Bought my first Strat!

[The_KiD]

Well, I will be the first to say that I am a HACK guitarist. I own a Taylor Acoustic and actually owned a PRS for a short time I just did not gel with that guitar. I just had the opportunity to sell it and make some coin so I did.

Going to multiple stores and playing around, the Strat just feels like a better fit for me. I just ordered a Tobacco Sunburst Strat with the Rosewood Fretboard.. It should be here early next week. Any input on setting it up initially?

Any input is greatly appreciated..

KiD

[ELVIS]

Not a mexi-strat is it ??

[sagebrush]

Good for you that you found a guitar that fits you ! Is it a mex , jap , or usa strat ? I have a S.R.V. strat and i dropped the acton and put new pickups in it for better sound . If you want to change pickups a hot rail is a good starter pickup . I also flattened the back of the neck because the frender C shape neck fells to thick to me but its all up to you what you do to it make it fit you .

[The_KiD]

Sagebrush and Elvis,

Thanks for the attention.. Yes, it is a Standard Strat Made in Mexico. I have really got to focus on playing better before I sink the money into a better axe... I played around with both the american made and the mexican ones. I really could not tell that big of a difference.

However, I did get to play around with the new Eric Johnson Edition Strat and that thing was cool...

KiD

[sagebrush]

The custom strats are far better than the off the wall strats and a u.s.a. strat is better made, better sounding ,better fell , better necks (,and i could go on) than the mexican strats . If the mex strat fells better to you than thats kool and i hope you get many years of great playing out of it . You can do alot of stuff to a strat as your playing changes i play a lot of blues , metal . and jazz but i have my strat set up as if it was a faster guitar with a flat neck locking keys roller nut and evolution pick ups . I got the S.R.V. strat because of the fell of it the tex - mex pickups never gave me the sound i liked so i put hot rails in and it made it a hole other monster .And i put evolution pick ups in it not to long ago and its just like a new guitar to me now so just play it and when your playing changes you can change the strat for very little $ . USA of mex or jap a strat is a good all round guitar and i hope you have it a long time and play it to death .

[Nitro Express]

I bought a 70's reissue Strat made in Mexico and it was perfect off the rack setup wise and stays in tune wonderful. I just needed to adjust the pickup hieght a bit. But of course I like big U shaped necks.

You do get better workmanship on the US made Fenders but the Mexican made ones can be a good bargain. Henry Garza of the Los Lonely Boys uses Mexican Strats and he gets a great tone.

Strats really vary as far as neck radius and shape go. The pickups in differenct models vary too.

Strats are industructable though. They will last a long time and you can leave them out of the case without worry of the headstock snapping off and the dirtier and more scratched up they become, the cooler they look.

Hope you enjoy it!

[ELVIS]

I like the 70's reissue from Mexico, but the price is too high...

[jhale667]

Originally posted by ELVIS
I like the 70's reissue from Mexico, but the price is too high...


...Especially considering the hardware is waaaay substandard compared to the USAs. Ever compare an American Vintage bridge to a Mexi one? The American one weighs about 2lbs more and is way more sturdy. Not saying they suck, but were I ever to buy one, the first thing I would change is the hardware. Then the pickups....;)

[ELVIS]

Yes I have and yes, you are correct sir...

That mexican hardware looks as though if you were to play it on a hot and sweaty night, it would be rusty before you wake up...


:elvis:

[Hardrock69]

I have a Taco Jazz Bass from 1996. Not bad, but needs new pickups, and yes...I would dig some heavy-duty hardware. The bridge on this one, though not "bad", is obviously cheap.

[sagebrush]

The Wilkinson tremolos are good to replace the stock ones .

[jhale667]

Is that a drop-in for a Mexi , or an American? The mounting-screw spacings are different.

[sagebrush]

You can get it for the standard strats . But i think you have to do some mod on all of them .

[Nitro Express]

My 70's reissue has a better quality bridge in it than the Standard Mexi Strat. The whammy bar is different too. Nothing has rusted on it yet but I know some of that Mexican hardware will rust real quick. I think the reissue series is better quality than the standard Mexican strats hardware wise.

[sagebrush]

Originally posted by jhale667
Is that a drop-in for a Mexi , or an American? The mounting-screw spacings are different.

The one i got for my old strat the holes are slotted so it will fit all strats . The outside holes are the same on all of them the 4 inside holes are spaced different . But this will fit all of them well thats what thay say .

[jhale667]

Ok, I can kind of see that in the pic now that you mention it...good to know.