Could you please help with Crafted in Japan strat... ?

Hello, dear forum members!

Could you please help a newbie to identify my recently purchase crafted in japan stratocaster? The problem is that i wasn't able to find the definition of the serial number. My S/N is N + 6 digits (remember - CIJ, not MIJ), N097109 to be more precise. I've googled through all high-rated sites, and neither had such serial number type. What can that mean... ?

The fact is that there are no other numbers on the neck (i've read that sometimes month and year are written during the production process). It's absolutely clear. And it looks like this (old style vintage Fender logo):

http://pic.ipicture.ru/uploads/091021/thumbs/JSq53szUKm.jpg (http://ipicture.ru/Gallery/Viewfull/25394109.html)

Although it sounds brilliant for my ears, i have bad thoughts about this strat's history. The seller told me, that this strat is 62' reissue, and i thought that "ST-62" must be written under the neck. But i've found ST-362. Is it bad... ? I can't even understand what is the wood! The seller told me that this is alder, but i am definetely sure that it's false. Probably basswood (the body consists of 3 parts)?

http://pic.ipicture.ru/uploads/091021/thumbs/v7RWEz2SCn.jpg (http://ipicture.ru/Gallery/Viewfull/25394169.html)

http://pic.ipicture.ru/uploads/091021/thumbs/8E3IZmR41k.jpg (http://ipicture.ru/Gallery/Viewfull/25394364.html)

I would be very pleased, if some japanese strats gurus could help me! Thank you very much in advance! :oops:

Does it say Crafted in Japan with the serial number on the back of the neck?

Yes, it does!

http://pic.ipicture.ru/uploads/091021/thumbs/1jpxg20NtE.jpg (http://ipicture.ru/Gallery/Viewfull/25394430.html)

ST-362 is still a 62 reissue code from japan and has been since the mid eighties.

They show up on bodies and 57 reissues sometimes too.

That serial number is a mystery. What does the neck date say?

I'd start looking out for other things, trying to spot if its fake, but it probably is not. Not sure why someone would fake a CIJ...

Body could be alder or basswood, and # of pieces do not really matter in assessing that. Is there grain? what color is the bare wood in the neck pocket?

If the neck pocket wood is very light and whitish and there is little to no grain, it is basswood. If the wood is brown/reddish and there is some grain then it is alder.


are the frets small vintage? is the fretboard radius 7.25? things to check out.

jmaul, thank you for your answer about the body! Now i don't bother about ST-362 instead of ST-62. I even thought previously that it could be Squier body.

There is no neck date at all, that is the problem! No other stamps, except "Crafted.." and the S/N.

No, it is not grainy at all, very light and whitish - you've described it better, than i could even imagine) Is basswood worse than alder?

The frets are small, and the neck itself is very very close to the one i touched on my friend's American Vintage. And it is made very accurately, frets are in good condition and it is a real pleasure to play it (i owned a cheap Squier before, and it is a complete trash compared to this Fender with strange serial number).

I wanted to change the pickups as well, as i think that these ones are some chinese 10-bucks trash. I play RHCP covers mostly, and i think about ordering 3x SSL-1 pack from e-bay. Is this the right choice? Thank you once more!

Basswood is just as good as alder. yngwie malmsteen uses it as his preferred body wood and george harrison's japan squier strat had a basswood body as well. Basswood is just a less expensive wood and creates a less expensive guitar. It does not look as nice as alder or ash with a clear or burst finish, and it is a soft wood that will dent easily, so it is actually better to have a poly finish on a basswood body. If you had an otherwise identical guitar with an alder body, there's at least a 95% chance you could not hear any difference, and even if you could, it would be very minor.

john frusciante uses pre cbs strats with original pickups. And a huge amount of expensive effects. I would think your best bets for pickups would be:

1) Fralin Real 54's
2) Fender custom shop 54's
3) Fender Custom Shop 69's

the 69's are common and can probably be found used for the best bang for the buck. The Fralins are unreal but very expensive. There are many other good ones too, like Don Mare, Suhr, and Lollar's. These are all similar to the Fralins price wise and probably quality wise as well. My personal choice is the Fralins.

