Need some help on Strat replacement parts

[Jerry D]

Bought a used SSS 2007 MIM Strat (not received yet) and I want to put locking tuners on it. Would you recommend Fender brand? Short posts?

I also want to upgrade the wiring and pickups. I especially need advice on this. What pickups would you buy to replace the old ones? And, am I gonna get my money's worth in improved sound with the wiring? Do kits come with new pots, and do I need them? Links would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance for advice.

[Chickee]

Hey Jerry,
The world is your oyster:
Fender locking tuners are terrific. Pick the posts you like.

Loaded pick guards are being offered by pretty much everyone in the pick-up business. You can even get gen-u-wine Fender loaded pickguards to keep your Strat pure. Tons of options to choose from.

Otherwise there is MojoTone, Lindy Frailin, Seymour Duncan, EMG, all offering fully loaded pickguards with top shelf components. And there are tons more out there. Those are just the companies I have good experiences with.

Post pix when you can!
frank d.

[Jerry D]

I figured I would come out better buying a set of pickups and having my luthier install them in my new pick guard. Agree?

[rmp]

any 2 pin mounts will work, you can find them on Amazon easily

if you want to stay with "Fender" ones, this is what you're looking for

https://www.amazon.com/Fender-Lockin...ps%2C37&sr=8-3

Note that there are 3 machine heads with longer posts. these will be for the E A D strings, the shorter ones for G B E strings

for a pickup upgrade, you can buy a preloaded pickgaurd with a variety of pickups.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=prewired+..._3_14_ts-doa-p

All you need to do is solder in the jack plate.. (Brilliant!) Make sure you get one that has the same # of mount holes for mounting it on the guitar

[FrankHudson]

I think the locking tuners and staggered posts are nice-to-have if you use the whammy bar.

If you're good with a soldering gun and a wiring diagram, do it yourself pickups and component swaps are less expensive and allows you complete freedom on what pickups and features you want. The loaded pickguard makes the job much easier and the price premium is likely less than the labor costs to having it done by a pro with "a la cart" parts.

I would say, generically, don't decide to upgrade until you've played the original stuff for at least a bit. You might be surprised.

[maxtheaxe]

Nothing's easier than picking a loaded Strat pickguard (in your favorite color) and swapping out the old one. The only soldering required is for the output jack and the ground wire to the claw, and as stated here, there are tons of options out there.

Pretty much the same with tuners...drop-in replacements from Fender (Schaller) are widely available. Or...I recently swapped out a set of non-locking tuners on a MIM Strat with Hipshot tuners that have a mounting plate that fits underneath the back side...lines them up perfectly, no screws required.

[hatamoto]

Hmmmm, this is a rabbit hole....

For tuners I can only think of Graphtech. No idea on short posts.

For pickup swapping, do you have an idea what kind of tone profile are you looking for? Vintage sounding? Hot? High gain? Clean playing?

From there, do you like your sound to be treble heavy? more mids or scooped? How much low end do you want?

Alnico II or V? Alnico II is softer and syrupy, Alnico V has a sharper attack and more airy quality to me.

Once you've narrowed it down then see if it will fit your guitar. Seeing that it's an MIM strat, then that's easy.

In my experience, pots and capacitors didn't really change the tone much. I've only modded a cheap strat and didn't really hear much difference when I changed my pots and capacitors.

I've tried humbucker sized p90's on my Les Paul but I didn't bother with the pots and caps. It sounded great and was a huge tonal change, but I went back to my stock HB's. It just didn't feel right for some reason.

I think it's better to go gradual and slowly and not change everything at once. Take your time and let your ears settle. I recommend to change the pickups first as I think they make the most contribution.

[rmp]

Originally Posted by hatamoto

Hmmmm, this is a rabbit hole....

For tuners I can only think of Graphtech. No idea on short posts.

For pickup swapping, do you have an idea what kind of tone profile are you looking for? Vintage sounding? Hot? High gain? Clean playing?

From there, do you like your sound to be treble heavy? more mids or scooped? How much low end do you want?

Alnico II or V? Alnico II is softer and syrupy, Alnico V has a sharper attack and more airy quality to me.

Once you've narrowed it down then see if it will fit your guitar. Seeing that it's an MIM strat, then that's easy.

In my experience, pots and capacitors didn't really change the tone much. I've only modded a cheap strat and didn't really hear much difference when I changed my pots and capacitors.

I've tried humbucker sized p90's on my Les Paul but I didn't bother with the pots and caps. It sounded great and was a huge tonal change, but I went back to my stock HB's. It just didn't feel right for some reason.

I think it's better to go gradual and slowly and not change everything at once. Take your time and let your ears settle. I recommend to change the pickups first as I think they make the most contribution.

not really a rabbit hole

The Fender replacement tuners are easy to find on Amazon, Reverb and Ebay.

The short vs long posts are done to reduce the need for multiple string trees.

The bass strings are the long post, the treble strings are the short posts

these are rock solid and will upgrade any "Fender" or "Squire" strat within about the time it takes to change the strings,, (Stupid easy update, no modifications needed)

For pickups,, unless a person knows what he wants, it can be a bit of a dance with the choices.

But that's always different answer for everyone. we can't really know or advise unless the question is specific to the experiences with Texas Specials/Fat 50s/Noiseless, etc..

[Chickee]

2016 American Special

Graph Tech Teflon Saddles

“F” stamped neck plate

Ceramic Coated Trem Springs

Fender Locking Tuners in Satin Finish

Graph Tech Teflon Nut and String Trees

Staggered Height Posts


The Texas Specials and Atomic Humbucker are terrific OEM pick-ups and needed no attention. All other mods were strictly for tuning stability and hard playing. The bridge is decked and this guitar stays in tune forever. The only other mod was a pair of Schaller Strap Locks and a Fender OHSC.

[FrankHudson]

Originally Posted by Chickee

2016 American Special

Graph Tech Teflon Saddles

“F” stamped neck plate

Ceramic Coated Trem Springs

Fender Locking Tuners in Satin Finish

Graph Tech Teflon Nut and String Trees

Staggered Height Posts


The Texas Specials and Atomic Humbucker are terrific OEM pick-ups and needed no attention. All other mods were strictly for tuning stability and hard playing. The bridge is decked and this guitar stays in tune forever. The only other mod was a pair of Schaller Strap Locks and a Fender OHSC.

Looks like you added the Graphtech string trees to it too.

Oh, duh! I see you mentioned that. Anyway, I've put those a couple of whammy-bar equipped guitars, they help a little, and aren't as expensive as the staggered height and locking-tuner upgrade.

[Chickee]

Originally Posted by FrankHudson

Looks like you added the Graphtech string trees to it too.

Oh, duh! I see you mentioned that. Anyway, I've put those a couple of whammy-bar equipped guitars, they help a little, and aren't as expensive as the staggered height and locking-tuner upgrade.

Yeah Frankie, even with the staggered poles on the locking machines I felt the string break angle off the nut was way too shallow. Then, very much like a Jazzmaster’s bridge, you begin to get all those sympathetic vibrations on the long strings.