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In process of purchasing an American Strat but something seems weird. It states Made in USA on the neck above the chrome plate. There is no number engraved on the plate itself. There is a number on the front headstock, but when researched, it comes back as an amp. Is this a fake? Any help is appreciated.
Photos of the 'corpus delecti' would be helpful in solving your mystery.
https://i.imgur.com/3dFC36n.jpg
Says on neck above plate "Made in U.S.A." Nothing on plate.
It's either a FRONTMAN 15G 120V 3/PK or made in Korea (which belies the Made in USA stamp on it). My money says, "Fake."
Can you elaborate about the 3 pak? He is including the Frontman 15G amp. Did Fender do this as a package deal?Quote:
Originally Posted by OldStrummer
+1Quote:
Originally Posted by OldStrummer
I smell tuna!
Quote:
Originally Posted by shooter-55
All I can tell you is that Fender bundled the Frontman 15G amp with Squier (NOT Fender) guitars. These were typically entry-level instruments designed for beginners. An example you can see here. At US$329.99, I wouldn't expect more than a plank of plywood. I can't tell you if they matched serial numbers (can you check the amp?).
I'm going with partscaster, and it looks like perhaps the "MN" was erased from the serial number, but it just might be the light.
I had a similar thought that the neck was replaced and the SN was tampered with.Quote:
Originally Posted by Offshore Angler
Can't really determine if there ever was anything before the SN by this picture. This was supposed to be a "meet half way" between a 60 mile trek, so I've decided to not follow through on this with him. I appreciate the comments and views. A little too fuzzy of what it actually is, to gamble on it. Thanks for the comments.
Ok, let’s go. User John C would probably have a better take on this one but I’ll throw in my 2 cents.
There is an alleged batch of strats assembled in the US of A between 1989 and 1990, out of varied parts, the bodies and necks mostly MIJ. Some say they’re basically a batch made with QC similar to the early MiM series with Japanese cut wood parts, for export only. They call it “I Series”. The logo, the barrel style string tree and a few other details match this.
The SN hasn’t been erased: it says Serial Number before the digits, there was no ‘MN’
I don’t know if this information is true, I had come across this back when I bought my Southern Cross Series strat, which was a parallel project to the early MiM Squiers, and read about them.
Here are a few examples for sale, such as these:
https://reverb.com/item/3700518-fend...der-cs-pickups
https://austinguitars.co.uk/product/...-stratocaster/
https://reverb.com/item/124617-fende...e=partnerstack
There are several caveats, such as the parallel center screws on the back spring cavity cover (Fenders should have them asymmetric, the right one being higher).
Also, your SN shouldn’t match a cheap amp’s.
Anyway, I’ll keep researching.
So, that’s probably what you have.
Answering your question, it is possibly an American Strat, pero no mucho
Perhaps it's Parts: The Clonus Horror.
Thanks for your effort. I appreciate your time involved to get this information. I have found some of the same information listed, and have come to same conclusion. This is my thinking on it. I'm probably going to go through with this simply due to the story of how it came into existence and the cost is relatively inexpensive. (Don't ask, cause I'm not saying how much.....) Is it a "rare" find? Probably not, as proven by the listings for a similar instrument. Does it have an interesting past. Absolutely! I'll be obtaining it this afternoon, and will offer any additional information when I actually see it in person.Quote:
Originally Posted by S. Cane
Now a few questions for the experts concerning what has been suggested. I have spoken to Fender and they said to check inside where the neck is attached, for more info and numbers. Is there a proper way to remove it, so I do not change the geometry when I reattach it? If this is what I think it is, I'm curious as to what opinions are, as to the perceived value. No flames please......
Thank you for your comments and help. Truly appreciated.
As I always say when threads like this appear, it really doesn't matter what it says on the headstock or a piece of paper, what matters is how it feels and sounds TO YOU. There's a pretty good article on Wildwood Guitars called "Behind the Guitar: The Story of Bruce Springsteen and His Tele." In essence, it's a "mongrel" -- a fifties Telecaster body and fifties Esquire neck. It had been routed, chopped, filled and mangled. But it's Bruce's one-and-only, and he played it for 40 years before retiring it, because it was falling apart. Keef's Macawber is another example of a guitar that had humble beginnings and has stood the test of time. Perhaps the most shining example is Willie Nelson's Trigger.
I'm not in the habit of taking guitars apart, but Fenders are basically made just for that purpose. While I don't know the torque specs, my approach would be to remove the strings, and in a diagonal fashion, loosen each neck screw evenly. The neck should just lift out of the pocket. This is the same process I use with my travel guitar. For re-assembly, I just reverse the process, making sure to line up the screws with the screw holes and not over-tightening them. There are a lot of builders and tweakers here, so I'm sure you'll get plenty (maybe more than you care for) advice!
