I was in the market for a cheap strat to make a partcaster out of, so that I had a playable strat type guitar that fit my T-Rex hands to test IR files and use to audition presets, since I didn't currently have a guitar with 3 single coil pickups in a strat shape.
Behold this 2014 Fender Squier Bullet Strat that was sold by GC as installed with Fender noiseless high gain pickups. As a bonus after buying it, I found it also had upgraded pots, frets were nice and level, and the tone control wired as active on the bridge pickup.
Plays like a dream. I owned a 1992 American Standard that I battled to bond with for 15 years before selling it off due to noise and neck that was a little too big for me. I tried the Clapton, a real '57 not an RI, YJM, various RI strats.
None hold a candle to the playability of this cheap little guy, oddly enough. I bought it to make a partscaster using just the body, but I am thinking that I only need to throw some locking tuners on it and perhaps an upgraded trem and I am done. The neck feels very much 24.75 inch scale and thin like an Ibanez wizard neck.
Kudos to Fender for making a kick ass guitar!