Spec out your signature strat!

[RaistMagus]

If you ever got to have your own signature Stratocaster, what specs would it have?

Mine would definitely have a bridge+neck pickup option, S-S-S, tone knob on all pickups, shaved neck heel, slotted tuners, seafoam green color

Editing to add, after reading your replies: it must have two knobs and the knob spot closest to the bridge pickup must be empty, because it gets in my way!!

Second edit!
- S-S-S, 57/62 or similar pickups, will consider Dimarzio area. Must have modern stagger.
- only two pots, vol and tone, further away from the strings.
- push-pull tone pot to add neck pickup, achieving bridge+neck combo
- 2-point floating bridge
- modern C neck with satin finish on the back
- shaved heel
- rosewood fretboard, 9.5" or 12" radius
- medium jumbo nickel frets
- slotted tuners
- seafoam green nitro with parchment pickguard

 

[VintageSG]

Slotted tuners
Narrow 'C' neck with 9.5" radius
Heel wheel adjust truss rod
Medium jumbo stainless frets atop a tight-grained rosewood fingerboard
Satin finish to rear

Hard tail, string through body. I quite like the way the dark grain of the pine body of my Tele comes through, so 'stripy' pine it is
Shell pink in a thin ( see grain request above ) finish
Six saddle bridge
Neck pickup?, a wide-range humbucker
Bridge pickup?, a single coil sized twin rail humbucker
No scratchplate, but parchment or light minty green pickup rings for decoration
Stacked volume & tone controls
Three way switch
Straplocks

 

[Cali Dude]

I already have it. It's the American Buddy Guy Strat. Three lace gold pickups master volume, master tbx, 25 db mid boost, replace the vintage frets with narrow tall. It's a great guitar.

 

[Highway 49]

Ooh, something like a ‘59ish hardtail, in two tone sunburst, with slab rosewood board, and Fender Pure Vintage 57/62 pickups

 

[AAT65]

It would have to have a 3-way switch (I don’t like 4 or 5-ways), single volume and tone (using the two tone positions or somewhere near there, the default is too near the strings for me), reasonably chunk neck, S-S-S pickups. Not sure what bridge - I used to keep my Strat bridge decked and blocked, but I’d probably want a 2-point tremolo rather than hardtail. Maybe should have one of each though…
The switch would probably be wired like Alex Lifeson’s modified Strats, which is Bridge / Middle + Neck / Neck (& it might be good to have a push-pull switch to change the middle position to be Middle + Bridge). I think that gives a good trade off of useful sounds + easy heat-of-the-moment pickup swapping. (Lifeson used a Gibson-style 3-pickup toggle, which I would be tempted by also, but the traditional Strat blade would be OK.)
I’d go for Lifeson’s other innovation too, which is to invert the jack cup so it sticks out rather than tucks in. Just to mess with the traditionalists’ heads…
It would probably be Olympic White with ebony or rosewood fretboard or Sherwood Green with maple board, matching headstock and a tortoiseshell pickguard.

 

[VintageSG]

I’d go for Lifeson’s other innovation too, which is to invert the jack cup so it sticks out rather than tucks in. Just to mess with the traditionalists’ heads…

Ritchie Blackmore had a strap button on the face of his headstock. It did nothing but annoy traditionalists...
I approve of such innovations and their intent.

 

[KelvinS1965]

If I was a world famous guitarist (rather than just a hack who plays gigs locally in a events/covers band) then they could make a signature version of my self built Strat. That's the one I've used for the past 4 years since I built it:

Allparts FAT RWO neck: 1" deep 1st to 12th fret, 9.5"radius, medium jumbo frets, Rosewood fingerboard.
Fender Vintage Noiseless pickups.
Eric Clapton mid boost, but without the TBX circuit. I use a 500k tone pot and 0.022uF tone cap, so I can run the tone on '5' most of the time.
Faded Sonic Blue (I mixed Olympic white with Sonic blue).
Trem screws tightened up so the bridge doesn't float in case I break a string. (Actually I'd go for a hard tail, but it's too late now).
Generally early 60s spec with 3 ply 'guard in a very light mint green.

Just after I built it in 2021, before I fitted the Vintage noiseless pickups in place of the PV65s due to some noisy venues we play at:

The fatness of the neck is hard to show:

 

[Sparky2]

I have only owned the one Strat since 2021, and I'm very happy with it, so I'm guessing this is the Sparky2 Signature one.
My 1991 Strat Plus.

Wilkinson roller nut.
Fender Lace Sensor pickups, gold.
Locking tuners.
All factory stock original.

I have no idea what the neck shape or radius is, and don't care.
It feels like a really great Strat, so it must be just right.

 

[Call Me Al]

Something like this, but in a perfect world I’d use hard tail bridge and maybe a lighter/snazzier color. Metallic blue with pearl guard? Modern C neck.

 

[43mmNut]

I'd keep my Fender '2019 deep C Maple / Ash Am Pro Strat. It has the Sienna Burst finish; my fave.
It plays and sounds great!
I wouldn't mind if it had slotted tuners, though.

