Regarding the observations of wferguson about 'the good old days', much of what we enjoy today is the result of improving upon and not reliving the mistakes of the past. There was more variabiity in quality control back then. The most frequently talked about was the winding of pickups. Some were dogs and others demons...and it the demons ultimately became the most sought and the most intensively researched to reproduce. It was also spoken of, elsewhere in these pages as to how things went into the crapper during the later CBS years when finishers had a quota of 150 guitar body blanks per hour to turn out. Though contemporary production line mechanization has helped standardize product and make for wider price points across the line, the kind of attention to detail with respect to the involvement of the human hand can still be had through the Custom Shop. There's a LTD Edition 2011 Road Show Strat in Aged Cherry which bears witness to that. "When you're ready of course''. To borrow a phrase from GM..."They don't just build guitars...they build Fenders."

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"Another day in paradise!"

I agree completely, I was only talking about how more handiwork went into guitars back then. Today's guitars are much better becasue newer technology allows for a tigher quality control, something I don't understand is back in the 50's and 60's Fender would paint the neck pocket, that's a no no in my book, and it's bad for tone anyways. I just don't want machines replacing humans on something that humans can do better, i.e. Gibson's PLEK system is a total failure, anyone who has played a PLEK'd Gibson say the frets are worse actually. Something I would want is a CNC neck pocket. I can't stand a big neck pocket, one because it detracts from the look, and two the wood to wood contact is gone on the sides, making the guitar less resonant.

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1965 Fender Precision Bass, 1994 Fender '54 Reissue Precision Bass, 2007 Applause Celebrity, 2011 Fender American Special Jazz Bass, 2012 Squier Vintage Modified Jazzmaster, 2013 Fender American Special Stratocaster, 2013 Gibson LPJ

the "paper guitar" that Wal Mart was selling last year ended up being pulled off the shelves due to a lawsuit.......wasn't a highly crafted instrument, but they sure made it easy for me embarass my Mrs. when we went down that isle........

I think they call that a "win/win"......

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You won't hurt its feelings boy, play it like you stole it!
ASPCA We Are Their Voice !
Speaking up for those that can't speak for theirself.....
Proud member of the ASPCA "Guardian Angel" program.

See, the idea of robots that can build new robots and so no longer need the human race which they will then replace is the stuff of science fiction nightmare.

But guitars that can build guitars? That's neat! I want to buy shares in that company...



Quoted in full for the second time on this thread. So, so true.

One of the most intelligent and tasteful builders of electric guitars in the world is Jol Dantzig, who recently left Hamer Guitars for the second time. Not long ago he likewise remarked that he believed we are living in the Golden Era for guitar manufacture. Never has the product been so consistently good, and for such historically low prices, relative to the cost of living.

Some of us are old enough to remember when things were SO different.

BTW: a six voice Stylophone, huh? Sounds pretty cool - I bet Nikininja could use it as the platform for an absolutely unique guitar pedal...

Cheers - C

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LOL that particular "guitar" went to live with Jesus a very long time ago..

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Fender Highway & Classic 60s Strats, Fender Toronado, Telecaster, Gretsch Projet, Charvel 3, PRS SE Soapbar II & Custom 24, Burns Batwing and many others!

Played a Mexican Martin that was completely built by machines. Not handled by humans till they put the strings on and put it in the case. A hell of a guitar, nothing wrong with it at all.
I think it was X series or something.

Worst guitar I've played, a Marlin. The Woolworths guitar of the seventies far outclassed it.

Here's a Woolworths Top Twenty I did some work on a while back.



Brilliant neck. Had stayed lovely and straight all these years. Sadly the body had bowed.

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No no and no

Good grief, Deja Vu attack..

Is that a Kay Niki? Been too many years since I saw one of those. I had the Bass version..

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Fender Highway & Classic 60s Strats, Fender Toronado, Telecaster, Gretsch Projet, Charvel 3, PRS SE Soapbar II & Custom 24, Burns Batwing and many others!

Back in the late '60s my brother and I bought our first electrics that were made in Japan (which meant something very different back in the day). The headstock sticker said "Prestige". I had a two-pickup guitar but one of the pickups wasn't connected to the switch. My brother had a single p/u guitar with action so high I used to call it a cheese cutter. Had to fix the nut as best as I could and lower the bridge some. I don't think they make guitars that bad today . . . even beginner's guitars.

Adey

I was under the impression that Kay's and the oddities like the one I pictured were all made by the same people for Woolworths.
A schoolfriend loaned me a Kay guitar. Kind of like a SG. It wasn't very good.

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No no and no

Nik thanks for posting the pic of the Woolworth's guitar,I worked on one much like it but it was a 3 or possibly 4 pup model of the same guitar body with sliders for volume controls and it went by the Audition brand name but was also bought at Woolworth's.I had to wedge and shim the neck and widen the neck pocket to align the neck properly but when I had it finished it was the perfect 60s garage band guitar.
The worst Strat I ever played was back in the 70s in a club I used to go to for the Saturday jam sessions.The band there was a 3 piece and the guitar player had a fairly new Strat but it had the worst setup I'd ever seen.The strings were unevenly spaced and the bridge saddles were all at vastly different heights and the intonation was non existant. I offered to lend the poor guy one of mine while I did a proper set up on his but he said that he liked it the way it was.Make no wonder they sounded so bad.Anyway needless to say I didn't jam that Saturday.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

i have played to starcasters in my life and they are the worst guitars i have ever played.

The first one was my friends. I looks great a, a nice vintage looking sunburst but the moment you pick it up you feel how cheap it is. First the frets are really sharp moving up the fretboard will cause you to get a few cuts on your hand. My brothers first guitar was a starcaster. the frets are also sharp and the bridge was not put on properly so it started to come off the bridge. It amazes me that fender allows these guitars to be made.

Re the Starcaster:What's so sad about that is they took the name of a classic Fender model that's been out of production for years and stuck it on an inferior POS.I guess that means we'll never see a Starcaster II reissue of the 70s classic made.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

FROM


TO



How sad

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I LIKE PIE!!!!!

IF I DO SOMETHING STUPID,DON'T SAY A WORD...

Gee, nobody's mentioned the new gaming guitars: The Rise of the Six String guitar and controller (can use it on Guitar Hero if you want) and the new Squier "Rock Band" Strat/controller.

I have a Rise of The Six String and it won't stay in tune, buzzes, has a plastic neck and barely qualifies as a guitar. Back when he was 10 or 12, in the early 60's my brother had a Silvertone so bad you could put your fingers under the strings! I don't know if he still has it...I hope not unless it has vintage value.

I haven't heard about the Rock Band Strat. Pricey, at $300.

I think every Strat owner would benefit from The Stratocaster Book. Cheapest "upgrade" you can make. My MIM is my first Fender and, using the book, in no time I was adjusting the neck, adjusting (just slightly) the neck relief, measuring and setting string height and getting intonation spot on. The thing is more like a precision machine than a work of art and that means you can set it up just as you like it. It was used but the only way you could tell was the protective film on the pick-guard was removed-- and the price!

I'm getting a Jazzmaster Classic Player, new, and I'm hoping the build quality matches the Strat. I had bought the Blacktop version and the electrics were pretty bad so I traded it on the CP. Won't change how I feel about the Strat, though.

Yes Nik, it did come from Woolworths..

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Fender Highway & Classic 60s Strats, Fender Toronado, Telecaster, Gretsch Projet, Charvel 3, PRS SE Soapbar II & Custom 24, Burns Batwing and many others!