Yesterday, I put a used Fender Stanard Stratocaster on lay-away, at a local trading post store. At $299.00 and I put $40.00 down, I shouldn't need the whole 90-ways allowed. The tremelo arm is missing, but not a big deal since I'll upgrade with a Fender American Standard Strat tremelo system, and the tuner have already been upgraded to locking ones, so that's one less upgrade I'll have to worry about. I'll likely buy three Seymour Duncan Lipstick pickups for it. It's brown sunburst w/white pickguard, maple neck and fingerboard, which matches my 2005 model Fender Standard Telecaster. One thing I've noticed, however, over the past couple of weeks with plenty of opportunities to test drive guitars, is that I tend to prefer the Bigsby vibrato over the Fender tremelo. Would I do better to upgrade this Strat with a Floyd Rose? I'm liking having the arm right there, when needed, or rotate it down and out of the way, when not needed, as with a Bigsby? If it comes down to it, I'll just take out the tremelo arm, and play it like a hard tail Strat...but at least the bridge will be better than the current one.

Of course, this will be one of my surf guitars, along with my Epiphone Les Paul Jr. 90, and (_the horror! the shock! such blasphemy!_) a P90 equipped Gibson Les Paul Faded Double Cutaway...in another two or three months, for the Gibson. I'll also be going for a P90 equipped Gibson SG, around the same time, so if I happen to use the Strat for a surf lead, it'll be between the Les Paul and SG for rhythm. I played the SG before I played the Les Paul, and even played an Epiphone Les Paul Studio prior to the Gibson Les Paul, but I'd already fallen in love with the SG's P90 sound. When I played the P90 Les Paul, I immediately realized that I had found the sound that I'd been searching for, for 15 years, for my first surf guitar instrumental. Until yesterday (had tried out a ton of guitars in Indy, on Monday, at Guitar Center, IRC Music and Sam Ash), I'd been planning to buy the Epiphone Les Paul Studio (to be surf converted with Gibson P94s and a Bigsby B5 added), and then above mentioned Gibson Les Paul. I came to my senses, however, and realized why even bother with the Epiphone, when the Gibson already has P90s!?! I'll stick a Bigsby B5 on the Gibson.

Lastly, I'd tried out a Gibson Les Paul Melody Maker, when I was at Guitar Center, and was fairly shocked to realize that my, still completely stock, Epiphone Les Paul Jr. 90 sounds way better than the Melody Maker! From my guitar test driving excursion, on Monday, I'll be selling off all 3 of my Squiers (Affinity P-bass, Fat Telecaster, Bullet Special), and both Ibanez guitars (Artcore AG75TBS and JTK2 Jet King). They've been good to me, for however long or little bit that I've owned 'em, but as I more find my musical bearing, I realize that they're not likely to be used in any of my future recordings. Once I rearrange my guitar "arsenal," to include replacing the Squier Fat Telecaster with a Fender '72 Telecaster Custom, I'll not want for just the right sound, for psychedelic, rockabilly, surf, surfabilly and surfadelic.

Matt
(hopefully Ivan P will stop treating me like a vampire, when the majority of my guitar collection is single coil equipped )

Fast Cars & Loud Guitars!

The Strat I'm getting already has better, locking tuners on it, although the look initially grated against my personal aesthetic, when I test drove it. When I went back, on Tuesday, to put it on lay-away, I looked 'em over again, and decided "eh...I can live with 'em...one less upgrade to buy." It'll be a perfect companion to my 2005 model Fender Standard Telecaster...Tele for lead, Strat for rhythm, P or (future) J bass for the groove. All is well in my world, as far as ventures into country music goes, and even for when I do psychedelic. Of course I've gone off the deep end, in deciding to use Les Pauls for surf, but oh well...that's just part of my dare to be different personallity.

Perhaps if I do a cover of The Madeira's "Sandstorm," I'll just have to break down and use my Strat...the beauty of sound-on-sound recording, there. I only bring this up, as I realized last Thursday (Nov. 2nd), when test driving a Peavey JF-2 EXP, and again when trying a ton of guitars on Monday, how much of an influence they're having on me. I found myself, when doing a bit of stream-of-conscious jamming (trying to decide what to play next), playing a phrase of "Sandstorm" having distilled Ivan's lead and Patrick's rhythm into one. Besides, I figure if they'd actually let me record a cover of "Sandstorm," I'd better damned well use a Strat, or I'd have to stop going to Madeira shows, for fear of what the possible reprisals might be.

Matt
(wondering if he's the only person that knows what "Sandstorm" sounds like on Teles, Les Pauls and even rockabilly boxes)

Fast Cars & Loud Guitars!

I would use a standard strat tem with the steel blcok, and try setting the string block right against the wood, you can only dip down, but I find that the contact makes the guitar feel more ressonant. I use all five springs, and adjust the claw until the block has good solid contact.

see if you like it, you can always change it back.

THe NEpTuNeS