 

[KelvinS1965]

I have no idea what the neck shape or radius is, and don't care.
It feels like a really great Strat, so it must be just right.

I've had my JV Squier Strat since 1982. I also had no idea what the neck shape, radius, etc was until many years later when I found guitar forums and the Internet generally. I always wondered why other Strats felt a bit 'odd' but it turned out I was used to a 7.25" radius and small vintage frets, so I guess the others I tried were more modern specs. I just didn't know.

These days it fees a little strange for a few minutes when I play that Strat, which is ironic because I built the blue one so I didn't have to risk taking the JV out to gigs. It's not worth a huge amount, especially since it isn't fully original now, but I'd hate to lose it.

 

[RaistMagus]

Something like this, but in a perfect world I’d use hard tail bridge and maybe a lighter/snazzier color. Metallic blue with pearl guard? Modern C neck.
View attachment 1404697

Love the missing knob! I have removed the plastic knob but I still have the pot shaft there. So that I don't turn down accidentally and it is small and doesn't get in the way much.

 

[lupowitz]

'50s style tele conversion neck, poly, maple, 7.25" radius.
EMG SV set
Floyd
Butterscotch blonde with black guard, Roadworn

 

[dollycaster]

Alder body with contoured heel

Neck based on SRV signature (12” radius, asymmetric contour)

Rosewood fretboard

21 jumbo frets

Gotoh vintage-style locking tuners

Vintage-style tremolo with slightly shorter arm a la Callaham

DiMarzio Area 61 pickups

Available in Daphne Blue, Burgundy Mist, Olympic White or Black

 

[Skyhook]

If you ever got to have your own signature Stratocaster, what specs would it have?

Mine would definitely have a bridge+neck pickup option, S-S-S, tone knob on all pickups, shaved neck heel, slotted tuners, seafoam green color

Editing to add, after reading your replies: it must have two knobs and the knob spot closest to the bridge pickup must be empty, because it gets in my way!!

It sounds to me like you're describing the AmPro II here.
S-S-S, check. Shaved neck heel, check.
Upper tone: neck and middle. Lower tone: bridge.
Push/push pot on lower tone to add neck pickup to any switch position.
Position 1 and the push/push lower tone would give you neck + bridge.
It also comes in SFG which was the color I would have picked if it
was available when "the deal" went down. Helloooo, 3TSB...

 

[MichaelD83]

Early 60s style Hardtail. Slab rosewood. Alembic strato blaster mod. w 7 way switching.

Sunburst and or black

 

[Maguchi]

One piece roasted swamp ash body and a 22 fret neck made of solid rosewood with rosewood fretboard. SSS pickups slightly overwound. Olympic white body and headstock. Gold plastic pickguard. Fender Classic Gear tuners, Callaham 6 screw trem with 2 1/8" string spacing, bone nut, Dunlop Straploks. Only two CTS 250k pots, one volume and one tone. Orange Drop caps, 5 way CRL switch and Switchcraft jack.

 

[tugboat1980]

Start with a PRS Silver Sky SE as my base. I know…flame me. I think John Mayer made some really cool tweaks. Lollar 64 pickups for sparkle and punch. The wiring is a Gibson 50’s wiring inspired scheme. Have that on my Tele and love it. Two point Trem, floated. Neck profile on the Silver Sky SE is about perfect, thought I’d do Stainless Steel frets. Love the satin finish, I’d do tru oil on the neck. I do like the Silver Sky headstock, better than the regular PRS headstock, but I’d do six in line. Not the Strat headstock but some 6 in line thing. Crelicam ebony fretboard (the same stuff on Taylor guitars, I’d choose a fretboard with more of a rosewood color)

I even like the birds but I’d change one of them out for the screech owl, all mother of pearl. Candy apple red body with parchment pickguard and covers.

That would be ideal.

 

[Jumbotronic]

Mine would be pretty much what I've got right now with the mods it has, but perhaps a different body wood. It's an '85 MIJ, basswood. Maybe change that out for alder or ash, or even chambered ash. Anyway, the things that would stay:

I believe it's a D-shaped neck, maple with a skunk stripe. That neck is sublime and I wouldn't change a thing. I would spec staggered, locking tuners instead of the stock locking nut (a mod I've made). System 1 trem, because I think that thing is kind of cool.

Electronics: set of Gemini Rising Sun humbuckers. 5 way switch, vol-tone-blend.

Candy apple red, red tort pickguard. Raw steel tele switch tip. Comme cela:

 

[Tony65x55]

OK, I'll play.

- Large headstock
- Slotted tuners
- Two string trees
- Tusq nut
- Maple neck/fretboard
- medium frets
- contoured heel
- Swamp ash body / dragon burst finish
- Lollar neck pickup and bridge pickup - no middle pickup - black pickup covers
- cream pickguard with cream/black/cream
- 250K CTS pots and switchcraft three-position Tele switch with black tip
- two-point fulcrum bridge with six stainless steel block saddles
- Steel bridge block
- Black knobs - vol, neck tone, bridge tone
- Dunlop Strap locks
- 2.5" Black leather strap