Hello Everyone,
I made an impulse buy last night on ebay and today I think I should have looked into it more closely. The item was listed as "FENDER STRATOCASTER GUITAR 62 MIJ". I have heard from time to time that a MIJ or CIJ strat could often be as good if not better than an American but I don't have the experience to know if that is true. So, when I saw this one I put in a bid not really thinking I would win but, I did. Normally, that would be cause for celebration and possibly still could be but now that I have had time to look at the images provided and compare those to what the net has to offer and things just aren't lining up. For one, I was told that a '62 reissue did not have a Floyd Rose tremolo or locking nut but my new guitar does. I was told that a '62 reissue has one string tree but my new guitar has a one piece bar for all strings, there is more but I wanted to ask if anyone here could possibly help me identify what it is I just bought. Here are a few images to help so if anyone has an opinion, idea or a comment, I would appreciate hearing it. Thanks, Charlie

Hi malachi_s,

What you were told is correct, definitely not a 62 reissue, but a nice Japanese Strat from the looks of it. It does have a 62 look, pick guard screw-hole pattern, RW neck and it's dot spacing. Seems like a nice Strat, and I can't tell what pups you have.

The title of the ad might "suggest" 62 reissue, as it says "62", but did they actually claim a "62 reissue", or what?

_________________
---> "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.

Thanks shimmilou, yeah, he kinda did led me into thinking it was a reissue but hey, it could still be a very good instrument. I like how it looks and I hope it plays as good as it looks. I won't know for a week or so but I am curious as to whether it is the v neck or the c shape. There is a 50's reissue at the local music shop where I live, I take it off the wall every time I go in there. It is the V cut, it just feels good in my hands. I am currently playing a MIM 2004 Standard and say what you will, it is a good playing guitar. It has the C shaped neck so if the stars align maybe I will get a V. Anyway, thanks for your input, I appreciate it.

+1

It looks like what Fender-Japan used to market as a "contemporary Strat".

Nice guitar!

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

Japanese made Fender Stratocaster. Not a 62. Unfortunately, you have to take the neck off this model to adjust the truss rod.
Its a legit Fender, but next time, ask before you hit the bid button.
Enjoy.

This is a piece of Fenders history. They were built from mid 1987-1988(?), one year.
Original Schaller Germany Floyd Rose (!), best hardware available.
The condition is mint. This is one rare guitar and I would love to have one of those, it looks really great. Congratulation

Cheers,
Robin

_________________
_________________________________
http://www.youtube.com/robinstrower
_________________________________

$414 for that is a great price... nice guitar.. you did well...

nice color too... I am jealous....

No need for remorse on that buy...

If you want to re-sell it to me... Ill buy it for $450... No joke...

_________________
In Reference to Blues Legend RL Burnside:
After a heart attack in 2001, Burnside's doctor advised him to stop drinking; Burnside did, but he reported that change left him unable to play.

I've never played one of these, but I do recognize this model. Definitely a real Fender Stratocaster. Nice.

looks like a genuine Fender, but definately not a 62' reissue. It has some 60's-ish looks to it, but as you mentioned, a reissue would not have the Floyd Rose or any of it's associated hardware because they didn't exist yet in the 60's.

Like someone else said, it looks like a "contemporary strat". The Floyd is original hardware to the guitar based on the routing behind the cavity for the back of the floyd. If it was a reissue with an added floyd the routing behind the bridge would probably not be done or would be more obvious that it was aftermarket.

Enjoy this guitar - Japanese Fender's (and the Japanese Squire guitars from the mid 80's) are excellent guitars and starting to become collectable too.

Thanks to everyone who commented, I think I am going to be very happy with this one. I also think the price was great, but as I mentioned, I really never thought my bid would win. It is the price actually that had me concerned, I was expecting it to go for much more but I am certainly not complaining. Anyway, thanks again everyone, I'll let you know how it plays. Oh and what Robinstrat said, limited strat, that is a nice feature but the sound is what I am really looking forward to. And the comment about asking first before pulling the trigger, I couldn't agree more with that, this was deffinately an impulse buy.

as long as the price is right, then its all good. Cool looking guitar, the basis for Charvel's model lineup...

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


facebook.com/313DBC

I had never heard of Charvel, I must have lived a sheltered life in Indiana, well, some pretty good musicians have come from around here. Just looking at Charvel's site, it appears they are into a metal sound, just my first impression, I am after a blues sound. Albert King, BB, Stevie Ray, and so many others. The things that bugs me is I sold my old Marshall tube amp a few years ago when I thought I was going to just play my acoustic, then a year ago I bought my mim strat, I had an old Epi SG that I scratched an itch with now and then but now I am going to try to regain my motivation for aggressive blues. (Smile) but all I have is a Fender Princeton chorus and a couple of pedals. It's not a bad amp for SS but it isn't my Marshall. Interesting comment about Charvel though, I need to at least read up on that a little. In a Peter Frampton interview I heard him talk about when he lost is LS in a plane crash, he also lost his mojo. I am hoping with my new purchase I discover my mojo.