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Post subject: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 7:06 pm
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I have a stratocaster that i know next to nothing about. A friend of mine was left it in a will from one of his elderly patients. He gave it to me knowing that I love to play music. I am having some financial difficulties and was wondering if it was worth selling. the only conclusion i could come to after researching is I need someone else to do it. there is no way i am going to take it apart.

http://imgur.com/EiFn9zz

http://imgur.com/Y1ozmJ9

http://imgur.com/zKhLPUl


thank you in advance for your help!!


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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 7:08 pm
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http://imgur.com/FxYZ4rI

http://imgur.com/8Jw4ay9

here is a couple more pix


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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 7:40 pm
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Hi lowrentstranger,

Hmmm, lack of serial number anywhere, makes it difficult to determine exactly what it is. It looks like a hard-tail from the 70's with the flat pole pieces on the pups, but not a real one, due to lack of serial number and pearloid dots. It also looks like a newer Classic Series 70's, MIM, but I don't remember those coming in a hard-tail version. :?

If I had to guess, I would say Japanese, with a fake headstock decal. Just a guess though

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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 2:49 am
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I've checked out knock off stratocasters, and the common"tell tale" signs of a knock off are absent. That's not to say it isn't fake, but it sure is a high quality counterfeit. Is there any other online resources I can use?


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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 7:19 am
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Well here is a possibility - it is a real Fender but it's an assembly of a 1977 or later hard tail body with a neck from before 1976 when the serial number decal moved to the headstock. I'm thinking 1977 or later for the body since it has the all black hardware. It could be that someone bought the hard tail with a maple board neck and just swapped it for a rosewood board neck from a slightly older one that had the serial number on the neck plate - but only switched necks (so this person might have another Strat that has 2 serial numbers - one on the headstock and one on the neck plate).

What I'm not sure about is the headstock decal - I thought that they all had some patent numbers until the serial number moved to the headstock. Did the hard tail Strats from say 1974-early 1976 not have the patent numbers on the decal?


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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 7:32 am
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I am thinking that it is a 70's strat that someone has replaced the neck plate (although why is anyones guess). Everything says 70's strat except that neck plate.

It certainly appears to be a fine guitar.

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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 8:28 am
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Lack of a serial number means you really have to disassemble the guitar and examine everything carefully to come to any firm conclusions about it. If you're unwilling to do that and take comprehensive pics and post them here, then you need to take it to an expert and let him disassemble it and examine it.

That's probably the best thing to do anyway -- being able to actually look at things in person allows you to move them around, get in close, change the angle of the light, notice faint markings that have faded, etc.

As everyone has said, the lack of a serial number (either on the headstock or the neck plate) is a huge red flag. It means that at best its a parts guitar assembled from two or more Fender Strats. Or it may be a mix of Fender parts and non-Fender parts.

If it was all original and all stock (again to be clear -- it's not), it would be worth at most a couple grand (more or less -- I haven't been tracking '70s market values recently -- but certainly not more than 3 grand). As a likely partsocaster, you'd get the most money disassembling it and selling the pieces separately.


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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 8:31 am
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What about the pearloid dots on the neck?

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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 8:36 am
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John C wrote:
What I'm not sure about is the headstock decal - I thought that they all had some patent numbers until the serial number moved to the headstock. Did the hard tail Strats from say 1974-early 1976 not have the patent numbers on the decal?


Several of the patents referred to the trem patents, so they may indeed have not put them on hardtails.

But shouldn't there also be an "Original Contour Body" decal on that head?

In the '70s and '80s there were Japanese copy necks with bullet truss rods, and Fender decals were easy to get back then.

Without a much closer examination it's really impossible to authenticate that guitar.


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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 9:29 am
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The dots, the Made in USA, the lack of a serial number on the headstock tell me that it is not from the 70s. The gold outline looks too thick too.

When Fender went to the serial number on the headstock, they lost the patent number and the Contour Body decals, and added the Made in USA decal.

It looks nice. But what it really is? We need more pictures of it disassembled.

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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 2:06 pm
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Looking at the headstocks of my '76 and '79 Strats, the headstock for this guitar is definately not a '76 or earlier. I'm thinking '77 or later. The sereal number could have been removed. A little sandpaper and elbow grease is all it takes.

As to the period fret markers, that's completely ligit. The black on black parts would be correct as well.

The best way to determine the authentisty of this guitar would be take it apart and photograph the following:

1. The heal of the neck. There should be a series of numbers stamped on the end.
2. The back of the guitar showing the body contours.
3. The pickup cavity.
4. A close up photo of the bridge.
5. A photo of the upper part of the body contour. The best way to discribe this to hold the guitar as if you are playing it and look down. I need to see a photograph of where your right arm would rest.

you can send photos to my personal e-mail at parist1@hotmail.com


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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 2:45 pm
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Looking at Strats at Gbase, I did see a 1981 neck that would look like that one if you sanded off the serial number.

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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 3:09 pm
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I was thinking about your question about how much it might be worth. According to my vintage guitar price guide, depending on year, it could be worth between $2,200 - $2,700 for a Strat from the late '70s in excellent condition. Again, with the serial number missing, you might never get anywhere near that much.

The number stamped on the base of the neck will tell you everything you need to know.
With that number, I can tell you the exact date that neck was made down to the day.

The best you might do is part the guitar out, but personally, I wouldn't. Keep it, play it and enjoy it. If the guitar is ligit, then you have something worth holding on to. By the way, what kind of case did it come with?


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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 8:39 pm
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It came with and rectangle fender hard case. I am really hoping it's real, but that hope is starting to fade.
I can try and get pix of the case, it's still with the person that I got the guitar from. I'll text him and see if he can send me pix.


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Post subject: Re: Can someone help me identify my strat?
Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 11:10 pm
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Strange he would give you the guitar, but keep the case. :?


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