I had GAS bad but I wanted this guitar to be serviceable but cheap. Not cheap, piece of crap, but dirt cheap, inexpensive. I would source all the parts on line but nothing new and I would force myself to keep looking until I found the absolute lowest price possible. My top line was $200 total.
Step one was to find a body. You can easily pay over $200 for a Strat body and its not hard to find them in excess of $500. Way too high. I set a budget of $75 and was determined to get it. I looked and I bid and got out bid and I looked some more and bid some more and got out bid some more. I wasn't even in the ball park when these auctions were over. Maybe my price was totally unrealistic. I was looking at spending more than my budget on just the body. Well, if I said it once I said it a thousand times, timing is everything. I found a body on eBay that wasn't tracking like most of the others. The price was low and it stayed low. I kept checking back and kept wondering what was wrong with this picture. Sure the guitar was hideous but it was a strat. Patience was a virtue. I sniped in at the last second and won the auction at $39. Yes, $39. However, in addition to believing timing is everything I also believe you get what you pay for.
This guitar began life as a not very attractive Cherry Burst Starcaster. Note I said STARcaster not STRATOcaster. Starcasters are Fenders low end intro guitars that come in a package with an amp and shoulder strap and maybe a gig bag, I'm not sure. They sell at Target and Costco type of stores. I think they go for $129. So now my $39 didn't look like i got a steal, it looked like I got a robbed. Sometimes that is what you get on eBay - an unethical seller who advertises something that it isn't. And in reality, although there is an appeal process, its all over the net and its all anonymous and its designed to frustrate you so you just give up. For $39 I decided to just give up. I gave the seller a bad rating and wished him all kinds of bad karma.
The body wasn't really bad it just wasn't a Strat and when I stripped the burst I could tell it wasn't alder as advertised it was basswood. As I have since learned basswood is an acceptable tonewood for electric guitars. It is softer that alder or ash but a little lighter too I think. Apparently it's main drawback is it dents and scratches more easily. So, ok, basswood is not a deal breaker. Phew...
In an effort to get my blonde tele to look a little more original I took out the humbucker pickup that had been installed in the middle area. I think that in the mid to late 70's when Jimmy Page was the rage lots of single coil pickup guitars got fitted with humbuckers in an effort to get that more distorted Led Zep sound. But on a blonde tele it just wasn't right. I took the bucker off and decided to use it on the bridge of the strat.
Once I had the body stripped and painted - I used Krylon Satin Jade enamel spray paint and two cans of clear coat - the rest fell into place. I bought a cheap - both cost and quality - made in Korea neck off ebay. It wasn't worth the $10.50 I paid. But soon after I got a Squire Strat neck that is perfect. Assembly and wiring went very quickly and now I have my surf green Strat. Dick Dales I'm not but I can always dream. Total price excluding shipping fees was around $165.
The pictures don't really do it justice - its a little more green than blue.
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