Stratocasters

[FrankHudson]

Originally Posted by Chickee

All three of these guitars have trem systems. All three are locked down. No muss, no fuss. It’s not the witches brew folks try to make it out to be. Fender players have been hard tailing their guitars for generations. Don’t let them spook you!
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frank d.

Yeah, I'm puzzled by the concern regarding simple, easily reversible mods like:

• Just tightening the claw up to deck the bridge, a few minutes with a screwdriver. Can also be adjusted for down bends only this way.
  
• Adding a spring or two at string change to deck the trem even more firmly against even big bends or higher tension strings
  
• Dropping a proper width thing (I used a block of wood, but there are various things) between the trem cavity wall the block) to make a Strat into a hardtail.

These aren't rocket surgery. Requires a screwdriver. Less complex and time consuming as changing to a different set of strings. I'm all for variety, and as a Tele guy, I blocked the trem on the first Strat type I played, but I think any of these things are so easy that the above methods are why there are fewer hardtail Strats made.

[AX17609]

Originally Posted by FrankHudson

Yeah, I'm puzzled by the concern regarding simple, easily reversible mods...

I'm the OP, and I never once expressed a concern about tremolo systems. This is a concern assigned to me by other posters, who never took the time to read what I wrote.

My principle focus is and always has been left hand playability. This is the sum of neck profile, fretboard wood, fret size, and fret finishing. That's it; that's the list. I wouldn't kick a guitar out of the running because it had a tremolo system. I don't use them, so I don't care about them. In my hands it's feature without a benefit and one that is easily disabled. That's where it ends.

[Chickee]

Leave the lab a few hours and go play some guitars. After fifty some odd replies if you still aren't getting the info you want/need its time you did some scientific research of your own. And if you say the guitar stores are too far away, every big music retailer takes returns. Order five guitars and pick one. Don’t swipe at the people trying to help you because they aren't exactly in your lane.

frank d.

[Puddleglum]

For anyone having trouble with a Strat staying in tune after trem use, check out this video. Very informative!

https://youtu.be/Iy-F7iSIopA

[Brent Hutto]

If you're very particular about the shape of the neck and fretboard (which I seem to be, without wanting to be) it does all come down to finding plenty of guitars to play until one works. I've never been able to suss out much of anything from spec sheet information from builders or manufacturers.

My acoustic guitar, whose neck suited me perfectly from the moment I picked it up the first time, was described by the seller as well as by the builder (who I contacted by email) in a way that made it seem very different from the shape and dimensions I had liked on other guitars. It was a great price on a better guitar than I thought I could afford at normal prices so I made the 2-1/2 hour drive to try it out and bought it on the spot.

That was the when I learned how individual and un-describable in words and numbers the neck and fretboard of a guitar can be.

[davidd]

Methinks some people just overthink. I can never understand guys that aren't flexible with the specs of guitars.

[Brent Hutto]

Originally Posted by davidd

Methinks some people just overthink. I can never understand guys that aren't flexible with the specs of guitars.

I can just barely play guitar well enough to make a little music that pleases me. There's a lot of stuff I can't play that I'd like to but if I stick to slow, simple tunes I'm OK.

That's all using guitars that fit me hands and have the sorts of sounds I like. If I tried to do that with a neck and fretboard (or for that matter body proportions) that force me into contortions just to get my fingers in the right place I'd be out of luck. I've got no reserve of skill to use for working around the wrong size and shape of guitar and skill make music.

But that's just me.