Lastly, you might not want to take my pickup advice. Pickups are a very personal choice, and you might be happiest with the S-1's. Take some time and look up soundclips of the Fralin and Fenders though.

looks like the plastic switch and tiny pots...newer production model is my guess. Ceramic pick-ups with the magnet on the bottom...or are those sponges glued under the pick-ups?...if they are ceramic p`ups...then more than likely a lower end model and chances are basswood...higher ends have US made pick-ups and every prodcution model from the late `90s to today that I`ve seen have those pots and switch, shop orders and order mades not included in that. Plus...not all basswoods were low end either...the Malmsteen was not low end, was basswood, and quite expensive so body wood isn`t always an indicator to original retail price BUT most low ends I see are basswood...confusing? you bet it is.

jmaul, aha, i see.. Now i have a complete understanding about the wood, thank you! All in all i think i don't have to sell this guitar and buy another one. I like how it feels and this is more important, than strange serial number, although it is really hard to determine its production time... And this mismatch is really strange.

About the pickups. You now, i am not nearly an expert, but in 2009 April's Vintage Guitar Magazine i've read an interview with John about recording the Empyrean. There was a question about pickups he uses. He was asked if they were original or not. And the answer was that he would be happy to leave original ones, but they are too old and need replacement. So he uses "Seymour Duncan Vintage". I thought, that it could be an SSL-1 model, but i of course i am not sure about it.

http://pic.ipicture.ru/uploads/091022/thumbs/I84WVVezxT.jpg (http://ipicture.ru/Gallery/Viewfull/25420555.html)

But i'll search for different samples of the pickups you adviced!

sneakyjapan, yes, they are ceramic with the magnet. I've read that these are cheap pickups of bad quality, that is why i wanted to change them. You are probably correct, and this is a low end 62' reissue of late '90s. I paid 850 USD for it here, in Moscow. I know that it is not a good price for a Japanese guitar with unknown S/N, but all guitar prices are high here... For example, new Standart Strat costs around 900 dollars, and American Standart ~ $2200. I thought that this Japanese ST-362 is better than new MIM.

It sounds to me like John is paid to endorse seymour duncan. ;)

I have heard he uses the original pickups from the 50's and 60's many times over. Pickups getting "too old" is a terrible reason for replacement, hahaha. People pay tons of money to have original pickups rewound and fixed by the best guys in the business so they dont have to buy new production pups. You could buy several sets of the top tier new production pickups out there for a single non working 1962 strat pickup.

Seems (http://cgi.ebay.com/Fender-Custom-Shop-69-Strat-Guitar-Pickups-Set-NEW_W0QQitemZ150378670739QQcmdZViewItemQQptZGuitar _Accessories?hash=item2303446a93) that they are even cheaper than SSLs - good news for me!)

I just got a 2003 CIJ '68 RI Antigua. And I think if you get some nice pups and electronics you will be happier with a good Japanese Guitar than with an American Standard. AS's are over-rated. My CIJ feels and plays superior to my '92 AmST. It is also much much lighter. The neck on the CIJ is a much nicer piece of maple and has superior finish work.

The only thing that stands out is "Crafted in Japan" on your neck is the "J" in Japan looks like cursive style lettering, where mine is a regular type-writer J. They must have changed it sometime.

It is so hard to understand the difference between '54 and '69 pickups according to YouTube.. Everybody plays in different amps.. )

It is so hard to understand the difference between '54 and '69 pickups according to YouTube.. Everybody plays in different amps.. )

Don't forget to wear your best headphones:

http://www.acmeguitarworks.com/Strat_Pickup_Sound_Clips_W1.cfm

Oh mate, you are my savior! :razz: You've helped me so much! And now this great site - it is superb!

Now i think i understand why do you love Fralins - they are very warm and have higher output than Custom Shop pickups, right? Even on clean sound they fill thick, something like the wall of sound instead of Fender's fence. And at the same time not so rude as Texas.

But it is very hard for me to tell which ones i love more even in such ideal conditions!)))

As for my personal taste, CS 54 and 69 are pretty equal (i mean not in the tone itself, but in the level of performance), in some positions and songs one is better, than - the other. When i close my eyes it is hard to tell which one i like more. But i think that '69s impress me more often than '54s...

It looks like that '54s have thinner sound... It is heard on high notes, especially when the single note is played, not the chord. The '69s... mm.. have denser sound, like it has more volume (i mean amount, not level of volume).. At the same time i didn't like Texas Special at all, they are not so clear.. and have more brutal, sharp sound. Fats have a speaking name! They really feel like fat!)))

