Hi all.
I new to fender guitars and i've got my hands on my first strat. Im trying to identify its age.
The photos below dont show the paint that well but it definitely looks like dark red metallic paint.
I got the guitar in a guitar swap with a friend for a gibson les paul as i need a strat for a band im in. so hopefully it was a good deal on my part, Im interested to hear your thoughts.
Cheers all.
Jas.






Looks like 8 0 with a number 2 inside the 0, its written in pencil.






The scratch plate looks like a pale blue colour but could just be aged white plate.
Over all the guitar plays extremely well and sound good, Stays perfectly in tune. So overal im pleased with it as an instrument but keen to find out more of its history.

Cheers
Jas.

A Squier with a bastardized headstock decal, changed tuners, and a "Fender - Corona" neckplate.

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

Hi jasonmusicman,

Yep, Retroverbial nailed it.

If you are really happy with it that's great, it is a nice looker and if it plays well, even better, that's all that matters, and I'm glad for you. However, if you had a Gibson Les Paul, even a Studio model in rough shape, it would be worth a sack full of these Impostocasters. You could do a lot better in a trade, say a good used Am Std or better, depending on which Les Paul you had.

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---> "The amp should be SWITCHED OFF AND UNPLUGGED before you do this!" <---

Por favor, disculpe mi español, no se llega a la práctica con mucha frecuencia.

I think you´ve lost a friend in that trade.

Cheers,
Robin

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http://www.youtube.com/robinstrower
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Cheers guys. Luckily its only on loan for now. I have to say those that this guitar plays like no squire i have ever played but hay you guys are the experts here and i will take your word for it. What would this guitar have retailed for just out of curiosity as the person i got it off bought it as a mia strat so he'll be pissed when i tell him the news. hes had it for about 10 years that i know of. oh well you win some you lose some, my hunt for a decent us start continues.
cheers guys.

jas.

Prolly around $275.

Arjay

_________________
"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

The things people try to get away with, Its a good job i came to you guys for advice before the deal was done, thanks again guys, my hunt for a MIA strat continues.
Jas.

I'm sure some others can hint at other things that are wrong but from looking at the pictures real quick I noticed some things that were amiss:

- Discoloration spots behind the decal logo (indicates one was probably sloppily removed or the new one was put on improperly leaving air bubbles)
- 2 butterfly string trees?
- Strangely wide butterfly string trees at that
- No truss rod filler cap?
- Wrong tuners
- Tuners are drilled and screwed on crooked
- Where's the serial number? (did you crop it out or is there none?)
- Neck plate has a Micro-Tilt adjust whole but the neck has no Micro-Tilt mechanism
- Glossy, vintage tinted neck on an Am. Stnd.?
- Meaningless pencil markings on the neck
- Neck radius looks too flat (12" perhaps)
- Wide, flat, non-staggered polepieces? (sometimes indicative of cheap, swapped pups).
- Screws on the pickguard are drilled way too close to the edge!
- Wrong screws (outsides should be smaller than those holding the pickups)
- Switch tip is pointy (should be more teardrop shaped)
- Plastic knobs look cheap (lettering is too dark and bold)

I'd reverse the deal if I were you. Good luck on your MIA hunt. Read some threads on spotting fakes if you're set on local dealings. If you have questions or concerns, walk away. The world won't run out of MIA Strats if you want too long to find the right one.