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Post subject: Re: Did Fender build fake MIA Strats in 1989-90?
Posted: Mon Feb 23, 2015 2:31 pm
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Hello guys,

I know it's a bit of an old thread, but it seems that i got a fake USA start too.

A black stratocaster I bought in 94, paid about 750$, the neck says made in USA and it's the same headstock as the picture, plastic truss rod plug, the serial number starts N1 so i checked it it showed 91 but on the bottom of the neck it's stamped 1993, did the neck traveled in time??

The bridge it's the same as the Original Poster's guitar bridge so are the electronics!!! uber small cap, tiny pots, the switch is import style electronic, with one difference in the neck pocket you can actually read QUIER but no S it's not stamped clearly and there's a smudged date stamp that reads 29 JAN 1993

The body was routed HSS but the pickguard had SSS ( i modified it years ago to HSH and still modifying. the body seems to be made of some sort of white yellowish wood, when routed for HSH it looked like th emiddle of the body is made of several vertical pieces!!!! plywood???

What are these guitars? If fakes then the neck quality is REALLY good, one piece maple, great frets etc... but the body and electronics sux!

any ideas?

thanks a lot!
Cheers!!

Tony


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Post subject: Re: Did Fender build fake MIA Strats in 1989-90?
Posted: Mon Feb 23, 2015 3:54 pm
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Tony,

You did not buy a fake Strat, but you may have been sold one that is a different model than what you expected if you were after an American Standard.

I'm the original poster of this thread, and I have learned a lot since I first asked the question here. In my case, my guitar has a conventional Fender serial number that corresponds with 1989 production, but it is generally believed that in 1989, the Standard Stratocaster had not yet started production in Mexico, so therefore, in the eyes of anyone skeptical, any guitar with a Fender decal on it saying Made in America was actually a Squier guitar with a fake decal.

Despite widespread ignorance about this fact, in 1989 Fender did however sell a Standard Stratocaster that was a lower spec guitar and sold at a much lower price point. In fact, it was the precursor of what was to become the "Mexican Standard" Strat, in that the specifications were lower. In fact, these guitars were closer in spec to the Squiers of the time.

One of the best threads you can read that pertains to these guitars is this:
http://www.strat-talk.com/forum/stratoc ... strat.html
You can see a photo of a 1989 price list where this guitar is mentioned. Other photos in the thread confirm other guitars to a similar spec as yours, with what appears to be import spec electronics and the plastic sleeve at the truss rod adjustment, as was used in later Mexican Standards.

Regarding the mismatched dates of the components of your guitar, these components were made in vast batches and not necessarily used in any kind of sequence or selected to match each other during assembly.

The important point to take away is that Fender made guitars for various markets around the world, and what comprises sufficient USA-made content to qualify as MIA is a subject known only to Fender's lawyers specializing in each market. It seems clear that Fender made and sold lower spec Strats around the world that are branded as MIA, but clearly not to the same specs as what are commonly associated with the American Standard model.

One other thought is that your guitar could have had a Squier body used with the original neck, so it could be a partscaster. You would need photos for others to comment on.

If your body is stamped Squier, it may have been intended to be a Squier or in fact is one with a MIA neck. Don't forget there were MIA Squiers in 1989-92 approximately, so the Squier stamp does not rule out MIA origin. You may be able to confirm this with Fender's customer service, since they have data after about 1993. My guitar has a blurry stamp in the neck pocket, but it does not look like it says Squier.

Post some pictures of yours and I'm sure you'll get a lot of comments.


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Post subject: Re: Did Fender build fake MIA Strats in 1989-90?
Posted: Tue Feb 24, 2015 6:18 am
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So I feel like I'm coming late to the party, but I hope these two videos I produced help in some way.





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Post subject: Re: Did Fender build fake MIA Strats in 1989-90?
Posted: Sat Mar 09, 2019 12:53 am
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The pics you posted are identical to the Strat I purchased new in 1990 from a well established and reputable Fender dealer. I spoke with a Fender rep once when I was looking for compatible parts. He informed me that it was in fact a legit Fender. 1989 was the year they introduced the MIM line and there was a series of guitars assembled in California with MIM spec components. The 6 screw trem is an another immediate giveaway. They sold for about half the price of the "true" made in USA guitars but the parts are interchangeable with the same era Mexican models. I love mine, it plays and sounds fantastic. I don't care about the naysayers that insist it's not a real USA Stratocaster. If Fender says it is, that's good enough for me.


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