'62 Fender Strat reissue MIA

vic

Hi,
Does anyone on this forum have any experience with a '62 Fender Strat reissue (Vintage American series) ? There is currently one available and I'm really interested in it......but have not seen it in the flesh yet. The few reviews available all indicate that these RI's are excellent guitars. Any useful comments perhaps?
Thanks.

AlanRatcliffe

They are great guitars. The only possible quibble you might have with one is the vintage 7.5" radius that makes for a higher action (or more fret buzz). So make sure you like it before you buy. The modern Fenders all have a 9.5" radius and certain models like the Eric Johnson have a 12".

Of course the radius can be changed with a refret...

vic

Alan Ratcliffe wrote: They are great guitars. The only possible quibble you might have with one is the vintage 7.5" radius that makes for a higher action (or more fret buzz). So make sure you like it before you buy. The modern Fenders all have a 9.5" radius and certain models like the Eric Johnson have a 12".

Of course the radius can be changed with a refret...

Thanks Alan...very useful info.

vic

Yes......so I bought the '62 RI. Fiesta red. Excellent guitar with good vintage tones. Very nice rosewood fretboard.....medium high action which allows for bending. Love the neck shape/size as well. ?

Sean

Good stuff! Sounds great!

Reinhard

How about some pics, I love fiesta red. Congrats!
Alan being used to the 12" radius on gibsons, a fret with a similar profile sounds pretty damn sweet. Apparently those EJ strats are really good too.

AlanRatcliffe

The EJ Strats are great - It's what IMO the Standard Strat should be.

Reinhard

This is Vic's strat

Very nice ?

Reinhard

I'd be tempted to put mint green plastic on

Tokai-SA

That is an awesome guitar.

I'd also be tempted to put a mint green scratchplate on it....and maybe some aged pickup covers and knobs.

But it's awesome as is.

All the best.

vic

Tokai SA wrote:
I'd also be tempted to put a mint green scratchplate on it....and maybe some aged pickup covers and knobs.

Thanks guys.....I may do that once I'm solvent again... ?

singemonkey

I reckon you should let it age by it's lonesome. This is how it would have looked if you'd picked it off the rack in 1962. ?

It looks beautiful. I was looking through all the 62 strat colours of the MIJ reissues the other day. They have some great ones. Got honkin' gas looking at the salmon pink one (would you believe) and the baby blue one. Very surf. Fiesta red is great. Such a subtle colour compared to candy-apple red - which I'm no fan of.

It looks so good, I nearly forgot to ask. How does it play? How does it sound?

Tokai-SA

singemonkey wrote: I reckon you should let it age by it's lonesome. This is how it would have looked if you'd picked it off the rack in 1962. ?

It looks beautiful. I was looking through all the 62 strat colours of the MIJ reissues the other day. They have some great ones. Got honkin' gas looking at the salmon pink one (would you believe) and the baby blue one. Very surf. Fiesta red is great. Such a subtle colour compared to candy-apple red - which I'm no fan of.

It looks so good, I nearly forgot to ask. How does it play? How does it sound?

This is a Crafted in Japan 62RI... the Texas Special sticker is the give away. ?

Great colour, great guitar, I love it...but my favourite would be the 'Vintage White'.

vic

singemonkey wrote: I reckon you should let it age by it's lonesome. This is how it would have looked if you'd picked it off the rack in 1962. ?

It looks beautiful. I was looking through all the 62 strat colours of the MIJ reissues the other day. They have some great ones. Got honkin' gas looking at the salmon pink one (would you believe) and the baby blue one. Very surf. Fiesta red is great. Such a subtle colour compared to candy-apple red - which I'm no fan of.

It looks so good, I nearly forgot to ask. How does it play? How does it sound?

Thanks SM......The feel of the '62 is very good indeed.....playability is excellent too. I do however have a problem with the sound of the bridge pup in the treble.... sound is too thin for my liking. I should perhaps put 11's on asap . The fiesta red colour is difficult to reproduce in photos..mine is a lot more pinkish than on the pic that Reinhard kindly posted on my behalf. Overall I'm very happy with some vintage tones I have managed to sqeeze out (I use a '65 AC30 TB).
I always wanted a nice Fiesta red Strat with a rosewood board.....but found that they are actually fairly rare in that configuration.

Tokai-SA

Vic

Have you done the bridge tone control mod?
I wire the second tone control to the bridge pup, and leave the middle pup with no tone control.

vic

Tokai SA wrote: Vic

Have you done the bridge tone control mod?
I wire the second tone control to the bridge pup, and leave the middle pup with no tone control.

Hi Tokai...interesting question indeed. That's maybe the answer......... I found that the neither of the two tone controls have any affect on the bridge pup ?? It's almost as if its tone is set, and it's very trebly.....
--the first (middle) tone control acts on the neck pup while the second one acts on the middle pup only. (remember 3-way switch)

Tokai-SA

vic wrote:
Tokai SA wrote: Vic

Have you done the bridge tone control mod?
I wire the second tone control to the bridge pup, and leave the middle pup with no tone control.
Hi Tokai...interesting question indeed. That's maybe the answer......... I found that the neither of the two tone controls have any affect on the bridge pup ?? It's almost as if its tone is set, and it's very trebly.....
--the first (middle) tone control acts on the neck pup while the second one acts on the middle pup only. (remember 3-way switch)

Yep, that's the way the Strat tone controls work...the mod is essential, IMO.

The AVRI should come with a 5-way switch in the case/kit, to replace the 3-way.

vic

Thanks Tokai...no, I did not get the 5-way switch with it...the guy from whom I got it installed it in one of his strats.
However playing it through the normal channel of the AC30 makes a BIG difference ito tone....and the bridge pup sounds really good and vintage now (should have tried it long ago!) ?

AlanRatcliffe

Tokai SA wrote: Yep, that's the way the Strat tone controls work...the mod is essential, IMO.

+1. I actually like the sound of the neck pickup without a tone control at all, so I sometimes move both controls - front one on the middle pickup and the other on the bridge.

Another good option is the first tone as a master tone that affects all switch settings and the second tone as a "neck on" pot.