Is this strat a fake?!?

[Pallen182]

hello, im new to this forum and i was wondering if anyone could help me.
im in the process of buying a strat from ebay, (its a mexican strat)
but i couldnt help but notice the logo on the head stock, its the black fender logo with the bold stratocaster writing but i thought they only used these on the larger old headstocks so i thnk this strat could be a fake? heres the link:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...MEBI%3AIT&rd=1

any help would be greatly appreciated as i dont have a clue about this sort of thing!!
thanks.

[tuberattler]

Hard to tell but I also noticed there is no 22nd fret even though there's enough fingerboard for it..almost looks like a parts-0-caster to me with a boot-legged decal. That Fender decal should only be found on large headstock 70's style necks. I've never seen this guitar set up like this before.

I say be very cautious...somethings fishy..maybe someone with more expertise can help out here..good luck!

[Pallen182]

thanks for the info im gona email the seller n tell him where he can shove his strat

[Offshore Angler]

Fake Mexican Strats! What is the world coming too? Hey, It might be worth MORE than a MIM. Nice tuners, good hardware.

[Pallen182]

so verdict anyone?

[cooltone]

IMO, Fake.

70's decal on a copy neck.

[Marcondo]

That guitar was never in Mexico. Looks like a partscaster to me.

All the MIM Standards have the serial on the front of the headstock the MIM Classics have it on the back of the headstock.

[Pallen182]

thanks a lot guys, i did atually put a bid on it aswell, hmmm hes not gonna be happy....

[tuberattler]

It's hard to make a 100% verdict without having it on hand. My gut feeling after looking at this guitar is that it's a fake and would probably not hold up under close examination at all..I'd pass..

[TheArchitect]

Never saw MIM back then with Klusons but the decal is obviously very wrong

[Pallen182]

he told me i would be getting negative feed back so i told him that i know its a fake, n heres his reply:

This is no excuse, the pictures are displayed on the page in supersize format clearly showing the decal and you still made the bid, further more I complied to your questions and you didn't even ask about the headstock.This is not a fake,the serial number is: MN434691 and this refers to 94-95 mex-made fender. You are in breach of ebay contract. (hence the negative feedback)

haha, is he right or wrong??
cheers.

[Marcondo]

You can call up Fender Customer Service with that serial number they will tell you what guitar it is.

[Offshore Angler]

Yes, jumping to conclusions is a slippery slope with MIMs. I've walked through GC and seen models that were never in the catalog. Same for the HOG. Some are private runs, I'm not sure of the others. I'd call Fender as Marcondo suggests. Considring it was probably made to be a european export, it may well be a limited run model.

[tuberattler]

I also agree that's seems to be a Fender mexico serial number. Call Fender and verify..the seller should be helping you verify his or her instrument as pics don't always tell the whole story.

[jpap]

The decal and headstock (and obviously the whole neck...) comes from a so called "Smith" stratocaster (1981-82), a milestone model that showed the comeback of some pre/early CBS details (like 4 bolt neck, smaller headtock, one piece maple neck, staggered pups, deep contoured alder body, etc.). Such one was my overall first strat..
Dunno about the rest of the axe...

[daddyo]

Still, 200 quid isn't bad for this axe, even if it is a partsocaster.

[Wilko]

You bid, so, yes, you are breach of the contract.

The guitar seems a bit odd. That decal is not right for seventies Fender based on the "with Synchronized Tremolo" text being the wrong font. It does look like MIM to me. Specially that truss rod hole (not seen on any US strats before late 90s.

Serial should be on the back of the headstock.

[Nomak]

Why would you fake an MIM?? If you're going to fake it, why not fake it as an American?? I'd buy the thing for $200.

I have no idea if it's fake or not, my guess, is that the sellar probably doesn't know either....... I doubt he's trying to pull a fast one.