hey guys, im new here and excited to be a strat owner now. i inherited this guitar from a marine friend who had it collecting dust in a closet, along with a les paul and sg

anyways, im just wondering if anybody can tell me a little about this strat like the year and just some basic info that i dont know. like what kind of pickups those are, im assuming everything is factory but i dont know anything about it other than its all mine now

Looks like a American Standard from about 1993-1999, something like that. What does the serial number start with on the back of the headstock?
Looks like the pickguard was changed, was probably white oringinally. Can't really tell what kind of pickups it has without taking the pickguard off. Could be the stock American Standard pickups, or could of been changed to something else.

If it isn't an American Standard (that version of the American Standard was actually made until say May/June 2000) it could also be a Roadhouse Strat from 1996-2000; they were essentially the same as the American Standards of that same time period but with Texas Special pickups instead of the regular pickups.

I think that the rosewood board black finish ones came with that tortoise shell pickguard for a year or two but I could be wrong - I know the maple board/black finish Roadhouses had white pearl pickguards but for some reason I'm remembering the rosewood board ones having the brown shell like the sunburst and trans orange ones.

serial number starts off with N729, i wanna say my buddy got it sometime around 97ish from his dad. i dont know how long his dad had it though, i think a couple of years before he gave it to my buddy though. could be wrong, ill have to find out.

im trying to do a proper setup on it but i dont have the proper tools for measuring action and all that fun stuff. i have been watching some interesting videos on youtube though and it seems like i should take the g,d string tree off and change out the block bridge saddles for the vintage.

those two things would help it stay in tune pretty good from what ive been seeing.

Judging the serial number, it's a 97 and prolly an American Standard. Anyways, for further information about the pickups, take the PG off and snap some pictures. The body contours appears to be correct for a 90's strat.

Also check if you have the TBX or Delta Tone: if the second tone knob clicks at five you have the TBX, if clicks at almost 10, then it's a Delta.

Cheers and enjoy the guitar

i just changed the strings so ill have to wait till next time to take the pg off. there is no clicking noise at 5 or 10 on the volume knobs.

I have a 97 strat plus....I've noticed that the second tone clicks at 5 and thought there was something catching in the pot. What is the difference between the TBX and Delta Tone?

Collector value isn't an issue, but changing the bridge and removing a string tree isn't going to gain you anything measurable. If your guitar had the staggered tuners to support the single tree configuration it would have come that way from Fender. Leave it as is, and enjoy it for what it is.

TBX - http://www.fender.com/community/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=42172
Delta tone - http://www.fender.com/community/forums/viewtopic.php?p=287675

what about tools for measuring action height, stewmac has a nice string action guage that sits across about 4 frets so you dont get an accurate reading, but its 20 bucks and i dont wanna spend that.

if its the best tool to use though for measuring string action height then i guess ill cough it up.

I would email fender support with the serial and they should help you out.I would be willing to bet its a roadhouse with the texes specials though. I had a texas special from 02 and it didnt have the indent at 10 for the delta tone.

go to a hardware store like Home Depot or Lowes and go to the tools section. A decent machinests ruler marked off in 1/64" increments is less than $10 and I think I paid about $5.00 for the one I use. Works fine.

a straight edge can be as simple as a piece of lucite that is perfectly straight (look into squares and rulers).

The specialized tools will make it easier, but for simple home set up work, you don't need that stuff unless you're thinking of going into business as a tech then, yes, it'll make your life easier (time = money).



Jeff

ok just called fender. its a fender roadhouse made in sept of 97 with texas special pickups. regular tone knobs too.

im not sure how im digging these pickups either. might have to change em soon?

i might change out the box bridge saddles for the vintage ones too at some point, thats how they make em now anyways. time to have some fun, after i get the ruler for the action height first lol.

time to watch some setup videos on youtube

I put some Texas Specials in an American Standard I had from about the same year and felt like they weren't any better than the original pickups. Not worse, but not a "VAST" improvement either. Let us know what you plan on dumping in your strat when you make a decision. The only recent pickup replacement I've done is putting Lollars in a Firebird. That was a vast improvement. Very pricey too.

Good deal; I thought it might have been a Roadhouse from the pickguard.

If you want to change to vintage-style bent saddles you'll have to get them from some place like Callaham; Fender doesn't make bent saddles that fit on that trem. If you look closely you'll see that the adjustment screws on your guitar are offset; on the current American Standards the saddles have screws set in the middle of the saddle like on a vintage trem.