These were some of the reasons that made me buy my Southern Cross Strat.Quote:
Originally Posted by shooter-55
No, removing a strat’s neck and putting it back in place are among the easiest tasks in guitar maintenance. Just make sure you take it easy and don’t damage the screws, use the right screwdriver size and -some say- when you remount the guitar rescrew the neck in a crossed pattern order (e.g. top right screw, then bottom left screw and so on).Quote:
Originally Posted by shooter-55
Of course, you’ll need to set up the truss rod, bridge and maybe the nut after reassembling the guitar and putting new strings on it. If you’re not experienced, take it to a tech. You’ll love the results.
Also, use the opportunity to check and photograph whatever’s underneath the pickguard.
Received the guitar and removed the neck, but left the electronics as is. Here are some pictures of what I found. I believe due to the date shown this is one of the guitars mentioned in the article mentioned above. I do have a question about the pickups. I would guess these are originals. Anything special about them? Any comments are welcome.https://i.imgur.com/k4AqFzl.jpghttps://i.imgur.com/XaQVwRW.jpghttps://i.imgur.com/cFuBqEj.jpghttps://i.imgur.com/ZPLwHlx.jpghttps://i.imgur.com/3vP05ES.jpghttps://i.imgur.com/k9Brjs1.jpg
This article was found on Reverb.com about one of these guitars:
So, this is one of those oddball Fender's that most people have never heard of. Fender has a reputation for doing some weird serial number stuff as they progressed, and this is indeed one of them.
After ripping it open and after some extensive research found out that this is actually a Made in the Usa for export markets series Fender Stratocaster. They we're made in 89-90 for export to overseas markets, and they're pretty well comparable to MIJ strats.
What marks them is the Made in USA stamp at the butt of the heal, the date stamp under the neck joint, and the MIJ style tuners. Usually they are an I series serial number, but there are multiple reports of the serial numbers starting in different letters, usually from japan years. The I series usually starts with I, but this one starts with F. There are even reports of them starting with H or E. The guitar has a stamp under the neck joint that reads May 23rd 1989..
From Fender's website.
"A limited number of these “I” series guitars were made in 1989 and 1990. They were made for the export market and have “Made in USA” stamped on the neck heel."
The export series is all over the board, some having a butt truss rod, some having a nut truss rod. Some having a pin stripe, some not. But all of them have the same Made in USA stamp on the butt, as well as the same set of pickups and MIJ style tuners.
Can’t tell much about pickups without looking at their backside
When I do the string change, I'll take a look. Will get some pics. Anything particular to look for? Learning way more than I thought I would about these.....Quote:
Originally Posted by S. Cane
Quote:
Originally Posted by shooter-55
It's a pretty guitar. But I'd be surprised if the pickups are originals, as all the hardware is chrome and pickups are gold(ish). Fender doesn't usually mix-and-match parts like that.
One thing that’s catching my eye is the Latin style date on the neck heel (DD-MM-YY). AFAIK that’s unusual for Japanese or American guitars. That and the barrel string tree make me wonder if your guitar was assembled in he US with Mexican, not Japanese parts.
It reminds me a lot of the first Squier Series Fenders that were made in Mexico and Brazil.
Back when they first came out I had a Squier from Japan, it was as nice a Stratocaster as I've ever owned. Gave it to my brother but I often wish I still had it.
I sent an information request to Fender for any information about this particular guitar. What I have found so far is that the pickups and knobs could be original due to seeing a few others with the same setup from that era. We'll see if Fender can shed any additional light on this. Also in my research, I have seen pricing for these all over the map. $399-$1000. Not that I purchased this to flip it, but it seems that there are very differing opinions as to historic value and junk value. I am in the middle due to the interesting
history.
Appears it had a neck angle issue at one point and someone added a shim. Other than that pretty clean looking. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I tend to think the American Strats of that era had the micro-tilt angle adjustment.
Yes, there is a shim placed there. Hopefully someone can chime in and answer your question. I have very little knowledge of that, but am learning from every post.Quote:
Originally Posted by Offshore Angler
Quote:
Originally Posted by Offshore Angler
the American Standard strats did. This model the OP has probably has an old style neck, built like a 60s reissue
Incorrect 12th-fret dot spacing and headstock decal to be a '60s re-issue.Quote:
Originally Posted by S. Cane
I’d expect such a model to have incorrections, what I meant was: this is not a 1989/1990 American Standard, at least not judging by the 21 frets and the neck heel truss rod access (which I surmise by the picture). Since these guitars were made out of Japanese surplus parts, which were basically reissues, I concluded so.Quote:
Originally Posted by phantomman