Which Strat?

Used mexi strats can be pretty cheap, or put some tuners on a Squier that feels good to you. Cheap guitar does not necessarily always mean bad guitar.

davis224 wrote:

Used mexi strats can be pretty cheap, or put some tuners on a Squier that feels good to you. Cheap guitar does not necessarily always mean bad guitar.

x2. It always takes me a while to get used to a Strat when I play one, but once I do, I notice that they are all pretty rock solid. Even the cheap ones. Stay away from the imitation brands and get one with a Fender label and you're pretty much golden.

I noticed people like the Squier Deluxes two point trem mount, but hate the tuning machines on it. Is the 6 screw mount on the MIM Strat really a problem? I could get the Squier and string trees and tuners on it but then I think I'd but at the new price of the MIM right?

Get a real fender not a squier. Mexican made ones from the 90s or early 2000s are a pretty good compromise of price and quality. Personally I never use tremolos so I would cut a piece of wood about the thickness of the space in between the back of the bottom of the trem (where the springs connect) and the body of the guitar. I would stick that piece in there then loosen the screws of the claw so the trem would hit that wood as a hard stop when the strings we're under tension. You can always just tighten those screws back up if you want to get wild with the tromolo.

Skip the MIM Strats if you want a Straty sounding guitar. For some reason Fender installed the least "strat sounding" pickups in their MIM models. I had a 2016 MIM Strat and while the guitar was great the pickups lacked that Strat quak and honk. I would buy a Squire Deluxe or maybe a Squire Vintage Modified.

MIM Strats are good to go for the most part. Every guitar is different tho.
I’ve got a 1990 Strat and it suits me like a glove. I’ve also got a 2000 Strat that I keep at my parents house but it rarely gets played, the mojo isn’t as strong with that one but it’s still a good guitar. I worked in a nice guitar shop and have played several high-end US Strats that were hit or miss with me but my 1990 is my favorite.

I usually dont like to do this but I will give my opinion on strats.
Any strat is a relatively cheaply made guitar. Everything Leo did in the design was geared around cost. The neck can be made from a 1 x 3 because it's not a tilt back and it's bolted on. The body is usually made from Alder with little or no attention to grain appearance because they are heavily tinted or painted. Besides, most of the the front is thin plastic anyway because it makes it easy to rout wiring. The pickups are simple and cheap to make.
All that being said, I love the sound. I have a mim and used it on most of my Floyd covers which many on here have heard. It's a sound that is all it's own. I build guitars and the difference between building a strat and a les paul is huge, but I love the way my mim strat sounds. If you want to pay $2500.00 for a strat, buy it from me, otherwise a Squire or mim will be just fine. You will love it.

The one on the left is one that I built. Carve top, tilt back neck, minimal plastic, recessed control covers, blah blah. The one next to it is a mim. I defy anybody to tell me which one I'm using on a given song.

Excellent info gents much appreciated, I have a couple of local deals that look like decent options, one is a modded squire delux with new loaded pick guard and new tuners, and then a nice mim used at local shop. I keep reading that the two point trem on the deluxe is better than the 6 bolt mim. Do you think it makes a difference at how well it stays in tune? If I’m not using the trem would it even matter?

Mx746 wrote:

Excellent info gents much appreciated, I have a couple of local deals that look like decent options, one is a modded squire delux with new loaded pick guard and new tuners, and then a nice mim used at local shop. I keep reading that the two point trem on the deluxe is better than the 6 bolt mim. Do you think it makes a difference at how well it stays in tune? If I’m not using the trem would it even matter?

I personally wouldn’t get a Squier, but I did have one as my first electric guitar. Modifying a Squier is like modifying a v6 mustang imo tho. At the end of the day, it’s still a v6 and wasn’t a great platform to mod

As far as the tremolo systems, I wouldn’t worry much about it. Almost everyone I know that plays a Strat has the trem either blocked, or added springs to keep it from moving. (The nut also plays a big part in staying in tune if you use the tremolo)

Mx746 wrote:

Excellent info gents much appreciated, I have a couple of local deals that look like decent options, one is a modded squire delux with new loaded pick guard and new tuners, and then a nice mim used at local shop. I keep reading that the two point trem on the deluxe is better than the 6 bolt mim. Do you think it makes a difference at how well it stays in tune? If I’m not using the trem would it even matter?

