Project "Black Strat" Completed

So I've my Fender 'Project Black Strat' (or as some would call it a 'Partscaster' - though really the only thing 'non-fender' is the pickguard so to me it's a Fender Stratocaster ;) ) together for a few days now. To summarize it was put together from the following parts:

• 2010 Fender HighWay 1 Stratocaster body in Black Nitro
• 1992/1993 Japanese 57 Re-Issue Stratocaster Neck
• a Black Matte Warmoth Pickguard 
• a Fender Black accessory Kit

 I've tried to take some pictures with my phone, but the Matte Black really seems to be hard to photograph - so you will have to do with these two mediocre pictures:

At this point I would almost say it's my best looking guitar I have (no disrespect to my Jem or Tungsten Deluxe). The Matte Black body with matching pickguard just looks DAMN good !

Sound wise I have my 2 other Deluxe strats to compare it to and to me this one actually sounds the most like a Stratocaster Should - though it does sometimes hum like crazy (need to add that copper tape to my pickguard one of these days). The SCN pickups in my None-More-Black in comparsion sound a little sterile (though if I didn't have them side-by-side to compare I would be hard-pressed to hear the difference). The N3s in the Tungsted definitely are an improvement over the SCN and sound like a little warmer, but miss just a little bit of that 'bell' sound when using the neck or neck+middle pickup combination. Also playing a Stratocaster just always feels like coming home - like holding a sexy curvy woman (whilst a Les Paul always reminds me of someone with just too much 'junk in the trunk' ;) ). I can definitely see this being my main 'go-to' guitar for now.

I did already think of possibly switching out the pickups for something else, but then I thought: Why not built a 'twin' with the different pickup configuration in it? So i just may get another Black Highway One (whole guitar this time & keep the original neck - i've got 3 V-necks now so that's good enough for now ;) ), swap the pickguard etc again and go with a black set of DiMarzio Injectors/67 - the new Paul Gilbert Pickup set..Someone please hide my wallet from me , because I'm on a roll! ;-)

Project "Black Strat" : Step 5 - The Neck Arrives

As I described in part 2 of my Project "Black Strat" posts, I had originally wanted to go with an All-Parts 'SMNF-V' neck. The way my Telecaster neck had turned out was really nice so I figured I'd put the same neck on my project Strat. Brian had already told me he was kinda busy/not doing a lot this summer as far as guitar work was concerned and I respected the guy taking a break. I figured I'd get back in touch with him in a month or so and see how he was doing.

I had figured that this neck, including tuners, nut & work would run anywhere from 300-450ish, so while I was waiting I figured: why not see what you can get all done for that price? I checked out eBay again, and naturally there was a plethora of necks available in all shapes & sizes. Now being that I wanted a 'V-Shaped' neck the choices got drastically slimmer.

Option a) Mighty Mite Neck. Cheap.. but if I were to go that route again I'd prefer the All Parts neck.
Option b) Fender 50's Re-Issue Neck, Made In Mexico. Decent Price, Decent Neck
Option c) 2011 American Deluxe V-Shaped Neck. WOW, this is an AMAZING neck - VERY nice! It's also the same as I have now on my Tungsten Deluxe. However the Pricing (around 600) for just the neck was a little steep to go on a Highway-One body in my opinion.

Now everyone always says that All Parts is basically Fender Japan.. As I was browsing eBay trying to make up my mind as to what route to take since I didn't really want to wait much longer I notice a decent looking ,  Fender 57 Reissue "Made In Japan" Neck with a current price of a little over $100 with about a day to go.
It was listed as:

• Make/Model: Fender 57 Reissue Stratocaster Neck (ST54-EX)
• Serial #: M028590
• Nut Width: 1 11/16
• Weight: 1.6
• Features: Comes with tuners, neck plate, and screws.

A Quick look at the serial number on the Guitar Dater Project website shows:

Your guitar was made at the
Fuji-gen Plant (for Fender Japan), Japan
in the Year(s): 1992 - 1993

Fuji String Instrument Production Corporation

Fuji String Instrument Production Corporation was opened in may 1960, they initially started manufacturing violins and quickly switched to classical guitar production. In 1962 electric guitar construction was started. Fujigen has a reputation for excellent quality and craftsmanship so the guitars they produce are highly regarded. They produce guitars via OEM for famous brands such as Ibanez, Epiphone, Yamaha and Fender (the import Special Interest Group nature model), G&L and others."


I had also heard (read) lots of good things about Japanese Fenders where it was stated that their quality is nearly, if not 'as-good' as American Made Fenders.  So I entered the bidding process. I had to up my bid a few times, and by the end of the day - having learned from me losing a Deluxe Strat at the last second - I gave my self a nice margin to go up with my Max Bid. It is a good thing that I did, because with LITERALLY 10 seconds to go & whilst I was 'in the lead' TWO people came in and each bid $10 more than my last bid ! Luckily I had my max bid set even higher than either one of theirs because I figured it would still be cheaper than any other Neck option! (All Parts, MIM Fender etc).