My verdict after 2 hours of listening to the samples is that 69s are most versatile. I am not sure, tomorrow i'll get up with a clear head and listen again, but 1st choice is 69s!

By the way, do you have Blues Special installed, or Vintage hot? I love the BS! It sounds delicious. I think it is the best, the 1st place. 69s are second, but the cost..

My fralins are Real 54's, which do not have sound clips on that site.

They are Vintage hots but with Alnico 3 magnets instead of Alnico V. They have the best harmonic richness and bllom of any new production pickup I've seen. Mine have a baseplate on the bridge pickup and I ordered them without the RWRP middle pickup because I have never liked that.

My second Fralin recommendation would be the Woodstock '69's. They also do not have soundclips on the site.

It is up to you if the cost justifies the difference in sound. Also look at the lollar, suhr, and don mare offerings if you can find clips. They are in the same league as the Fralins and people seem to be loyal to different brands.

My other strat pickups are Greco EXCELL pickups from the late 70's. I've only ever seen them in vintage Greco guitars on ebay. They came in my strat, which I got used. Before I heard them I was planning on a pup swap, but then I was just blown away and they will live there forever.

Thanks guys...now I have to have a set of those Vintage hots...

I think the problem is that my guitar is not so good, that it needs pickups for many hundreeds dollars))) And i am not worth these pickups myself at the moment... I can afford buying new Fralins (can not even imagine how much do old ones from '54 cost), but i think i first have to play so good to really feel the difference in my own performance and not in site samples. I can buy a Pre-CBS strat and Marshall heads with Japanese ds-2 from '80s as Frusciante has, but that wouldn't make me a great player.. )

Probably CS '69s would be the right choice for this current guitar and my level of playing, do you agree? After i gain a bit more experience i can think of some better strats and vintage pickups, but it would be a bit later.

By the way, i've listened to seymour duncan's samples on the official site... Hmm... I can't say wheather they are recorded not so good as on acmeguitarworks.com, or the pickups themselves are worse, but i didn't like ssl-1 sound at all.

I think the problem is that my guitar is not so good, that it needs pickups for many hundreeds dollars))) And i am not worth these pickups myself at the moment... I can afford buying new Fralins (can not even imagine how much do old ones from '54 cost), but i think i first have to play so good to really feel the difference in my own performance and not in site samples. I can buy a Pre-CBS strat and Marshall heads with Japanese ds-2 from '80s as Frusciante has, but that wouldn't make me a great player.. )

Probably CS '69s would be the right choice for this current guitar and my level of playing, do you agree? After i gain a bit more experience i can think of some better strats and vintage pickups, but it would be a bit later.

Evader, Fralin "Real 54's" are a model of their pickups, my pickups are not from 1954! They are the same price as Vintage Hots or the Blues. (about $220)

:)

http://www.fralinpickups.com/stratstyle.asp

Your guitar is very good.
Your pickups and electronics stink, but the guitar itself should be very nice.

As far as how much to spend on pickups, Fralins of any model are around $220. Fender CS 54's are about $180, and Fender CS 69's are about $140. You will probably need to be a decent player to truly appreciate the differences between the CS 69's and the Fralin's, and even then, some great players simply outright prefer the CS 69's to the Fralins. More expensive is not better, your ears need to decide.

One last point- while you might not be able to appreciate the difference between the Fralins and the CS69's- the Fralins will show more in your playing, good and bad, and thus they can make you a better player by forcing you to have pristine technique from the second you put them in your guitar. This also means that learning might be more frustrating with the Fralins and you will have to suck it up and work through any bad habits or beginner mistakes you have. These are just some things for you to consider before making a decision.

All of the pickups we are talking about are great. You cant really make a mistake. If you just want good pickups to practice with an want to save money for eventually getting your dream guitar and pickups, you can order some good value alnico pickups from GFS. They will sound good and get the job done for $70.

http://store.guitarfetish.com/64stvigrbost.html

or

http://store.guitarfetish.com/gfspiialiiha.html

Ah, that's it lol! :lol:
Real 54's))) Nice name for pickups))) Ok, thank you very very much once more! Now i have more structurized knowledges and a better understanding of many questions.

I've ordered Blues Special pack w/bassplate! Hooray!) In 2 weeks or a bit more, i hope, i'll get 'em!

congratulations, that is going to be a mean guitar!