Hey all, wanting to buy a new strat in the near future and love the smaller neck and the 7.5 radius on the 56 and 57 models. The I keep gravitating back to the 57 reissue ($1300) and the custom shop 56 nos ($2100). Both pickups sound good to me, I think one is hand wired, but not sure. Can we discuss differences betwen the two and if it is worth the extra 800 buck to have come from custom shop with select woods.
I'm not sure what you mean by hand wired. As you know the pups are different. The '57 has a slightly smaller neck than the '56. The finish on the '57 is nitro sprayed over poly. It won't age as nice as the '56. The neck on the '57 is an orangy tint. The '56 NOS neck will be blonde. If you want a nice tint you'll need to go with a CC or Relic. The '57 also has cream pup covers and knobs. That's all I can think of now. I'm sure you can find a '57 that sounds as good as a '56. It just depends on how well you like the other differences
are you going to change pickups? if you are, then get the '57. i personally feel that '57 reissues are THE best deal strat you can get. they're really high quality instruments.
the best deal Strat you can get is a used Grosh or Suhr for $1200-$1500, several steps above Fender Custom Shop (in my experience over many years)... brand new they are the same price as a Fender CS and, again, much better that the Fender and can be built to your specs as for '57 RI vs CS, you can search and find RI's that are better than CS but they are few and far between...if you are going to buy without trying it out first, and have your heart set on Fender, you'll be much better buying CS
I really like to play the guitar before I buy one and have played some really good 57 reissued. I really like the neck on the 57, I didnt know it was a bit smaller that the CS NOS 56. The sound is the main thing, I didnt hear the difference betwen the pickups though, I prob need more time with the axes. I only have one 56 nos around me to play so I can get a good idea on consistancy. I have played about five 57 reissues and really liked one but the others werent setup to my liking, which can be taken care of. I am leaning toward the 57 reissue as so far my ear doesnt hear the difference and I can get a better selection in color, as there are more readily available. Does the wood selected by custon shop that much better? or is it really just hit and miss? I thought the custom shop pickups were hand adjusted or customed, sorry dont know a bunch about them. I like fenders so will prob stay with them, but will keep my eye out for the other strats that someone mentioned. I believe both have the nitro finish and will break in well with wear, I do not like the yellowish tint I see on some 57 reissues, some seem to have less than others and not feel as lackered and sticky.
The pickups in the '56 and '57 are machine wound. They sre just slightly different specs. The '57 does have nitro BUT it's nitro over poly. The nitro will wear through to poly. You won't wear the poly down to the wood. Fender does this because it saves them time and money. That's why the spec sheet for the '56 say "Thin Skin" finish.
sounds silly and asthetically vain but, will I get the cool worn look on the maple neck with the poly coat underneath? If I find a 57 reissues that tells me to take her home I may go with the 57 one and save the cash. I looked a the grosh and suhr but they are expensive new, beautiful guitars though. Anyone want to sell me a 57 reissue at a good price? lol thanks for all the input it is much appreciated. Custom Shop seems to be a better product with more consistancy, but I will search and find the 57 reissue that tells me what I want to hear.
in my experience, no...that finish will outlast Keith Richards and cockroaches yeah thats why I like them used. New they are similarily priced as Fender Custom Shops again, if you have your heart set on a Fender guitar (and there's nothing wrong with that) buying a used Fender Custom Shop at about the same price (maybe a few hundred more) as a new '57 RI will yield you a much better guitar, generally speaking
If you like the '57 and can't really tell the difference when compared to the Custom Shop, I say go with the '57. They're not that radically different and the extra cash would be worth it to me.
It's not silly to want to know how your guitar will look with age. On the '57 the nitro will wear down to the poly. Once you hit the poly it's not going to wear down to the wood. The poly is very durable. In my opinion you will not get that cool worn look on the maple neck with the '57. The Grosh guitars are also nitro but the Suhr's are not. Have you looked into the Eric Johnson Strats? They are cheaper than the '56 but more than a '57. They have the thin nitro without the poly undercoat.
I am very interested in the Eric Johnson Strat but have not played one yet. Read somewhere on this board that the first 1000 were assembly by Custom Shop, can anyone verify that? I dont know how the 12" radius will feel to me, but I prob will like it. I do like the smaller necks on the 57 reissue, cause I have smaller fingers. My local guitar shops says that they may have one in around mid June or early July. I am going to the NY American Guitar Show tomorrow so maybe I will be able to play on there. The E J model maybe the gal I am looking for, but I wont know until I see her.
I think the 56' NOS strats are some of the best sounding and playing out there. You can find used CS for a lot less than the $2100 for a new one; I've seen them for 1500 - 1600. Budman
