can anyone tell me ..what year mim strats are considered better or more sought after per say...better built.. better sounding..etc ?????

I'm interested too. I am thinking about buying a 1990 Mexican Std. Strat. Can anyone tell me anything about that? Is 695 dollars a good price?

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Fender American DLX Hss Strat RWOP->
Biyang OD-8->
Marshall JCM800 4211 -combo->
THE sound;)

Not if you are in the US. Thats about 400 too much. MIM standards can be had from 200-350 all day. In 2006 MIM standards were upgraded with bigger frets and full size zinc trem block. After 2006 it seems the MIM standards got better and better so I would look for a more recent one if I were you. Nothing wrong with the older MIM standards, just know they have smaller, vintage sized frets and a tiny zinc trem bock.

Ok thanks, well I'm not in the U.S., I'm in Finland and it costs 480 euros, but thats 695 dollars.. I guess I'll offer 350€...

_________________
Fender American DLX Hss Strat RWOP->
Biyang OD-8->
Marshall JCM800 4211 -combo->
THE sound;)

But oh! It's not a Std., it's a Vintage 60's, so is the price ok?

_________________
Fender American DLX Hss Strat RWOP->
Biyang OD-8->
Marshall JCM800 4211 -combo->
THE sound;)

Seems to be an old post... .but it got me checking...

So far it appears that MIM owners are playing their guitars not collecting them...

Can't find any collector sites, or discussions...

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Still looking for that One Guitar To Rule Them All since 1964...
FSR Fender 60 Anniversary Strat HSS MIM, Gibson ES 335, Taylor 555, Ovation Custom Balladeer-12, Baby Taylor, Fender Princeton Chorus (stereo), Fender Champ 600

Generally, the quality has improved over the years.

One thing to consider, however, is that there was a time that the necks on MIM Strats were actually made in the USA. I'm not sure when that was. Perhaps someone will know for sure.

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Member #26797
My other guitar is a Strat.

A lot of people make a big deal out of that as if the necks were the exact same as the American Standards, but they weren't. For a number of years the necks were rough cut in the US and then all the shaping and finishing was done in Mexico. Most of what people gripe about with MIMs is the attention to detail. I believe the Mexican factory started making their own necks and bodies in the early 2000s.

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Still looking for that One Guitar To Rule Them All since 1964...
FSR Fender 60 Anniversary Strat HSS MIM, Gibson ES 335, Taylor 555, Ovation Custom Balladeer-12, Baby Taylor, Fender Princeton Chorus (stereo), Fender Champ 600

Didn't say I felt that way, just that some people do.

I own everything from Squiers to Custom Shop Fenders, so no snobbery here.

No offense intended it was other folks I was remembering.

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Still looking for that One Guitar To Rule Them All since 1964...
FSR Fender 60 Anniversary Strat HSS MIM, Gibson ES 335, Taylor 555, Ovation Custom Balladeer-12, Baby Taylor, Fender Princeton Chorus (stereo), Fender Champ 600

I had a 2004 MIM Strat that I bought for $240 a few years ago, and it was just OK. But I was shocked at the quality difference when I bought a 2009 and a 2010 MIM Strat. The build quality felt better. The frets were not sharp at all on the neck and felt perfect to me. The tremolo block was a larger block than the tiny zinc one that was on the 04. I know that I only had the one 2004 MIM to compare them to, but the 09 and the 10 just felt and sounded a lot better.

It's only based on what I personally noticed, but the newer ones seemed a lot higher quality.

I own a '92 MIM Standard Strat and an '04 MIM Standard Strat. I also work at a guitar store which deals Fenders so I'm also very familiar with the new MIM Standards as well.

-I got the '92 for $120. I man walked into the store and sold it to us for $60. All the parts were in plastic bags and I had to put the guitar back together to even tell whether or not it played. It turns out that everything was fine on it, and it played great after I set it up. I ended up getting attached to it, and so I bought it. The neck is not as thin as the newer ones, and the overall quality is probably not as good as more recent ones. That's not to say it's not good, I wouldn't have bought it if I didn't really like how it felt. But like someone before said, it's the attention to detail. The neck alignment is a little bit off, which doesn't affect the playability too much but it's not what you find on the newer ones.

-The '04 seems to be built more solidly and has a slightly thinner c shaped neck. Other than that, the specs are about the same.

-The new ones ('06 on) have medium jumbo frets instead of small vintage frets and a full sized trem block. I don't see a huge difference quality wise between the '04 and the newest ones, but I like the upgrades and I really wish that mine had those bigger frets.

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Well, there is no "Vintage '60's" Strat in Fender's catalog per se that's made in Mexico. It's probably a Classic '60's Strat or a Classic Player '60's Strat. They sell new for about $700-750 and $750-800 respectively. In the U.S., you could probably get either one used for around $450-550.

Ok, thanks a lot:) I guess the price is ok then.

_________________
Fender American DLX Hss Strat RWOP->
Biyang OD-8->
Marshall JCM800 4211 -combo->
THE sound;)