Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

[IanBallard]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

Squier has none.

Maybe they don't offer one in the current lineup, but there's one sitting in a local shop that's a black one with one humbucker, single volume version with a hardtail. Of course, this place has had the same guitars sitting on the walls for years, I'm sure. Small towns...

Then there's this gem: (the local has this one too)

 

[skyydogg01]

Re: Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

Re: Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

I'd think filling the cavities would be harder than doing a string-through bridge on a Strat. There's at least one report from a forum member here who filled in the trem cavities on his Strat only to find that it sounded worse than when he just had it blocked. Proceed with caution, unless you're willing to risk the guitar as a potential throwaway.

The strat I'm doing this on is a squier with a 2 point trem. One of the posts actually broke the wood holding it in, and the post was falling out of the whole. There is no way I'm putting another trem in so my best option is to fill it in.

 

[Artie]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

Then there's this gem:

I know. I hate to say it, but there's something about those. :cool2:

 

[Jessie's ghost]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

The strat I'm doing this on is a squier with a 2 point trem. One of the posts actually broke the wood holding it in, and the post was falling out of the whole. There is no way I'm putting another trem in so my best option is to fill it in.

In this case I'd have to agree.

 

[Jessie's ghost]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

Thats true, but I also wonder how much it was affected by dealers not stocking them. I remember going into one of our local guitar stores, (George's Music), and asking if they had any Cyclones or Toronados, (back when they were in production). They said they didn't stock them because they didn't sell well. I asked if perhaps they didn't sell well because you don't stock them. No one's going to buy what they can't handle and "feel".

Now Fender quit making them. I wonder if its the same situation for the hardtails?

I'd be willing to bet the store had a few of them in, at least once, and the customer response didn't live up to what they were expecting. Stores get burned all the time stocking things that end up not selling well. They sit around for months or years, tying up cash and floor-space, not justifying having ever ordered them in the first place, then usually get sold at a loss.

As far as people not being willing to buy what they can't handle and "feel", I guess that's why people never buy Agiles, Carvins, or guitars off of eBay. Oh, wait…

 

[wahwah]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

I've always used the vibrato arm on my Strat, and have always kept it floating, so I can't imagine playing a Strat without it. I find it to be one of the really usable expressive techniques on a Strat, particularly being able to make chords shimmer. I also spent years duplicating my finger vibrato with the arm and vice-versa, so they are interchangeable. I wouldn't want to be without it.




Cheers.......................................... wahwah

 

[Artie]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

I'd be willing to bet the store had a few of them in, at least once, and the customer response didn't live up to what they were expecting. Stores get burned all the time stocking things that end up not selling well. They sit around for months or years, tying up cash and floor-space, not justifying having ever ordered them in the first place, then usually get sold at a loss.

As far as people not being willing to buy what they can't handle and "feel", I guess that's why people never Agiles, Carvins, or guitars off of eBay. Oh, wait…

Yeah, you're probably right. Still, I wish they'd bring back the Cyclone. That was a cool axe.

 

[tc]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

I'd be willing to bet the store had a few of them in, at least once, and the customer response didn't live up to what they were expecting. Stores get burned all the time stocking things that end up not selling well. They sit around for months or years, tying up cash and floor-space, not justifying having ever ordered them in the first place, then usually get sold at a loss.

That's exactly how I bought my Delonge Fender Stratocaster. Nobody bought it for almost a year, and one day the manager at the store who was a friend of my uncle's saw me playing it and told me it was at a discount. I looked at the tag, 50%. Bought it on the spot.

 

[elscorcho]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

Definitely prefer hardtails.

I was lucky enough to score a Chome Silver '04 American HT body a few years ago on ebay, its on ice w/ an '06 HWY 1 maple neck, and a loaded STD ANNIVERSARY PG w/ TEXMEX pups (my fave strat pups)....I really need to get that thing together but my limited time is better spent practicing right now....I'll be begging you guys for assembly tips when the time comes.....(thanks in advance)

 

[tmmblues]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

You can always go the Warmouth route and get what you want. It may not say Fender but you may end up with a better guitar.

 

[LesStrat]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

In the 10 years I had LesStrat, I put the trem arm on TWICE.

With the Fly Deluxe, I only used it for a couple of tunes w/ it. I never put in on around the house.

 

[gilaltom3]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

I would LOVE a hardtail strat. I've gone so far as to buying a body and am slowly building the skill level to fill that trem cavity perfectly so that I can have a hardtail w/o paying such a high price.

 

[uOpt]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

I would LOVE a hardtail strat. I've gone so far as to buying a body and am slowly building the skill level to fill that trem cavity perfectly so that I can have a hardtail w/o paying such a high price.

I don't think that a wood block in there is a good replacement.

 

[metalspider]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

i have a superstrat with a T.O.M. bridge and i even replaced the stop tail to aluminum,oh and put a maple fingerboard on there too
its bright but not too bright imo and sounds great.


old pic but you get the idea,also has bill lawrence l500xl in the bridge now and stop tail is chrome,black was 30$ more.

image uploader

 

[Jessie's ghost]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

I don't think that a wood block in there is a good replacement.

Others here on the forum have said the same thing. :scratchch

 

[P.A.Foholic]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

I like strats with and without trems. For heavier styles definitely a hardtail. But then... I have to get one with a trem for those bluesy and jazzy moments.

 

[Artie]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

So what should you be listening for when "tuning the claw"? With a blocked trem and everything.

I'm interested.

He said that this wasn't his idea. He read it in an old Guitar Player magazine in an interview with Jeff Beck. JB would block the trem, then tighten the claw down at an angle, in order to get two different "tunings". He would strike a bar chord, around the 5th fret, then immediately mute it, and listen for the springs to "ring", until he got it where he liked it.

 

[speed2dirt]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

I would think that Fender/Squier would have at least one in their line-up. They have the Robert Cray and Billy Corgin, but those are both more expensive "artist" models. Squier has none.

Squier
http://cgi.ebay.com/FENDER-SQUIER-STRAT-HARDTAIL-w-gig-bag-/130532455469?pt=Guitar&hash=item1e6457342d

Fender Non-Sig model
http://cgi.ebay.com/Fender-American-Series-Stratocaster-Strat-Hardtail-/170651792212?pt=Guitar&hash=item27bba3b354

 

[Artie]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

Yes, but thats eBay. Not Fender/Squier. I know you can still obtain them, but it would be nice if they still made them.

 

[dominus]

Re: Am I the odd man out for wanting a hardtail Strat?

Squier
http://cgi.ebay.com/FENDER-SQUIER-STRAT-HARDTAIL-w-gig-bag-/130532455469?pt=Guitar&hash=item1e6457342d

That's PLYWOOD.