School me on Strats

Little update on my quest. I took the advice here and went to my local guitar shop to get a few different models in my hands as I've actually never played them. Odd, after 20 yrs playing and never touching a strat!? anyhoo tried out a tele, 1954 MIJ reissue , Fender player and a 60's mod vintera.
I loved the Tele! that will be my next guitar purchase but realized for my foray into Fender I need a Strat. of the models i played i bonded most with the 60's mod vintera. The neck was more comfortable and i found I prefer rosewood neck vs maple. Tactile thing.
I got home and went on website to check the other guitar shop (chain store) and stumbled on a used 2019 Fender Performer in Honeyburst SSS. It had a few minor cosmetic dings and as such was reduced by $500. It's in another city store location and they're shipping it out to me at no cost. If I don't like it can return no problem. so i'm getting a $1599 guitar for $1099(CAD). Seems like a great deal and gets me an American made fender.
 
Nice guitar, I particularly like the 6100 size frets .Don't expect much of the trem though, it is a prime candidate for an upgrade . Don't get me wrong it sounds fine but a very budget version.
 
Late to the thread, but the best thing I ever did to my Strat (Late 70's, 3 screw bolt-on, pencil thin neck, tiny frets, nice low end though) was do the Blender Mod - Volume, Tone and Blend pots.
 
I’ve got a Performer too, Chewie. But I got the HSS version. Real nice guitar but the term is crappy. I thought I got a good deal at $1499 Canadian but you have a super deal. The honey burst looked really nice but couldn’t get it with the HSS. 👍
 
I’ve got a Performer too, Chewie. But I got the HSS version. Real nice guitar but the term is crappy. I thought I got a good deal at $1499 Canadian but you have a super deal. The honey burst looked really nice but couldn’t get it with the HSS. 👍
Nice! I was really close to buying HSS but all my guitars are humbuckers so figure I might as well go all out with SSS. I'm not expecting magic from the bridge but I have no idea really what to expect with a Fender. I should be pickin up the guitar sometime next week hopefully.
 
The SSS should be fine. The HSS has a little more volume in the bridge pickup but not real hot. I like the jumbo frets and having 22 frets. The neck has a great finish, too.
 
I just picked up the Performer and overall its pretty good. It's in good shape for used, slight scuffs here and there. Neck feels nice and action is pretty close to how i like. The pots perhaps feel a bit noisy/scratchy but I've never had single coils before. The tones are great, I can get that quacky strat sound and first thing I played of course was Sultans of Swing. @Andy Eagle I see what you mean about the trem. I'm not sure if this is how its supposed to be but It's so stiff. Virtually unusable; I'd just as soon leave the trem bar out but thats what i wanted was that loose vibrato on notes. I have 30 days before I decide to return or not. These are just my initial impressions. I'll be distracted as of tmw since my Axe fx III is due to be delivered!
 

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Yes, set it up with three, You need to loosen (or tighten if it is floating )the claw until the bridge just starts to lift ( or touch ) from the body at the back and then tighten it back to just sit flat . You can set it so it resists lifting during a typical bend. This flat on the body, down bend only is probably the most practical set up with the stock unit. Nice guitar though and you can always upgrade the trem down the line if you are so inclined.
 
Every player should have a Strat in the arsenal! I've got a few nice guitars, PRS Artist, USA Deluxe Strat (with some great hand made pickups), a Fender Player Tele (MIM) that is a lot of fun to play and sounds great, but the guitar that's done the most work and the most gigs since about 1990 is a MIJ Squier Strat I paid $300 for. It has a shitty Kahler trem that I always wanted to replace but never have (I've locked it down solid) and a set of Kinman noiseless pickups, the early ones. Maybe its the way the neck feels, I don't know, but a good setup can do wonders, and some guitars just "have it" when you pick them up, regardless of pedigree.
 
Funny, after playing just a les Paul for over 20 years, last year I got a player strat, an American tele, and a duo sonic.

I love my LP and appreciate the strat, but I just can’t put the tele down. Such a gorgeous sound and so easy to play. And I definitely don’t play country, all rock. All my presets are for tele now.
 
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