Initially I was confused about it being a '57, whilst the neck said 54, but according to this site the only difference between a 54 and 57 neck is the 'butterfly' string-tree for the 57 vs round for a 54. For an almost 20 year old neck I think it still looks pretty decent. There is one small/medium chip on the bottom of the neck near the high E-String by the 5th fret, but that doesn't really bother me.

Then when looking REALLY closely (barely visible in the picture) there seems to be a slight hairline crack right in front of the D-string slot in the nut. I can't feel with my finger or nail, so it would seem the finish is on top of the crack and this could possibly just be a manufacturing 'defect'. As long as the truss-rod works that's fine with me.

There's also a few minor scuff marks from the neck pocket, but once installed they won't even be visible.

I did notice that the finish/poly seems to be 'missing' right around every fret which makes me wonder if this neck has been refretted in the past. The frets definitely seem 'wider' that the 'vintage' style frets that came on the All-Parts neck and a little 'flat'/worn on top. (perhaps they are simple so worn & levelled so many times they feel wider).  It may be time for a re-fret anyway since a few of them (especially 1-3) seem a little worn where there actual grooves of the strings. I'm going to install it & try it out to see how it plays and then take it from there! If I do need to refret it , I may actually have a go at it myself and see how hard it is.

As far as the V-Shape itself I once again notice that it's not as 'hard' as the All-Parts neck I have, and more inline with my Deluxe -V Neck.. I'm going to have to play them side by side to really get a feel for which one I prefer.

2011 Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster - Tungsten with "V"-neck

What's a guy to do when you like features from 2 different guitars, but would like them in one?
Call the Custom Shop! ehmm yeah.. that's not going to happen unless a) You're Famous and/or b) You're loaded... So then what? What is a more 'budget-friendly' solution? Well grab a screw-driver and combine the two naturally! But let me start at the beginning:

As I previously mentioned I had been on a bit of a binge of wanting to acquire some new gear - I was getting really interested in the 2011 American Deluxe Stratocaster. Avoiding the local guitar-center obviously is key so back to online stores & E-Bay it was. I found a nice looking Black American Deluxe Stratocaster with the V-Necks I like (though this was a 'Soft-v') so I entered the bidding process.. It was a few days out and over the days naturally the price kept going up and up where it started to get into 'retail' price terrority (but not quite). The longer I was looking at the guitar though the more I was thinking that I REALLY am not a big fan of White pick-guards on dark colored guitars.. But still, if I could score one for a good deal I wasn't going to pass it up.

American Deluxe with 'V'-Shaped Neck

Meanwhile I also kept my eye on the American Deluxe 'Tungsten' model. This was virtually the same model, but a quick trip to the fender site showed that while they both had similar setups, pickups and even compound radius the 'V-Shape neck was only available in a Black, Red or Sunburst model, while the Tungsten model came with a 'C-Shape' neck contour.

Tungsten American Deluxe with 'C'-Shaped neck

The more I looked at the Tungsten color with the Black Pickguard the more I started to like it, even over the Black one. I started to thinking: well maybe I should just buy a Tungsten instead... As I was contemplating what to do a decision was literally made for me. I was unable to watch the end of the auction for the Black Strat, so someone outbid my max-bid by literally 10 dollars in the last few minutes.. Talk about frustrating! Or not perhaps??

As I started looking around I thought: why not look for the individual parts and combine a V-Neck with a Tungsten Body? "ReliableFender" aka 'The Stratosphere' has TONS of newly parted out Fender gear, so I started digging through the eBay listings to see what I could find. As luck would have it he had the following items listed as 'Buy It Now' items:

a) NEW 2011 American Deluxe V-Shape Neck with the nice Chrome Fender Logo

b) NEW 2011 American Deluxe Tungsten loaded body (3 single coils like i wanted)

c) American Deluxe Neck plate

d) Brand New SKB 2011 Fender Hardcase.

They had also just started a 3-day special giving 10% off all items so that meant I could get the exact guitar I wanted, basically in NEW condition, including a case just like ordering it straight from a big-box store, for LESS than the going market price. Yes it was more than the Black Strat that went at Auction, but this was EXACTLY what I wanted.

After a weeks wait or so for shipping etc the UPS guy finally delivered the parts. After a few minutes with a screwdriver the neck was put in place, and I strung it up with D'Addario .009's. Having mostly played with my telecasters lately I must say that playing a Strat again felt like a homecoming. The smooth contours really are nice and the sound has that distinct bell-like clarity..

I only had a few minutes to play with it so far, but I did notice that it seems like the V-Neck has a more 'vintage gloss' look to it (though the specs say 'Satin Urethane', while the C-Neck that normally comes with the Tungsten appears a lighter color. That doesn't bother me though since I like the vintage look. The V-Shape is definitely a LOT softer than the Allparts neck I have on my telecaster and I would almost say it gets 'softer' as you go up the neck. The Compound radius of the fretboard is very nice though and I may actually prefer this over the 7.25" or 9.5" radius of my other guitars. The N3 Pickups to me sound very good and the S1 Switching gives some great tone options.
 
