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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 3:39 pm
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Thanks, shimmilou, Chet and Arjay. I wish I was in as good a shape as the '65 is but at least my body won't need a refret soon. :)

John


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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 3:47 pm
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John Sims wrote:
Very nice.

I think if I had a 50 year old Strat I would have to assemble a brand new one out of all Fender parts to be as close to a replica as possible....just for the fun of it to see how close you could get.

I'm not a builder so doing that would be well past the level of my talents or lack thereof. I did play one of the new American Vintage '65s and I think Fender did an excellent job on them. The main difference between the American Vintage and my original is the thicker neck profile. The neck profile on my '65 is much slimmer.

John


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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 3:58 pm
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paris wrote:
Very nice! I've heard good things about the Shawbucker. I find most modern HBs to be too mid-rangy or muddy. I've heard that these pickups breath a bit better.

Nice '65 Strat. It's pretty cool that that they are both black.

The Shawbucker is definitely not muddy and its lower output balances nicely with the Fat 50 single coils. There is also no coil splitting in position 2 and it uses the 500k pot to give the tone extra attitude. That's also a tone I haven't had in a Strat before and I like it.

I have always had a thing for black Strats. The first Strat I bought was black as was the first Custom Shop, a '56 NOS. And the Shawbucker makes three but there is always room for just one more. :)

John


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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 4:29 pm
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my56strat wrote:
It says a lot about Leo's original design, aside from the 2015 being a hotrod version(humbucker and extra fret)the strat is pretty much the same, timeless.

The 2 point tremolo is another modern change but the Strat design is timeless.

The bridge saddle adjustment screws on my '65 eventually wore out and setting the correct action became difficult to impossible. My tech asked if I would object to him replacing them and I said go ahead as long as I kept the original screws. The current American Standard screws were a perfect replacement.

That was definitely another the Strat design rocks moment.

John


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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 4:41 pm
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atolleter wrote:
So, do they make them like they used to?

Not exactly but I'm a fan of the modern American Stratocaster. The biggest improvement to me was putting Fat 50s pickups in the 2012 and later models. Tim Shaw's Shawbucker added another dimension this year and this is the first HSS Strat I can love.

I'm all for vintage Fenders but I like diversity in my collection. That's why I have two recent American Standards mixed in with a vintage, a Custom Shop, an American Vintage and three excellent MIMs. Vive la difference. :)

John


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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 5:30 pm
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Retroverbial wrote:
paris wrote:
Estheticly, I agree, but it was during this period that Leo was working on the micro tilt neck adjustment.


Leo didn't start that horseshit until some five years after selling his company. Frankly, it was a solution to a problem that didn't really exist. Then he foisted the entire concept upon FMIC who completely hosed the implementation of it which resulted in the oft-maligned "CBS era" guitars.

Arjay


+1...Fender boosted production to the point where even if they wanted to do it right they couldn't. When Leo did the three bolt neck on Music Man's ....they were rock solid because they were executed correctly.

T2

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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2015 1:49 pm
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Congrats!!!!!
I'm really fascinated by the vintage legends about Strats, so here is a question for you:
If you try not to consider the mojo of the '65 Strat, trying to focus on tone only, is your 1965 guitar any better than more recent examples? I don't have the possibility to test that myself in the real life so I'm interested in your opinion about that!
Thanks!!!
Alberto


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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2015 2:55 pm
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Nice .... All single guitars need a sibling ... 8)

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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2015 6:44 am
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Love it!!!

I played a 65 Strat once... Looked just like that one. I was really surprised the neck was no different in size/shape than the modern "c" profile...

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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2015 5:15 pm
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guitarman1984 wrote:
Congrats!!!!!
I'm really fascinated by the vintage legends about Strats, so here is a question for you:
If you try not to consider the mojo of the '65 Strat, trying to focus on tone only, is your 1965 guitar any better than more recent examples? I don't have the possibility to test that myself in the real life so I'm interested in your opinion about that!
Thanks!!!
Alberto

Hi, Alberto. Mid 60s Strats definitely have unique tones. The L Series pickups are mellower and have a slightly lower output. They're my favorite pickups for clean tones. I can plug that old Strat into a Deluxe or Twin Reverb and lose myself for a while. Then I snap out of it and realize there are things that need to be done. I hate when that happens. :)

The best demo and explanation of the tonal differences between 50s and 60s Strat pickups I have seen is in this video from Pro Guitar Shop. Andy Martin nails it.

https://youtu.be/WfsQeqDlneE

John


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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2015 5:18 pm
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53magnatone wrote:
Nice .... All single guitars need a sibling ... 8)

Ah yes, there are siblings. Many siblings. GAS is a relentless and powerful force. 8)

John


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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2015 5:30 pm
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DetroitBlues wrote:
Love it!!!

I played a 65 Strat once... Looked just like that one. I was really surprised the neck was no different in size/shape than the modern "c" profile...

My '65 has the slimmest profile C neck of any Strat I own. It's the perfect size for my small hands and the neck size and shape is what drew me to it. Learning to play barre chords on it was a pleasure.

Turned out that it was a great starter AND keeper guitar. :)

John


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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2015 1:40 pm
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john.bohn wrote:
guitarman1984 wrote:
Congrats!!!!!
I'm really fascinated by the vintage legends about Strats, so here is a question for you:
If you try not to consider the mojo of the '65 Strat, trying to focus on tone only, is your 1965 guitar any better than more recent examples? I don't have the possibility to test that myself in the real life so I'm interested in your opinion about that!
Thanks!!!
Alberto

Hi, Alberto. Mid 60s Strats definitely have unique tones. The L Series pickups are mellower and have a slightly lower output. They're my favorite pickups for clean tones. I can plug that old Strat into a Deluxe or Twin Reverb and lose myself for a while. Then I snap out of it and realize there are things that need to be done. I hate when that happens. :)

The best demo and explanation of the tonal differences between 50s and 60s Strat pickups I have seen is in this video from Pro Guitar Shop. Andy Martin nails it.

https://youtu.be/WfsQeqDlneE

John


Hello John,
Thanks for your feedback. Very interesting indeed!
Perhaps I'll have a chance to test that by myself in the future, you never know.
At least I hope......
:D


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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Tue Jun 30, 2015 6:40 am
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Retroverbial wrote:
And since Leo sold his company and departed, Fender has yet to develop and market another instrument as timeless a design as the original Stratocaster.

Looking back over the ages, it appears that each of his major efforts found a unique niche. But the Strat had something special that even won it an industrial design award.

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Post subject: Re: 2 Strats 50 Years Apart
Posted: Tue Jun 30, 2015 12:46 pm
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ZZDoc wrote:
But the Strat had something special that even won it an industrial design award.


Indeed.

IMO both Leo Fender and Les Paul deserve to be honored by a commemorative stamp issued by the USPS for their contributions to the field of contemporary music technology.

Arjay

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