'84 American Strat...? comments?

[Oky]

I have here a Strat which was sold to me by a fairly trustworthy dealer as a 1984 model, USA made, from the US market.

I know build quality and various things have changed over the years, so I'm wondering, does anyone know what these models from around this time are like in terms of quality? (compared to other years)

What are the pickups generally like?

Is it indeed an '84?

I don't have any other details, as in if it is a certain model etc, but it seems like bog standard, s/s/s, normal switching etc. Serial is visible in photo below... (E 411 481)

It sounds rather unimpressive really but it needs to be sheilded and restrung, and I'm going to rewire it for more possible combinations. Wondering wether its a candidate for new pickups?

I can post more pics if anyone wants.
Comments?

[andy]

Going by the Fender support site, that was indeed built in 1984.

Have a look at

www.fender.com/support/usa_instruments.php

About halfway down it says that a serial number beginning E4+5digits is from 1984.

I don't know what the pickups are like in these (although a fresh set of strings can do a lot for a guitars tone!) but I am a big advocate of trying new pickups- its an easy process a lot of fun, and can get some excellent results!

[sumgai]

Oky,

This is an American Standard, pretty much a run of the mill MIA guitar. Better than most, but not the top of the line. It should sound "acceptably" good, but as usual, YMWV (your mileage will vary).

If you're in the habit of changing strings every so often, then try a few different brands first. If you're married to your current string brand, and you'd rather fight than switch, then yes, a set of pickups is in order. Just a word of caution, tha's all.

One of the better "cost effective" outfits that seem to get good reviews here is Guitar Fetish. They cover a range of potential soundscapes, and leave enough geld in your wallet to buy another set of strings! ;D There are others of course, but that's a good place to start.

One thing I'd like to mention is eBay and/or craigslist......... Used pickups might appear to be a good deal price-wise, but unless you know the seller, or you know you have recourse, then you are participating in a crap-shoot. They may work, they may not. IMHO, money spent like this should be "gambling money" - you're willing to lose it, should your bet turn out to be bad.

Since you're in an upside-down position, why not ask either JohnH or gumbo where they go for a good deal, locally to you? Or if you're flush with power, you could just say "to hell with it", and pony up for a set of Kinmans! Absolute best, bar none, anywhere in the known human sphere of influence! ;D

HTH





sumgai

[Oky]

thanks guys.

I am going to resheild and rewire, and since i've got the guitar apart, why not refinish?!

A friend of mine is a automotive spray painter and this one has quite a few dings so we're going to spruce it up ...

I'll post some pics when I'm done....

I'll see how it sounds after a proper sheilding then consider investing in some pickups... Apparently there's a guy here in Brisbane who makes his own too and has some well known international artists for customers... I'll find out the name and see if any of you guys have heard of him...?

[mr_sooty]

Cue buzzer. Not a 1984 Strat. That there is an American Standard, a model which wasn't released until 1987. The confusion comes from the serial number, which does indeed indicate 1984 (E for Eighty, followed by a 4). However, the problem lies in the fact that Fender would order these serial number decals, and use them until they were finished, even if it was no longer that year. Apparently they majorly over ordered around 83, and as a result E3 and E4 (especially) numbers appeared as late as 1988.

So your guitar is probably from 1987, possibly from 1988. The only way to really know is to take the neck off and look for the date stamp on the butt end, or sometimes it's written in pencil under the pickguard.

The system is far more accurate now as they recongnise the markets desire to know exactly what year it's guitars were made.

[sumgai]

sooty,

Well, it goes deeper than that.

While Fender has always tried to "order ahead", I don't think they'd've gotten three or four years ahead - that'd literally spill red ink in the Accounting Department for way longer than the CBS bean counters could tolerate.

You are correct in that sometimes a decal (or another part) would sit on a shelf for "awhile" before being used, and that if there were dating involved, the latter date always prevailed. (Gee, fancy that.) However, you'll recall that in 1984, Bill Schultz led an employee (management team) buyout from CBS. They got the name, and some of the raw materials, but not the manufacturing facilities. This left a nearly year-long dry spell.

It can be posited that if there were some decals in the bins, and they transferred to the new owners, then they might have gotten applied as late as 1985 or early 1986, but not much later. More likely, when the dry spell ran on longer than expected, they were tossed (Arizona has a way of trashing delicate items like these.), and new ones ordered.

But more to the point, if the neck date codes bear out the 1985-1985 time frame, then this would have been "the American model" of the Strat - the newly constituted Fender had contracted for their high-end Strats to be made in Japan! (No factory, remember?) Only a very few completely finished and ready-to-go American-made units (from the Corona factory) were transferred to the new owner as part of the sale. While not named as The American Standard, indeed they were, for the time.



Of course, this is all conjecture, I am not a Fender employee , nor do I play one on TV.

;D



sumgai

[ChrisK]

The only way to really know is to take the neck off and look for the date stamp on the butt end, or sometimes it's written in pencil under the pickguard.

And, after all, the neck is "movable".

[mr_sooty]

Sumgai:

I know for a fact (well, as much as one can who wasn't working for Fender at the time) that the E4 serial number was used as late as 1988. The earliest American Standards and Strat Plus' (both released in 1987) had E4 numbers.

You're right that there was a period in 1984 when Fender suspended US production (because of the shift of ownership), and sold lines already being produced in Japan (and therefore not stamped 'made in USA') - and left over CBS inventories. But this is not from that period. This is clearly the American Standard model released in 1987. It's pretty distinctive, and quite different from what was being sold 1984.

Edit: Here's a page I found showing some of the hideous Strats the were being sold in '84. Note especially the ugly bridges, and the output jack mounted on the pickguard on the Standards.

www.strat-central.com/cbs80s.htm