my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

[midnite_man]

Hi people!
I just received my American Strat I bought off eBay and after giving it a thorough once or twice-over, I noticed few items of concern on my part and I thought you Strat enthusiasts out there could lend an eyeball to these pics I just took of what I'm referring to.
The issues:
1) the 3rd fret dot inlay has what I consider to be a flaw - half of it is black as it's supposed to be, and the other half is gray. This isn't a major factor, but the guitar was described as being "as new," with no mention of any flaws. The first pic shows the flaw, the second shows how the seller hides it with one of the hang-tags for the guitar. Check 'em out.


The flaw:

How the seller hid the flaw with the hang tag, but at that distance I probably wouldn't have seen the dot inlay if it had been uncovered:

2) The other issue I have with this guitar is the neck joint. Is there supposed to be a gap between the bottom of the fret-board and the top of the body at the neck joint like this?

another view:

What do you think? Here's the link to the ended auction:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3714860486

Everything else on the guitar looks authentic, and the guitar plays very nicely, and sounds good although pup-swaps are definitely in this guitar's not-too-distant future.
It's a beauty but I wanted to run all this by anybody who has some insight on these issues.

Thanks so much for any help!

-Bob

 

[jmv]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

I think the gap under the 22nd fret is normal... cuz most strats were 21, so they just left the neck pocket alone and extended the fretboard over the pickgaurd to get the 22nd one in there. The inlay just looks like a flaw to me, unfortunately.

 

[midnite_man]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

I think the gap under the 22nd fret is normal... cuz most strats were 21, so they just left the neck pocket alone and extended the fretboard over the pickgaurd to get the 22nd one in there. The inlay just looks like a flaw to me, unfortunately.

It's a flaw for sure, JMV. I'm trying to decide if all this is something I want to take exception to with the seller, or not. I paid $560 for this guitar, which isn't a bad deal for a fairly new AM Strat like this, or is it too good of a deal?
I thought I had done my homework fairly well before shopping for this guitar....but?

 

[guymanperson]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

my maple necked telecaster plus had that sort of thing happening on the dots, i thought it was supposed to look like marble or somthing... i see thoes alot and im not sure if its a flaw so much as fender trying to make plastic look fancier like jade or somthing

 

[guymanperson]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

nice looking guitar btw

 

[flank]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

yeah, my fathers old 68 tele has the exact same flaw on the 3RD fret......just thought that was kinda strange, it looks exactly the same........

 

[jmv]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

I'm trying to decide if all this is something I want to take exception to with the seller, or not.

If it were me, i'd mention it nicely, see how the guy responds... some people on ebay i've heard are real nice about that stuff... others are not. I'd at least raise the issue, but maybe not push it, depending on how i felt about it after talking to the guy...

 

[Guitarist]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

It's a flaw for sure, JMV. I'm trying to decide if all this is something I want to take exception to with the seller, or not. I paid $560 for this guitar, which isn't a bad deal for a fairly new AM Strat like this, or is it too good of a deal?
I thought I had done my homework fairly well before shopping for this guitar....but?

Yes, that is most definetely a flaw on the third fret's inlay. However, for $560, I don't know if I'd notify the seller about it! What a deal!

 

[midnite_man]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

nice looking guitar btw

thanks!!

 

[Frantic_Rock]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

The neck pocket is typical - a lot of strats have that. It doesn't matter.

The inlay - who cares man. The guitar is for playing though...

 

[kaknight]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

I don't think that the guy lied at all. It is "as new". It probably came that way from the factory, and the guy who bought it most certainly didn't get a discount for it. I would chalk it up to being something that makes your guitar unique! A custom inlay on the 3rd fret!

 

[midnite_man]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

I can definitely live with the dot-issue, as every guitar has it's own character in one way or another. The neck-joint thing is what I was mainly concerned about. I was just beginning to wonder if I had been duped into buying a homemade American Strat with an after-market neck and body, or something like that. I'm always seeing people on ebay selling Fender headstock-decals and stuff like that, and I'm quite sure there are some extremely good artists out there that can make a guitar look just like the real deal.
As far as I can tell, everything looks authentic. The neck is nicely groomed, no rough edges. It is a pretty little thing.
I don't know, I guess this thing I have about buying guitars off ebay kinda spooks me sometimes. I'm pretty saavy about what I look for in a person's description, feedback, pics, etc., but when it comes to dishing out several hundred dollars for an item it all comes down to how much faith I can put into the seller to be giving me the straight skinny.

 

[midnite_man]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

I really appreciate the support you guys have offered with this. When the box arrived this morning I was pretty stoked, could hardly get the wrapping tape off the box while trying to tear it off by hand....lol.
But when I really scrutinized the guitar and saw those items of question, it kinda freaked me out a little.

 

[STRATDELUXER97]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

I really appreciate the support you guys have offered with this. When the box arrived this morning I was pretty stoked, could hardly get the wrapping tape off the box while trying to tear it off by hand....lol.
But when I really scrutinized the guitar and saw those items of question, it kinda freaked me out a little.

Hello Bob...Just got around to reading your post and your concerns...One of my own strats has that dull half look on one or more fret markers..It's almost as if the finish that is placed over the neck doesn't quite finish evenly overall..I also checked my American Deluxe Strat which is basically your guitar but with some upgrades and it does have the gap you're concerned about..If you shim the neck,that gap increases..If your guitar plays great and feels great in your hands buddy,I wouldn't let those 2 minor flaws get you down..It's might be a good idea to let the guy you bought your strat from know your findings and feelings,but more than likely it was something purely missed on the seller's part..I assure you that one of my strats and 1 Tele of mine bith have that fret dot weirdness...Both are on maple necked guitars,so I'm thinking it's more to do with the satin or glossy urethane or poly finish that causes the effect...Also look at how the frets look..If the frets were real worn from alot of playing than I'd say the fret dot could be showing some wear at that spot? I saw your guitar and from your pictures and your price,I'd still say you are way ahead of the game buddy..Play it and enjoy it...

John

 

[STRATDELUXER97]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

Bob...My Tele has the fret dot syndrome at the 12th fret also..This picture shows the 3rd or the 5th fret though..Just like yours,plus one of my other maple necked Fender axes has the same problem..This is on my AS 94 Tele.

 

[STRATDELUXER97]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

And here's the neck gap on my 99 American Deluxe strat buddy...Picture 1

 

[STRATDELUXER97]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

And here's a better side view..My neck is stock and I bought my guitar new and I Know the neck isn't shimmed by me or anyone else.This is how Fender did it...

 

[Dom L]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

The neck gap is normal, so I wouldn't lose sleep over that. Don't forget there is a micro-tilt adjust mechanism under the neck pocket, that can be adjusted and will increase or decrease the tilt of the neck and in turn that gap. The dot looks like a finish flaw... like some air got under the lacquer.
Nice Strat, I would keep it
Dom L

 

[sgstrat]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

Hi midnite man,

Congratulations on your gorgeous new Strat. Do NOT be concerned with the "gap" of the fingerboard extension; as jmv correctly pointed out this is completely normal for 22 fret Strats. Enjoy!

 

[STRATDELUXER97]

Re: my new AM-Strat arrived....mint? Scott? John S? Lew? Anybody?

Hi midnite man,

Congratulations on your gorgeous new Strat. Do NOT be concerned with the "gap" of the fingerboard extension; as jmv correctly pointed out this is completely normal for 22 fret Strats. Enjoy!

And my own AD Strat photos look pretty much like Bob's strat..

John