didn't have a cutaway, but was fitted with the slightly earlier Kahler Fulcrum trem - so perhaps a forerunner of our guitars?

http://tinyurl.com/cwcx65q

I'm increasingly of the opinion the guitar is a "standard 22" and that the model simply evolved with various Kahler made trems, from the Fender stamped system 1, 2 and 3 to the Kahler Fulcrum and then Kahler Spyder, with changes to the locking nut design along the way.

A betting man might say that you'd find our Spyder equipped iteration of the standard 22 in the 1988 Twang catalogue... but that catalogue doesn't seem to exist - at least, I can't find one anywhere on the net

MIJSTRAT, I am entirely sure the pickups aren't original. Are you going to rpelace the locking parts of the nut? If so, try wammiworld (online and on eBay too) - they carry original Kahler bits and pieces. Your trem posts don't look right wither - yours have a posidrive screw head, mine are hex/allen heads. It' a nice looking guitar! How does it play now you've had it set up?

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Mater tua criceta fuit, et pater tuo redoluit bacarum sambucus

Hey Nobby good to see some more info, twang catalogue seems to have some of the missing bits and pieces that could help us put it all together. I was hoping my guitar would help solve the mystery but it seems to ask more questions then give answers haha. About the trem from what I see and searched online they are stock to the trem but kahler seems to have used posidrive and hex on some and not on others. But about playability this thing is absolutely a dream to play on. Since the set up string height is perfect frets are crowned and polished again and the EVAN noiseless pickups can scream or clean up and be glassy clean better than my american pickups in my highway 1, ive never played pickups like this not even a whisper out of them unless u hit a note.

Just bought such a 1988 strat, without country of origin mentioned on it. Payed 500 euro (eq 650 usd) to the first owner who told me it was MIA. He never used it,it is like brand new, and came with booklets and inspection tag. Black with white pickguard, Kahler Spyder tremolo and locknuts, Gotoh tuners. Will upload more info and pictures later. Best regards, from Netherlands.

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Fender Stratocaster MIJ 1986
Fender Stratocaster MIA? 1988
Fender Acoustic CD-140SCE/BLK 2011
London City Comet I 2005
Gibson SG Classic Faded 2011
Fender Super 112 amp 1991
Peavey Classic 30 112 amp 2008
Vox 15VT & AD30VT XL amps
Boss ME50 + more ..

Here are links to pictures of my "new" 1988 strat.
http://s1326.beta.photobucket.com/user/ ... sort=3&o=1
http://s1326.beta.photobucket.com/user/ ... sort=3&o=2
http://s1326.beta.photobucket.com/user/ ... sort=3&o=0
http://s1326.beta.photobucket.com/user/ ... sort=3&o=3

The reasons why I believe it is Most likely MIA are:
- my interpretation of the serial number and built date (inspection tag says Sept 25 1988) according to http://www.guitarnucleus.com/fenderserial.html, lead to MIA, not MIJ
- can it be that the neck and body were supplied from Japan stock, and just assembled in Corona plant USA?
- inspection tag does not show any Japanese signs. I heard that the Japanese tags had Japanese signs on it <can somebody confirm this - i will try to find this case candy on the creamy white 1986 MIJ strat I bought new myself in that time ... and compare>

Anyway, it is a great guitar, that feels, sounds and looks great!
But it would be nice to understand the origin of it. Hope this adds any insight to this mystery. am curious for comments.

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Fender Stratocaster MIJ 1986
Fender Stratocaster MIA? 1988
Fender Acoustic CD-140SCE/BLK 2011
London City Comet I 2005
Gibson SG Classic Faded 2011
Fender Super 112 amp 1991
Peavey Classic 30 112 amp 2008
Vox 15VT & AD30VT XL amps
Boss ME50 + more ..

peterstrattele - this is definitely one of these mystery Strats where everything looks MIJ but there is no country of origin on the guitar anywhere. What a nice time capsule find for you.

I don't think anyone from Fender has been able to really nail down where these were made; that was evidently a very crazy point in Fender's history.

I would say that you can't use the guitar dater sites on these - that serial number is not a USA color/font - USA Fenders that have a headstock serial number decal always use a black font for the serial number; that gray font was always MIJ. t best they would have been assembled in the USA from mostly MIJ parts (I believe others have found the pots and switches are typical late 80s MIJ). On the other hand they could have just been inspected and set up here in the USA, hence the USA hang tag.

G'day peterstrattele, congratulations on such a great find. That's a real "Closet Classic" you have there . Allow me to post the pictures directly into the thread.






John C has already mentioned the silver/grey font, and all the markings on the neck and pocket on these point directly to the Fuji Gen Gaki plant. Still the mystery remains about where they were assembled. I'd like to see some more detailed pics of that little booklet if possible.
Goodonya ...Mark.

peterstrattele, that guitar is clean as a whistle - a very nice find, particularly with the case candy. It is incredibly similar to mine, although mine does have 'Made in Japan' right below Stratocaster on the headstock. Otherwise, same trem, same lock nut, same Logo font and colours, etc.

Even the tuners look the same - Gotoh's right? I point that out because I had thought that the slightly oversized-looking tuner tension screws on mine looked 'wrong', as the domed top protrudes from the key a bit, but yours are exactly the same.

I would also like to see pictures of that little black book!

Nice neck, eh?

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Mater tua criceta fuit, et pater tuo redoluit bacarum sambucus

Dear John C, boxbang and nobby1974, thanks for your reactions.
Here is a link to my photobucket with pictures of all pages of the black booklet that came with the guitar. Interesting is the red printed text on the first page, saying "This instrument combines the highest quality components, with the finest American workmanship ....."
So they might refer to high quality components from Japan for example (those nice necks) but assemled in America. Furthermore the booklet neither the guitar smelled Sushi.
Hopes this contributes to solving the case.
http://s1326.beta.photobucket.com/user/ ... ort=3&o=11
I do not know how to add pictures here directly, but you are free to put them from my photobucket her into the forum.
Best regards P

_________________
Fender Stratocaster MIJ 1986
Fender Stratocaster MIA? 1988
Fender Acoustic CD-140SCE/BLK 2011
London City Comet I 2005
Gibson SG Classic Faded 2011
Fender Super 112 amp 1991
Peavey Classic 30 112 amp 2008
Vox 15VT & AD30VT XL amps
Boss ME50 + more ..

Thanks Peterstrattele. To post the pictures, all you do is click the 4th option in the image links, the one that says IMG code. I'm happy to do it. This booklet will be of interest to many MIJ owners, not only the "SpyderStrats"



Nice work Peter.
There's a bit of reading to do now. Ihope I haven't overloaded the system.
Goodonya ...Mark.

Thanks for posting this - it's very interesting. I don't think we will ever really know about the origins of these guitars - it could be getting closer to confirming the theory of assembled in the USA but using bodies, necks, and some hardware from Fender Japan. This has long been a theory for the HM Strats, now maybe we have a bit of proof that these other Standard models may fall into that same category. That would be a possible explanation for the lack of any "Made In ______" decals on these as they had equal MIJ and USA content.

Maybe this book will help jog some memories among the old-timers at Fender (or among those no longer with Fender but still in contact with Rob S. and other current Fender personnel).