Kelz87 wrote:

I personally wouldn’t get a Squier, but I did have one as my first electric guitar. Modifying a Squier is like modifying a v6 mustang imo tho. At the end of the day, it’s still a v6 and wasn’t a great platform to mod

As far as the tremolo systems, I wouldn’t worry much about it. Almost everyone I know that plays a Strat has the trem either blocked, or added springs to keep it from moving. (The nut also plays a big part in staying in tune if you use the tremolo)

Yeah, I don't really have tuning problems with the MIM. It's a floating setup the same as the one I built. I watch guys tune their guitars and shake my head. You NEVER bring it into tune tuning down. Only up and that's after you tug on that sucker. Most tuning issues are from bad habits and bad initial winding on the post.

Thanks for the help guys, I think I'll pick up the used MIM thats listed near me. The plan, crank up the worst "beginner song" I can think of until they offer huge discount to get me out of the store...theres usually a sign somewhere right? "No Stairway, No Smoke on the Water...etc"

My strat was a '12 Standard. Picked it up for $300 with a case. Sometimes I choose to play it over my Gretsch Tennessee Rose, my american Standard Tele, and my Duesenberg Starplayer Tv.

I talked with my fender/gretsch rep, and he informed me that the Mexican strats of that time period were all assembled with pickups that were disassembled from old stock left over 70's strat pickups found in an old fender warehouse. If you can get your hands on a used mexican fender strat from this era, you have your hands on a gold mine that not to many people know about. Just saying. Its worth looking into.

borg wrote:

I usually dont like to do this but I will give my opinion on strats.
Any strat is a relatively cheaply made guitar. Everything Leo did in the design was geared around cost. The neck can be made from a 1 x 3 because it's not a tilt back and it's bolted on. The body is usually made from Alder with little or no attention to grain appearance because they are heavily tinted or painted. Besides, most of the the front is thin plastic anyway because it makes it easy to rout wiring. The pickups are simple and cheap to make.
All that being said, I love the sound. I have a mim and used it on most of my Floyd covers which many on here have heard. It's a sound that is all it's own. I build guitars and the difference between building a strat and a les paul is huge, but I love the way my mim strat sounds. If you want to pay $2500.00 for a strat, buy it from me, otherwise a Squire or mim will be just fine. You will love it.

The one on the left is one that I built. Carve top, tilt back neck, minimal plastic, recessed control covers, blah blah. The one next to it is a mim. I defy anybody to tell me which one I'm using on a given song.

If anybody is buying a $2,500 strat that isn't a Suhr, they're nuts...

Mx746 wrote:

Thanks for the help guys, I think I'll pick up the used MIM thats listed near me. The plan, crank up the worst "beginner song" I can think of until they offer huge discount to get me out of the store...theres usually a sign somewhere right? "No Stairway, No Smoke on the Water...etc"

Here's a few more songs that are forbidden. Play them all:
-Message in a bottle
-Day Tripper
-Tom Sawyer (honorable mention goes to YYZ)

Mx746 wrote:

Thanks for the help guys, I think I'll pick up the used MIM thats listed near me. The plan, crank up the worst "beginner song" I can think of until they offer huge discount to get me out of the store...theres usually a sign somewhere right? "No Stairway, No Smoke on the Water...etc"

Falcon wrote:

Here's a few more songs that are forbidden. Play them all:
-Message in a bottle
-Day Tripper
-Tom Sawyer (honorable mention goes to YYZ)

Just put it in drop D, then tune'em all down a half step, max out the gain, and go to town on the 0-3-5 chords in any rhythm that comes to you.

borg wrote:

I usually dont like to do this but I will give my opinion on strats.
Any strat is a relatively cheaply made guitar. Everything Leo did in the design was geared around cost. The neck can be made from a 1 x 3 because it's not a tilt back and it's bolted on. The body is usually made from Alder with little or no attention to grain appearance because they are heavily tinted or painted. Besides, most of the the front is thin plastic anyway because it makes it easy to rout wiring. The pickups are simple and cheap to make.
All that being said, I love the sound. I have a mim and used it on most of my Floyd covers which many on here have heard. It's a sound that is all it's own. I build guitars and the difference between building a strat and a les paul is huge, but I love the way my mim strat sounds. If you want to pay $2500.00 for a strat, buy it from me, otherwise a Squire or mim will be just fine. You will love it.

The one on the left is one that I built. Carve top, tilt back neck, minimal plastic, recessed control covers, blah blah. The one next to it is a mim. I defy anybody to tell me which one I'm using on a given song.

I am going with the one on the left. I would love to hear more about that one.