Squier ProTone Series

[BlueFrogs]

What's the deal with these?

[Don]

They were made in Korea as a high line Squier. They listed new for between about $400 to $500 or so. I remember liking them when they were new, but thinking that they were way too expensive for a Squier.

I bought a blonde 1997 Pro-Tone Strat for $150 and played it for several years. The body was light ash, the fret work was great. It had a real nice finish on the neck. It almost felt like bare wood. It showed wear quickly though and the neck was very skinny. I felt that the fit and finish was better than MIA and MIM. The pickups were low powered with alnico magnets and not bad at all, although the rest of the electronics stunk. It had a box switch and 500k pots which were easily replaced with a lever switch and CTS 250k pots.

They were very good guitars and are a great deal if you can get one cheap. Mine was difficult to sell later, because people saw it as being just another Squier and didn't even consider trying it out.

[BlueFrogs]

Thanks for the info Don! I'll have to keep an eye out for one. :)