Same here, just haven't seen one to try it out first.

I would guess that if you surveyed strat owners, you may find that the vast majority not only don't use the trem, but don't even know where the arm is. Out of 5 strats that I've bought, only one seller who I bought from could find the arm.......and it was burried under a bunch of crap.

I'd prefer a hardtail from the get go.

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2002 mim Telecaster
Jimmie Vaughan Stratocaster
Mexican HSS Stratocaster
6 non-fender guitars
2 kids (not for sale)
1 wife (uh....no comment)

I like the trem design for the Strat. It's simple and it works. $@!& Floyd Rose, don't want to spend an hour changing strings. I could be playing and learning new tricks in that time.

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1984 Squier Contemporary Stratocaster
1986 Peavey Envoy 110
1967 Kingston Acoustic

Wish I wouldn't bought a hard tail. I love my Am Std, but would love it even more if the tuning was more stable. The eighties kind of killed my love of the tremolo bar.

Thanks! I like it - it's a great guitar. It was about 12 years old when I bought it. Body and neck are great - great action, very playable and the tuning is super stable.

The only problem I've had with it is some issues with the electronics. I replaced the stock electronics with the guts from a MIM Standard and then replaced those pick-ups with CS Fat 50s. Problem solved.

That seems to match what I've heard about the 80s MIJ models - well built but the electronics can be kind of wonky. I paid $150 for it - and even adding the investment I put into updating the electronics I'm well under $500.

And going back to the question of the thread with some more detail - I've never played with a trem and none of what I play really requires it, so even though I already have a hard-tail strat, I would consider another one, depending on other factors. To be honest, though, I think I may lean to something more like a Tele (or maybe something with humbuckers) when I get around to getting a second electric, just to have something a little different.

I bend a full step at the 5th fret on the high E and B strings on my AM hardtails and they hold a great tune. You can do Tele style double bends and trust the instrument to ring true. I love Tele's but perfer the contoured body and in-between sounds I get on a strat.

As most of you long timers here on this Fender forum already know I am new to your forum but not to picking and playing Fenders. I've already put in over 30 years bending, pulling, chicken picking, holding 2 strings and pulling 2 strings both above the nut and below it

I'm a hard core country, Western Swing, Jazz, 60's and 70's rock, blues and blue grass picking fool Please notice my verbiage never said I was good or even mediocre LOL I just love picking a Fender! I have a lot of respect for other brand name guitars but I've only played/owned 2 other brand name guitars in my entire life one was a Paul and the other was a Kramer the Paul was fun to play jazz and swing on and the Kramer was fun rocking out on but neither one of them stayed in my stable for more than a year.

My 1st strat was an early 70's Strat hard tail and it is still my favorite guitar and my 2nd favorite is a mid 80's japan strat and it had the knife blade Tremolo on it and the first thing I did was put 5 springs on it and screw it as tight as possible then later I learned the hardwood block trick and it's still locked down.

When your main style of playing is string bending and pulling and you have a HARD touch as I do the last thing I is something working against your string bending and pulling

Just recently I bought a MIM Players Strat with the Fender Tremolo system built in and so far we are getting along quite good.

So to answer your question yes I would buy a new Fender Strat hard tail in a heart beat Thanks for letting me be a part of your great forum!!

stratguy

+1!

And if you can't find one, build one......!





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

Well, seeing as we're sharing pics now:



And a close-up of the hard-tail bridge (The saddles are not stock - these are string savers):



And the back (string through):



EDIT: Fixed image links.

I'd definitely buy a hardtail Strat. My only reservation is that I wouldn't want it to weigh too much. A lot of the 70s hardtail Strats were boat anchors. If Fender would make a hardtail MIM Strat that would come in around 7 pounds, I'd be there. As a pure bonus, I'd want a large headstock to complete the total 70s vibe.

Does make you wonder why there isn't an American standard, highway one, or AM Special that isn't a hard tail. They done just about everything else on those guitars. (Floyd Rose, Kahler Trem, SSS, HSS, HH, pre CBS headstock, 70's headstock, 9.5, 7.5, 12 radiuses, but no hardtails...)

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"Epitaph on a blues musician’s tombstone: “I didn’t wake up this morning”" Davy Knowles


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I would definitately consider buying one!

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Like I said, hardtail = hardtosell. For an FSR series they might sell a few, but the sales for production hardtails have historically been pretty anemic for Fender.

That said, if they'd make an American Deluxe hardtail with small (dark lacquered) headstock with a compound radiused rosewood board and the N3 pups in a 706 Black, I'd stock up!

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A bunch of Strats, some Gibsons, a couple clonewheels, a few Fender amps, various stompboxes

+1

I think I read somewhere once that the ratio of trems to hardtails for production years 1955 to 1959 was something like 240 to 1 (it may have been Wheeler's book).

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

Coming from a guy that boasts more about his collection of stop tailpiece Gibson that his strats, I can see why you'd want one too.

_________________
"Epitaph on a blues musician’s tombstone: “I didn’t wake up this morning”" Davy Knowles


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