Mexi Strats - 1 in 10

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FuengiFuengi Frets: 2849
Got my Mexi Strat back from Simon Jones in Portsmouth today, fantastic setup & action, perfect intonation, I can see why he has such a fine reputation for servicing guitars. 

Anyhow, chatting with him about the strat, which I've had a couple of years but has never been setup property, and he told me 'its a good one'. His contention was that for around one in every ten mexi builds you get a really good one. 

Who's ever trawled the racks for a 1 in 10? 
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Comments

  • ricorico Frets: 1220
    Erm, how would you know?
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  • Jack_Jack_ Frets: 3175
    Has any guitar tech in history ever handed back a guitar to a paying customer and told them they have one of the bad ones?
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  • Flink_PoydFlink_Poyd Frets: 2490
    its a bit like your wife telling you youre still handsome after all these years. he's a keeper
    Nobody is guaranteed tomorrow.....


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  • richardhomerrichardhomer Frets: 24793
    I believe it's true of the UB40 signature model....
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  • sweepysweepy Frets: 4159
    There are some Strats that just tend to "sing" more than others, usually a combination of the "right" neck and body in the way of resonance etc
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  • WazmeisterWazmeister Frets: 9447
    Man, could we be a bit more cynical on here guys ???

    Id agree with the rough 1 in 10 verdict... my mate has a Mex Strat whch is a belter
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  • GoldenEraGuitarsGoldenEraGuitars Frets: 8820
    tFB Trader
    I know techs see a lot of gear. But to have a ration of 1 : 10 for a particular brand and country of origin is odd. Has he tested them all out? The last mex tele I played was £450 and felt the same as the Standard model next to it at £1200. 

    So.... was the Mexican one that "one in ten" or was the standard model crap even though it was made by the same people from the same country?

    hmmmm....
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  • FuengiFuengi Frets: 2849
    Jack_ said:
    Has any guitar tech in history ever handed back a guitar to a paying customer and told them they have one of the bad ones?

    Yep! My last tech often had a little frown when I brought something in, but I think that was only so he could flog me some pickups or a different guitar! 
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  • SassafrasSassafras Frets: 30273
    Since no two pieces of wood are exactly the same, I'd say it makes sense to try as many guitars of the same type as possible.
    They're all a bit different.
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  • MattFGBIMattFGBI Frets: 1602
    Techs only see guitars when they need working on so they will see far more "bad" ones than "good" ones. 
    This is not an official response. 

    contactemea@fender.com 


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  • riscadoriscado Frets: 180
    edited July 2017
    To be fairly honest I think it depends on the series as well, usually when I pickup mexican fenders I tend to like them. I'd say the ratio of bad ones in my experience is lower. With that said, the classic series have a tendency to be really ok to great in my experience. Very rarely do I play one I don't like.
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  • Jack_Jack_ Frets: 3175
    Is Dave Grohl your guitar tech?
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  • mike_lmike_l Frets: 5700
    I prefer the feedback of those who stand to make nothing from speaking their mind, whether the guitar is good, bad or indifferent.

    For example, I loaned a guitar to be used at a jam night, and everyone who played it said exactly the same (a fantastic guitar, with a fantastic set-up), without knowing it was my guitar.

    None of those who commented were ever going to make anything from said guitar, unlike a tech.

    Ringleader of the Cambridge cartel, pedal champ and king of the dirt boxes (down to 21) 

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  • Jack_Jack_ Frets: 3175
    Mods, can we have a rule in the £Guitars section that states if you're selling a Mexican Fender, you have to state whether it's 1 of the good ones, or one of the 9 bad ones?
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  • ModellistaModellista Frets: 2039
    Jack_ said:
    Mods, can we have a rule in the £Guitars section that states if you're selling a Mexican Fender, you have to state whether it's 1 of the good ones, or one of the 9 bad ones?
    Exactly.  Has anyone ever come across one of the bad ones? Every sale ad, NGD or general discussion is always positive.  Where are all these terrible MIM guitars?  Do people hide them away in their lofts, ashamed to say they have one?

    Crikey, these are pretty much entirely automated production line products.  Do CNC machines have off days?  Do pickup winding machines come into work with a hangover after a late night?  Fair enough the odd flaw might get through, but to say only 10% are any good?  Cheese.
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71960
    edited May 2017
    Jack_ said:
    Has any guitar tech in history ever handed back a guitar to a paying customer and told them they have one of the bad ones?
    Yes, I have. OK these were paying customers who were also friends and who asked a direct question.

    My experience is that the '1 in 10' is not the good ones, it's the bad ones. One or two in ten is great right off the bat, about five or six can be made at least very good with a decent set-up, a couple you struggle with but get to be not bad and one is just a dog that will not resonate right or sound any good no matter what you do to it.

    That applies to most ranges of at least above beginner-level guitars by the way…

    MattFGBI said:
    Techs only see guitars when they need working on so they will see far more "bad" ones than "good" ones. 
    I like to try most of the guitars which come into the shop for sale - I don't get around all of them, but I do play a wide variety, and there are a lot of perfectly decent guitars out there.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • sweepysweepy Frets: 4159
    I've worked on 2 Mex Strats that had Squier written on the body in Magic Marker underneath the scratch plate , both were Burgundy Metallic, whether this is a US Market option etc I have no idea
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  • thermionicthermionic Frets: 9499
    I've had a few different MIM Fenders (I have 4 at the moment) and I don't think I've found a mythical "good one". They've been of a pretty consistent standard, and that ranges from mid 90s to 2014. There are obviously small differences - some have had really nice necks, others have had pickups that sounded better than they should, another had a really light body, some of the finishes look and feel thinner... Maybe a "good one" is one where all your preferences come together in one guitar.
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  • WezVWezV Frets: 16547
    Didn't Jimi start the one in ten thing?


    As ICBM says, the ratios seem much different these days.  
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  • EricTheWearyEricTheWeary Frets: 16253
    Having tried a bunch of MIM basses, Strats and Tele  ( I used to own a MIM Tele) I'm fairly confident they aren't all consistently great . Wether that's how they came out the factory or got treated in a shop I don't know but I've seen stuff misaligned and not as it should be ( faulty pick up on a new jazz bass for example) regardless of more subjective issues. 
    I've no idea of a figure and it would be pretty silly if I made one up and I'm sure Simon Jones wasn't really trying to give 1 in 10 as some kind of scientifically accurate figure. 
    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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