NZGuitars.com

I'm thinking about buying a Strat, my budget is more Mexican than USA and I tend towards the traditional specs. I saw this MIJ on the Tard and I quite like it. Seems like a good price and has a hard case too.

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/marketplace ... 4074121764

I owned a MIJ Tele and that was a good guitar.

Any thoughts ?

sizzlingbadger wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:33 am I'm thinking about buying a Strat, my budget is more Mexican than USA and I tend towards the traditional specs. I saw this MIJ on the Tard and I quite like it. Seems like a good price and has a hard case too.

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/marketplace ... 4074121764

I owned a MIJ Tele and that was a good guitar.

Any thoughts ?

Current playing an 87 Japanese made Squier and it's a mean guitar.

Has seen a few upgrades electronically, but the overall playability is fantastic.

The one in the listing looks real nice. Classic colour!!!

They're nice, but what really twists my undies about MIJ/vintage Fenders is the heel adjust truss rod and the tuners that don't take a thick string (I think .052 is the thickest they'll take if I recall my MIJ strat), along with the skinny narrow vintage fretwire and you've got a guitar I never want to play again. I bought my MIJ strat for cheap but wouldn't buy another.

If the specs are your cup of tea though then have at it, although the current Player Series strats are seriously good guitars and a few hundred cheaper on the used market. The Nick Johnston Schecter is also another brilliant 'strat style' guitar that has some premium stuff on there - ebony board, roasted maple neck, spoke wheel truss rod, locking tuners etc - that's a real nice package.

sizzlingbadger wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:33 am I'm thinking about buying a Strat, my budget is more Mexican than USA and I tend towards the traditional specs. I saw this MIJ on the Tard and I quite like it. Seems like a good price and has a hard case too.

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/marketplace ... 4074121764

I owned a MIJ Tele and that was a good guitar.

Any thoughts ?

that sounds like a really good deal. I like the colour also I also like that it does not have vintage neck radius.

Is this an option for you also? 1983 3-bolt Squire, Japan

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/marketplace ... 4076903002

sizzlingbadger wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:33 am I'm thinking about buying a Strat….

Any thoughts ?

Don’t do it.

Is that the sort of help you’re after?

sizzlingbadger wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:33 am I'm thinking about buying a Strat, my budget is more Mexican than USA and I tend towards the traditional specs. I saw this MIJ on the Tard and I quite like it. Seems like a good price and has a hard case too.

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/marketplace ... 4074121764

I owned a MIJ Tele and that was a good guitar.

Any thoughts ?

60s and olympic white, can't go wrong!!

sizzlingbadger wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:33 am I'm thinking about buying a Strat, my budget is more Mexican than USA and I tend towards the traditional specs. I saw this MIJ on the Tard and I quite like it. Seems like a good price and has a hard case too.

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/marketplace ... 4074121764

I owned a MIJ Tele and that was a good guitar.

Any thoughts ?

I have a mexican strat I bought after an afternoon of trying lots of mostly more expensive Strat (and I had the cash to play with). It's great. But, it's a player series, and when I've tried other player series Strats I haven't found one that is as good, and some were awful to play for some reason. But Japan might have more consistent quality.

vintage52 wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:38 am

Current playing an 87 Japanese made Squier and it's a mean guitar.

Slight note to add to this, there is an 80's production period of these Japanese Squiers that have a reputation of being way better than they should be. Having played an 80's Japanese Squier that was absolutely sublime and one of my favourite guitars I've ever played, it's not just urban myth. However it was the local music shop guitar tech's personal "forever" guitar and he knew what he had, you may have something similar. Other Japanese Fenders or Squiers may not be the same.

Danger Mouse wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 12:56 pm

vintage52 wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:38 am

Current playing an 87 Japanese made Squier and it's a mean guitar.

Slight note to add to this, there is an 80's production period of these Japanese Squiers that have a reputation of being way better than they should be. Having played an 80's Japanese Squier that was absolutely sublime and one of my favourite guitars I've ever played, it's not just urban myth. However it was the local music shop guitar tech's personal "forever" guitar and he knew what he had, you may have something similar. Other Japanese Fenders or Squiers may not be the same.

This is an E series 87 Squier. Not the JV but of that rough period.

vintage52 wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 12:58 pm

Danger Mouse wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 12:56 pm

vintage52 wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:38 am

Current playing an 87 Japanese made Squier and it's a mean guitar.

Slight note to add to this, there is an 80's production period of these Japanese Squiers that have a reputation of being way better than they should be. Having played an 80's Japanese Squier that was absolutely sublime and one of my favourite guitars I've ever played, it's not just urban myth. However it was the local music shop guitar tech's personal "forever" guitar and he knew what he had, you may have something similar. Other Japanese Fenders or Squiers may not be the same.

This is an E series 87 Squier. Not the JV but of that rough period.

I've just been googling it, yeah that makes sense as an '87. Seems there was plenty of quality variation even with the JV series as well. I don't know what part of the 80's the one I played was from, or if it was a JV, but I'd heard about that period of production and I remember thinking "oh, this is one of those Japanese Squiers".

GrantB wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 12:11 pm

sizzlingbadger wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:33 am I'm thinking about buying a Strat….

Any thoughts ?

Don’t do it.

Is that the sort of help you’re after?

That is probably the best advice tbh, I'm more of a Tele guy really.

sizzlingbadger wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 1:18 pm

GrantB wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 12:11 pm

sizzlingbadger wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 9:33 am I'm thinking about buying a Strat….

Any thoughts ?

Don’t do it.

Is that the sort of help you’re after?

That is probably the best advice tbh, I'm more of a Tele guy really.

I thought I was too until I got a Strat

jeremyb wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 1:59 pm

sizzlingbadger wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 1:18 pm

GrantB wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 12:11 pm

Don’t do it.

Is that the sort of help you’re after?

That is probably the best advice tbh, I'm more of a Tele guy really.

I thought I was too until I got a Strat

This. Neck pickup, volume rolled off into your fave fuzz into short delay into amp on the edge of break-up... Gets me tingly every time.
Hate positions 2 and 4 with a vengeance, though.

IMOCD wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 2:12 pm

jeremyb wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 1:59 pm

sizzlingbadger wrote: ↑Thu Apr 13, 2023 1:18 pm

That is probably the best advice tbh, I'm more of a Tele guy really.

I thought I was too until I got a Strat

This. Neck pickup, volume rolled off into your fave fuzz into short delay into amp on the edge of break-up... Gets me tingly every time.
Hate positions 2 and 4 with a vengeance, though.

Position 4 is all about me, a clean amp with a gentle bit of OD, beautiful tones for days... the funny thing is all my favourite guitarists were strat players yet I didn't own one....