MIJ Fender Stratocaster question.

[Twinfan]

Yep, that's a Japanese standard strat.  No idea what the V is for now!

[Henk]

Nice one Machinehead,

Its a '87 one and ive seen some seemingly random stamps(letter or number) in on the neck or body with those, i think they are id tags from the person who made it. At least if it is a small letter not bigger then 1cm in blue or black ink.

You can find more info on 21frets,com, they are not vintage reissues, but a standard strat, but they do have the same kind of neckshape as the vintage ones AFAIK.

[Scotty477]

Thanks for all the help people  :D

As I said I'm not that clued up on Strats at all, I'm more of an LP person really.

The guitar does have a very nice feel to it, now that it's been set up/restrung and given a good clean etc.

I'll have a look at available single coil BKP's, in the players section and see what will suit me best.

From what I've listened to so far the Trilogy set sounds rather nice...

Anyway, I'll start a new thread on that later.

Cheers and thanks once again for all the assistance in identifying the guitar.

[Mr Ed]

MIJ Strats are godlike.  8)

[Ratrod]

A buddy of mine recently got a MIJ strat from that same era. 70's headstock, maple board, sunburst and black pickups on a white guard. Wonderfull guitar and a great tone.

[Scotty477]

What really impresses me about this guitar is the tone it has when unplugged.

I've played my fair share of Strats and this one resonates wonderfully, compared to almost every other one I've tried.

I can't wait to get it paired up with a tube amp and possibly BKP's  :D

[Mr Ed]

I agree, I love playing mine unplugged. It has such a wonderful acoustic quality to it.

[Scotty477]

I had heard people saying for years that 80's MIJ Strats were as good as - if not better than - MIA Strats but it's only now that I know what they were talking about.

I can't tell if my Strat is a Basswood or Alder body but whatever it is ... it truly Rocks!!!  

It's nice to get an ebay bargain that pans out   :D

[Fourth Feline]

MIJ Strats are godlike.  8)

Thanks, you made my day - as I am 'in the club' with a MIJ '57 re-issue Strat (built in 1996/7 ? ) with the little "50th Anniversary" sticker on the rear of the headstock.

Perhaps the V could be explained by going to the very lively TDPRI ( Telecaster discussion forum ) - and posting the question in the 'Stratocaster discussion forum' that runs as a subsection.

I am sure I have heard / read them mentioning a desirable type of " joint venture " (JV) series Fenders.

( Just a thought ) ... :)

[Mr Ed]

Mine's a 57R too - alder body, sunburst, maple neck, maple board. Hlargh.

[Elliot]

JV stands for Japan Vintage not Joint Venture!

Having seen the guitar I don't think the V stands for anything other than a factory mark.  As to wood - the earlier Fender Japan basswood guitars were all very resonant - in fact very much like Alder, so I wouldn't worry about the much maligned basswood factor.

[Philly Q]

As to wood - the earlier Fender Japan basswood guitars were all very resonant - in fact very much like Alder, so I wouldn't worry about the much maligned basswood factor.

I had a MIJ '62 reissue with a basswood body.  It was beautifully made, but the most inert, non-resonant, acoustically dead guitar I've ever owned.  And I'm no Eric Johnson to be especially sensitive to such things.

I put it down partly to the wood and partly to the less than top-notch hardware, which seemed a lot less sturdy than the US equivalent.  Never put it to the test though, I sold the guitar in a matter of weeks.

But anyway, that was a '90s model, and I guess I was just unlucky to get a dud.  I've never heard anything bad about the '80s ones.

[Scotty477]

I've came across a few 'dead' supposedly alder Strats before and also a few deceased mahogany LP's in my time.

I know that the quality or cut of the wood makes a big difference in how responsive the guitar is but I wonder how a guitar maker or luthier would know that a particular piece of wood was going to give poor, or even excellent resonance.

Going back to this Strat of mine. I there any way to tell if a guitar is basswood or alder? It's probably a stupid question but you never know ...

In the absence of any other info I'm assuming that it will be basswood, which (if it is) quite honestly doesn't bother me - given how good the guitar sounds, relative to many alder Strats I've played.

[Henk]

About tonewoods:

http://www.bothner.co.za/articles/bodywoods.shtml

Your E series strat is most likely Basswood, you can check the neckpocket to see. There are different grades of Basswood, in general the darker Tan core produces better tonewood then the pale yellowish sapwood. Alder has a red or purple color to it so its easy to distinguish. Clear finished strats of that time were sometimes different wood, but mostly also just BW.

Most of the JV's were made with the correct vintage bodywoods, so either Ash(50s) or Alder(60s), but there were also some build with Basswood bodies or Sen(looks like Ash).

[Philly Q]

Most of the JV's were made with the correct vintage bodywoods, so either Ash(50s) or Alder(60s), but there were also some build with Basswood bodies or Sen(looks like Ash).

When Squiers were first launched in the '80s, they reviewed a load of them in Sounds (a long-dead weekly music paper) and said the bodies were built of something called Castor Arabia.  I never heard that term again, but always remembered it.  I just looked it up, and it's an American name for Sen.  Mystery solved!  :D