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Thread: HEY!! Anyone try the new US Special Strat yet?

  1. #1
    Forum Member Guildx700~'s Avatar
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    HEY!! Anyone try the new US Special Strat yet?

    Sounds like a deal, solid alder body with h/s/h route, satin LACQUER finish on body, and street price of less than $600. Hmmm....I gotta check one of those out.

    http://www.fender.com/gear/gear.php?op=3&partno=0111100



    http://www.fender.com/gear/gear.php?op=2&partno=0111100
    Last edited by Guildx700~; 07-29-2002 at 07:03 PM.

  2. #2
    Forum Member ShawnRT's Avatar
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    I was actually thinking about picking one of these up to take out when I'm worried about my CS Strat. Maybe a leave at the office, take out to jam type guitar. From everything I've read they sound like they should be great guitars. I wonder when my local shop will get them in?

    GuildX700~ I used to really enjoy reading your honest criticisms and reviews of "lower end" guitars on the FDP, I hope to see more of that on here!

  3. #3
    Forum Member Guildx700~'s Avatar
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    Thanks Shawn...I've got a whole new lineup of budget guitars I've gotten lately I'll be posting about.

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    What is the difference in these and the American Standards? These seem to be pretty cheap for what they are.

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    Forum Member ShawnRT's Avatar
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    "Guildx700~ Thanks Shawn...I've got a whole new lineup of budget guitars I've gotten lately I'll be posting about. "

    I can't wait That Flame Top Epiphone veneer issue really ruffled some feathers until you got word from Epiphone themselves what was going on.....that was priceless

  6. #6
    Forum Member Guildx700~'s Avatar
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    Yeah, it was a real scream.

    One guy actually posted a big apology to me a few months later and personally e-mailed it to me also, he originally claimed I faked the Epi rep's e-mail that I posted, I mean the guy just flamed the heck out of me......so he ended up e-mailing the rep to complain about my "fake" e-mail that I claimed was from him and to his surprise the rep confirmed verbatim the exact e-mail I posted!


    Waylon, it looks like the body is not 1 piece, in the photo I posted it looks to be 3. Also it's a satin finish, so it's kinda like the Gibson "faded" series, they save on the finish costs.

  7. #7
    Forum Member ShawnRT's Avatar
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    I missed the public apology, but I saw you getting a lot of heat over that one. Who would think that somebody would come up with a fake email over a guitar top???? :rolleyes:

  8. #8
    Forum Member Taller's Avatar
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    I believe the tuners are vintage style, as is the trem. This differentiates it from the ASe and AS. Also, specs indicate 'vintage pickups', whatever that might mean.

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    what is the difference in vintage vs. standard. Sorry for these ignorant posts but these strats seem like a great deal if the only thing different is the finishes.

  10. #10
    Forum Member Guildx700~'s Avatar
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    Waylon, I'm sure the tuners and pups are no better or worse then Standard Fender issue....so that means most of us will replace em anyhow

    And having a thin nitro finish will actually make it a more lively guitar than the poly finished Standards IMO.

    I've got Fat 50's and Texas Specials so my next Strat will have some of the low output vintage ones like the 57/62 or the 69's.

  11. #11
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    Basicly it is a reissue body,(MIM style) with reissue appointments,(MIM style vintage whammy, pickups, plastic ect), and a Standard Neck, (Cheap Chinese PING enclosed machines not split post vintage kluson style), Standard neck dimensions with flatter radius and bigger frets as well as the double expanding truss rod. A very interesting mix.

    Seems like a more expensive Jimmy Vaughn model without the vibe or value.
    The Sun don't shine, the Moon don't move the tides to wash me clean..

  12. #12
    Forum Member Guildx700~'s Avatar
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    Al,
    But the JV finish on the body is not nitro is it?

  13. #13
    Forum Member Troy T. Blues's Avatar
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    JV's were made in poplar, but they are now being made in solid Alder I believe.

    The JV is a great guitar!

  14. #14
    Forum Member Jimi D's Avatar
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    Originally posted by Big Al
    Basicly it is a reissue body,(MIM style) with reissue appointments,(MIM style vintage whammy, pickups, plastic ect), and a Standard Neck, (Cheap Chinese PING enclosed machines not split post vintage kluson style... [snip]
    I was under the impression that these things were getting the higher quality USA vintage hardware like the California Strats used to have....
    He's hot! He's hip! and he's hairy!

  15. #15
    Forum Member Marcondo's Avatar
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    The JV (Jimmy Vaughan)Strat has the exact same hardware tuners and tremelo as the custom shop models and the AV reissue series.

    The Highway 1 model has the same cheap ping hardware as the MIM STD line uses.

    Most of the MIM Fenders have converted to Alder bodies. Not 100% sure on the JV it used to be veneered poplar if thery are making the JV in ALder its still the best deal in the whole Fender lineup.

    The Highway 1 sounds like a mixture of the MIM STD with a Satin finished body and assembled in the USA. Its got the same H-S-H body cutouts the MIM models use also the same hardware. So in my opinion it would be a better buy to get an MIM STD for $350 than to spend $600 on basicly the same guitar with a satin lacquer finished body instead of poly. The only advantage the highway 1 might have over an MIM STD would be the pickups.

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    Hey Guild, what's goin' on?

  17. #17
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    The US Special Highway 1 Stratocaster:

    Body: Alder (same body as American Series Strat)
    Finish: Satin Lacquer (not nitro)
    Neck: Maple (same as American Series)
    Fingerboard: Rosewood or Maple
    Frets: 22 Medium Jumbo (same as American Series)
    Hardware: Chrome
    Machine heads: Fender Cast/Sealed
    Bridge: Fender Synchronized Tremolo (same as US Vintage)
    Pickups: Alnico, Staggered pole, Single Coils (same as MIM 60's)
    Gig Bag: Deluxe included


    This guitar incorporates "All you need, and nothing you don't need" to have a great playing guitar.

    It is made in the Fender Corona, California factory. This is where the MIM guitars are begun. The Highway 1, however, is also completed in Corona.

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    Additional info.........

    Although the neck on the Highway 1 Strat is the same neck that is used on the American Series Strats, there is no Micro-Tilt feature on the Highway 1 Strat. Therefore, tilt adjustments are performed the same way they have been done for decades---shims, etc.

    Also, the tuning machines on the Highway 1 Strat are all the same height,which means that there are two string trees on the headstock. (American Series Strats have graduated height tuning machines and one string tree).

  19. #19
    Forum Member Guildx700~'s Avatar
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    Well if it ain't nitro lacquer what is it, acrylic?

    Still seems better than the thick poly on most of the cheaper models. I'll need to try one out soon.

    Hey superjudge.

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