I'm sure this will become one of my favorite guitars to play in the near future.

Major case of GAS..

First time I heard the term 'GAS' I thought someone was referring to having eaten a bad burrito or something... Turns out that on most gear Forums the term 'GAS' is a commonly used term for 'Guitar (or Gear) Acquisition Syndrome': The uncontrollable urge to get yourself a new toy! (and relief to your GAS - although it may only be shortlived is: NGD or HGND; (Happy) New Guitar/Gear Day! where you actually take delivery of said toy ;) ) As I may have mentioned before I had been 'out of' doing a lot with my music because of other hobbies (My Car & RC Helicopters ) / no time in general.
However, ever since I got my neck-upgrade for my telecaster it has kick-started something where I've been practically obsessed with catching up/making up for lost time and have been drooling over all kinds of great guitars and gear. So , First the Neck, then I got the BlackTop Tele Body, Then the Highway One Strat Body...now I want more still! I figured it'd be fun to have a little overview of all the stuff I've been looking at:

Strat Neck to Finish the Black Strat

Brian was supposed to get back to me about doing this SMNF-V neck with some TonePros TPKF6BTuners. These are more modern with the nut up front instead of the vintage press bushing but still have the Vintage split post design which really gives a clean look

However he's been busy with other things (and may have actually forgotten at this point), which gives me more time to look around. I've been very tempted to actually get an American Deluxe V-Shaped Neck which has a compound radius of 9"-14", but still with the nice V-Shape in the back. Little pricey though, but I may very well end up with this..


White Stratocaster with Rosewood neck
 Yes I said it... Rosewood.. Call it curiosity... but really the Arctic or Olympic White strats are one of the few where I think the rosewood actually looks good! Years ago I was really into a 'every guitar has to be black'-thing, but if anything my wine-red telecaster has taught me that the color doesn't really matter - it's how the instruments speaks to- and connects with you.

One I saw was a '62 American Fender 'Hot-Rod' which is pictured above. Truly stunning though a tad pricey at $1699. Still - one of these days I will have a Strat like that .

American Deluxe Black with V Neck
When I was looking for V-Neck for my Black-Strat project I ran across the American Deluxe V-Neck.
Whilst I already have an American Deluxe (FSR) with SCN Pickups this particular model has the new N3 noiseless pickups (3 singles vs my HSS setup) and best of all a V-Shaped Neck with compound radius.

 The V-Neck only is available on a Burst, Candy Apple Red and a Black Model. Obviously my preference would still be the black model. It looks amazing and I've heard good things about the N3 pickups vs the SCN pickups I have on my None-More-Black.


American Deluxe Tungsten
As I was looking through the different deluxe models there was one that really jumped out at me. The 'Tungsten' American Deluxe Stratocaster.

While it didn't have the V-Shape neck I though the color contrast looked REALLY sharp and I wouldn't mind having one of these any day of the week!


1977 Hardtail Stratocaster
One of my dreams is to have a 1977 Hardtail Stratocaster. While there is nothing 'special' , unique or even 'vintage' about these guitars - they're just old & if anything the 70s were known for producing CRAPPY fenders - I just have a soft spot for this model year.

Gibson Les Paul
 Yes yes - as much as I have NEVER been into Les Pauls, I figured I should at least have 'one' or at least spend some serious time with one before outright dismissing them based on some experiences years ago. I've just never clicked with them. And while there are naturally 'cheaper' (& legal) copies (which many people claim are really just as good) such as the Epiphone Plus tops etc. I figured I should really try the real deal to be fair. So far I've just done a LOT of looking, and even visually 99.99999% of Les Pauls just don't click with me.. However, I found a few in a 'Aqua Blue' or 'Trans Blue Flame' that did look rather impressive (with matching impressive price-tag of 3k+! *ouch*)

Ibanez JS1000/1200
I really enjoy Ibanez guitars for music in the styles of Steve Vai & Joe Satriani. The Joe Satriani Signature models are one I've always wanted to have. The JS1000 & JS1200 are virtually identical with the difference being the JS1000 being black vs the Candy Apple Red of the JS1200, and the pickups. I really like the sleek lines these guitars have

Ibanez JS2400
The JS2400 is the latest Satriani Model. Comes with 24 fets and a rails humbucker in the neck position.
Some people hate it, but I like it a lot!

Ibanez JS Prototype
Joe Satriani has been touring on the Experience Hendrix Tour where he used a 3 'single-coil' (well stacked humbucker) custom Ibanez Prototype with actually a maple neck. The Pickups are supposedly DiMarzio Choppers and Pro Track pickups. If this guitar ever makes it to release I will definitely be all over it!