Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

[B2D]

I was reading my copy of the Fender 50th Anniversary Strat book and in one page a standard Strat and Tele are displayed, both from the late '50s. They are normal and run-of-the-mill for the period in every respect EXCEPT the fat that they're both made of mahogany!

The owner said that Fender probably had leftover mahogany after making a limited run of another guitar and used the rest for a few Strats and Teles. He also would not have noticed had it not been for the paint chipping on one of the horns. As an afterthought, he said that that particular guitar was one of his favorite Fenders because the tone was so warm and smooth.

So I was wondering... does anyone own or has anyone played a guitar that, for all intents and purposes, is a regular standard strat but with a mahogany body? I understand Suhr makes a few guitars like that.

 

[mrfjones]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

never played one but i have seen a couple custom made, but there is a production line tele that is all mahogany. i think it is the 69 thinline that is all mahogany but it is also hollow. I think it would be very cool to have a tele or strat made of mahogany.

 

[Gamera]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

If I'm not mistaken there is currently a special run Strat like that being offered at Guitar Center. Apparently Fender will do just about anything if you order enough of 'em. And places like Guitar Center and Musician's Friend will place large orders for stock items with subtle changes (paint color, different wood, etc.) and sell 'em as limited editions.

I think there's also a stock Fender Showmaster Strat that comes in mahogony.

 

[TattooedCarrot]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

I was reading my copy of the Fender 50th Anniversary Strat book and in one page a standard Strat and Tele are displayed, both from the late '50s. They are normal and run-of-the-mill for the period in every respect EXCEPT the fat that they're both made of mahogany!

The owner said that Fender probably had leftover mahogany after making a limited run of another guitar and used the rest for a few Strats and Teles. He also would not have noticed had it not been for the paint chipping on one of the horns. As an afterthought, he said that that particular guitar was one of his favorite Fenders because the tone was so warm and smooth.

So I was wondering... does anyone own or has anyone played a guitar that, for all intents and purposes, is a regular standard strat but with a mahogany body? I understand Suhr makes a few guitars like that.

I built one from Warmoth parts, mahogany/maple. It was very light an warm.

 

[beandip]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

I've played several, some sounded great, and some sounded just gawd awful. It's really quite strange that a Fender would be built out of mahog, since the first prototypes were built out of pine, and later out of swamp ash. Since it's supposed that Leo Fender had high-end hearing loss (hence why his amps are so bright), a mahogany bodied strat matched with a 57 twin would be just about perfect. I'm trying to think of what guitar Fender did that had mahogany in that period.

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

There are others...my dad has a 1963 P-Bass that is mahogany, and a good friend of mine has an L series Jagure that is also Maghony...the bass sounds amazing, as for the jag...I have to say that I like it and it does soung good, just not normal...it sounds a lot like a Melody Maker!

 

[Brow]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

I have a 70's Japanese Strat (unknown brand) that has a Mahogany body with a veneer of Ash on the front and back.

It's a nice, heavy bit of wood thats sounds good and has great sustain

 

[Hot _Grits]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

Mahogany works really well for fender-style guitars. It's especially good for super-strats. A friend had a custom built single-hum/floyd leftie strat built out of mahogany, and it was a balls machine.

I'd love to get one of those strat-o-sonics.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

they can get heavy though- I would like a thinner body or at least a hollowed out one.

 

[Jonny R]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

I have a mahogany neck-thru maple sided strat shaped guitar...kind of an interesting twist but sounds quite nice.

Can do heavy music really well but I've also had a lot of admiring comments on the tone of it through a Twin doing lighter jazz/blues/funk style stuff...

 

[B2D]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

Thanx for the input guys!

For my eventual Warmoth custom I was thinking of either an Alder body with a maple/rosewood neck or maybe a mahogany body with a maple/maple neck. I like a fatter strat tone on average and I'm always looking to try new recipes.

Personally i think a mohog body with a maple neck with some fat pickups would really kick!

 

[NecroPolo]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

Most surely, a maho/map/map strat it will kick major a$$ - and it will be a pretty heavy bird

 

[B2D]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

I don't mind a heavy guitar... I like something to hold on to haha. Basswood Ibenhads are like "Ummm is there a guitar there or not?" With something really heavy as long as i use a wide strap I'm fine.

speaking of mohog guitars, you've got a pretty interesting one yourself... what exactly is it?

 

[Hot _Grits]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

Definitely try and get the lightest piece of mahoghany you can get. The less dense body will let lower mids and bottom bloom more. Light=fat.

 

[B2D]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

Cool. Should i opt for a one-peice body or not?

 

[Hot _Grits]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

Sure, if the price is ok. remember to ask about weight.

 

[B2D]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

I tend to find that heavier bodies are more toneful overall and sustain more so I like heavy bodies. :smoker:

Case in point: I play 2 identical EBMM Subs today and one sounded WAY better than the other... sure enough we weighed them using a scale and the better-sounding one was a full pound heavier.

 

[bert123]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

never played one but i have seen a couple custom made, but there is a production line tele that is all mahogany. i think it is the 69 thinline that is all mahogany but it is also hollow. I think it would be very cool to have a tele or strat made of mahogany.

I was reading one of those Fender history books. In the late 60's light Ash was becoming scarce. Theydecided to start using heavy ash and mahogany for some teles. To reduce the weight they chambered the body added an f-hole thus the 1969 Tele Thinline was born. I still have a 1974 Japanese copy in Mahogany.

 

[hacker]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

You can also get a hollow warmoth body-they sound great. Personally, with regard to mahogany guitars, I have heard both real heavy ones and lighter ones that sound both good and bad. Lighter does not necessarily mean better.

 

[Hot _Grits]

Re: Standard Fender Strat made of Mahogany?

I was reading one of those Fender history books. In the late 60's light Ash was becoming scarce. Theydecided to start using heavy ash and mahogany for some teles. To reduce the weight they chambered the body added an f-hole thus the 1969 Tele Thinline was born. I still have a 1974 Japanese copy in Mahogany.

Interesting. What book?

All the stuff I've read pointed to heavier ash being used as a result of declining quality control rather than any scarcity. The various strats and teles from the 70s I've played bear this out, with some weighing a ton and others, like my 76, weighing practically nothing. I've also played thinline teles that were made from swamp ash and were featherlight, too.