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Axisplayer

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I saw a local ad for a guy wanting to trade his American Special Strat in 9.9+ condition (Sunburst, large head stock, maple fingerboard, and jumbo frets) for something with humbuckers. It hurt but I traded my cheapest LP for it. That was my goldtop LP 2017 Tribute, and I loved that guitar, but it was the cheapest I owned. Financially, it was a wash, but I had three LP's, a Nighthawk, and NO Fender. That wasn't good for someone that was a Fender player most of my life. Anyway, it plays great but had tuning problems since it had so-so tuners, typical nut, and a vintage Fender trem. As a hardtail, it was fine, but touch the trem and kiss it goodbye. I played with it for several days but could not get it stable enough to suit me. I am used to Floyd Rose or Kahler and this was NOT that. I ordered some parts and spent today putting them on. First was a Graphtech Supercharger pack. You get string trees, nut, and saddles. Then I got locking tuners from Fender (not my favorite but fine) so the locking pins would line up. Last, a Vintage Callahan trem package with Gilmour size arm (very short.) Now you can wail on the trem, as in full loose strings, and it comes right back. Was not a cheap day, but in the end it is worth it. The entire tone of the guitar changed and it came alive. It seemed thin and wimpy before, but after the swap outs, it is full sounding with a great quack. Definitely a happy camper. Would post a picture, but it looks just like every other sunburst Strat you ever saw. Last two things will be new aluminum pick guard to stop noise from the Tex Mex pickups (not much there, but there is never enough quiet) and a new case.

 

I have heard great things about Hiscox cases and am waiting to see a good deal. I also like TKL cases but their offerings for Fender are sparse. It only came with a bag, which won't be adequate for what has turned out to be about $1100. Did I mention I am smiling and it sounds stellar? Had to share...

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Happy new guitar day!

 

Just curious- You mentioned Fender locking tuners aren't your favorite. Which ones would you rather have? (I have them on one of my Fenders & think they're fine). I'm thinking about getting them for another, but would like to know if there's another brand I should look at,,,

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Not really. I have always been partial to Schaller tuners. They usually feel like well machined pieces, mores than some brands. But in my case and probably yours, the tuners I had are two pin tuners, but not locking. When I looked for locking, I found that the Schallers would require me to drill another hole in the headstock between each pair of existing holes because the Schallers use one pin for alignment. Since I doubt either of us really likes to drill more holes in our guitars, I opted to go for essentially "plug and play" installation that were a direct replacement. They work fine, but feel a little less smooth to me than I am used to. I will adjust though.

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Ok, here are the obligatory pictures of the Strat. Took pictures of the mods also.

 

Here is the entire guitar ....

 

[ATTACH=JSON]{"alt":"Click image for larger version Name:\tAll.JPG Views:\t1 Size:\t504.3 KB ID:\t32110352","data-align":"none","data-attachmentid":"32110352","data-size":"full"}[/ATTACH]

 

 

Here is the body with the new saddles and the Callaham trem with a short Gilmour arm.

 

[ATTACH=JSON]{"alt":"Click image for larger version Name:\tBody.JPG Views:\t1 Size:\t499.5 KB ID:\t32110353","data-align":"none","data-attachmentid":"32110353","data-size":"full"}[/ATTACH]

 

Here are the locking tuners installed.

 

[ATTACH=JSON]{"alt":"Click image for larger version Name:\tTuners.JPG Views:\t1 Size:\t545.2 KB ID:\t32110354","data-align":"none","data-attachmentid":"32110354","data-size":"full"}[/ATTACH]

 

Lastly, here is the headstock with the new nut and trees installed.

 

[ATTACH=JSON]{"alt":"Click image for larger version Name:\tHeadstock.JPG Views:\t1 Size:\t507.6 KB ID:\t32110355","data-align":"none","data-attachmentid":"32110355","data-size":"full"}[/ATTACH]

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My understanding is that he shortened his trem arm significantly. Callaham references that when they designed the Gilmour arm. It is only 4.125 inches long. I am not a big trem user either. I like it partly because it is tight and stays where you put it, and partly because it is so small that it does not hinder my playing like the longer arms do.

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My understanding is that he shortened his trem arm significantly. Callaham references that when they designed the Gimour arm. It is only 4.5 inches long. I am not a big trem user either. I like it partly because it is tight and stays where you put it' date=' and partly because it is so small that it does not hinder my playing like the longer arms do. [/quote']

 

I thought it looked shorter than mine. I have a generic brand arm that I shortened and slightly rebent myself. It's about 5"..It works good for me.

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I just looked and the Gilmour is 4 and 1/8 long. They sell just the arm threaded for a Fender block. They do say it will still be breakable if you don't use their block which has a tight fit and the special design to prevent arm breakage. Arm alone is around $17 and the block adds another $65 or so. Since the shorter arm gets more stress from being shorter, I would consider a block and arm together. I think it would be worth it.

 

http://callahamguitars.com/strat_trem_arms_catalog.htm

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