Ok, I got a line on a partscaster with what is supposed to be a 79 neck. It looks right to me, but more eyes the better before I lay out the cash. here's some pics, tell me what YOU think. I do not have a pic of the heel end, but seller says he doesn't see any numbers there. This worries me a bit, but I see several online that have the number worn away so.... I ask you. What do you think? I see the obvious stuff, some broken posts on the tuners, (half of the shaft broken off) The replacement screw on the Micro Tilt plate... I also see the reverse image "Fender" that makes me think it had one of the "paper" shims in there at some point too. so what you think?
I own a '79. That one is legit, right down to the three holes left after someone put one of the stupid Elite fine-tuner locking nuts on it circa 1983. (A truly hilarious choice with a bullet truss rod, but I digress. Suffice it to say that a lot of Strat necks from that era, including mine, show scars from 1980s attempts to adapt them to the Superstrat era.)
nut doesn't appear to be original. are the 3 marks above the trussrod adjuster screw holes? if so it looks like it may have had some kind of string clamp there. does look like a late 70s neck though
Ever seen the string clamps with the fine-tuners that Fender included with the 1983-84 Strat Elites? Three screws, the middle one a bit bigger, in exactly that pattern. I have one somewhere, if there's interest I'll dig it out and post a photo tonight.
Oh, and what @monwobobbo said - that graphite nut isn't original. It would have had a bone nut originally, but see above comments about the Superstrat era.
The only thing is these necks are fetching pretty big $$ these days and I'm just not sure it's justified. I wouldn't pay much more than any other decent partscaster but I'd certainly be happy to have a neck like that if was a player.
I had a '79 for decades, it's legit. The thing is, are you prepared for the baggage that comes with a '79 neck? Very slim, 7.25" radius, small flat-topped frets that defy you to ever bend a note?
This is (probably) what was on that neck at some point, posing with my '79 for reference. It's a string lock with fine tuners. They were standard on Stratocaster Elites in 1983 and for a while in 1984, but many owners got rid of them and it was common to find them for sale cheap in guitar shops in the mid-'80s. (You can see that my '79 once had a Floyd Rose on it... much more destructive modification.)
String it with 10s, put a little relief in the neck to raise the action above the 10th fret or so, and bend away. A lot of us made it work just fine back in the day.
Can you say that with certainty? All I've ever heard is that S9 decals were used from late 1978 into mid-1981. Has someone definitively narrowed it down?
That one looks like the 7 has been rubbed off. I think that would make it a 78-79. Can't imagine how that would happen by accident.
Ah, so "good neck" = fat frets and flat radius. Okay. I'm glad your expert opinion cleared that up for those of us who own vintage guitars.
Every one that I've seen has a space between the S, and the 9. You can see it in the pic of Teal's above. S for seventy, 9 for .....wait for it.... 9. But as noted above, it appears the S 9 numbers were used for a couple years. Kind of like 84-87 with the E numbers I guess.
I'm pretty sure what you quoted was in reference to the fact that one of the perceived drawbacks in some people eyes is the potential for fretting out of Vintage style 7.25 radius, small frets, and thinner neck that it has.
LOL, "vintage guitars", I'm so impressed. Like I said, I had one for decades. Didn't say I hated it, why would I keep it for over 30 years? I was just pointing out some of the drawbacks for those who are not familiar with the quirks of a late-70s strat, so they are prepared for what they get. Oh well, I'll let you get back to admiring your "vintage guitars".
So are you saying that all 79 necks are not good due to the baggage as you term it?? or just this one that I haven't had in my hands yet? or? I am confused.
