Everybody knows what a big Beatles fan I am... A few years ago, I thought I'd do a tribute to the great unknown/unsung Strat - John Lennon's.
John and George obtained a matching pair of Strats in 1965, a pair of 1961 models in sonic blue. George Harrison's Strat was to become the highly-decorated "Rocky," but not much more is mentioned anywhere about John's Strat. We know this pair of Strats were used on their hit single "Nowhere Man" and saw duty during the Sergeant Pepper album, but after that, John's Strat sort of just drops out of site. I had already done a "Rocky," so I thought I would recreate what John's unadorned Strat would have looked like.
I gathered parts: I eBayed a nice ash body and shot it with Reranch Sonic Blue; eBayed a Musickraft neck and some ping-style tuners; got another Vintage Vibe Standard-S pickup set from my pal Pete, and used an MIM bridge assembly with an Allparts steel sustain block. I got a pickguard in mint-green (along with all plastic trim parts) and wired it with a Chromacaster. Here's what the first mock-up/test fitting looked like (right). I think I came pretty dang close.
Putting it all together, I strung it with flatwounds to get as much of that vintage "Liverpool" vibe as possible. But, once I had it playable I found the Musickraft neck's huge (to my hand) C-profile just wasn't to my liking. I replaced the neck with one from a MIM Fender Squire model, and found it much more comfortable (left).
Tragically, (again!) I found that this was another one of those axes where, once I had it assembled and adjusted, it NEVER got played - and I mean, NEVER. It looked cool enough, but I had a couple of other go-to Strats, so it just sat there. I never did get a real feel for what the flatwounds might have done for the tone, if anything.
Early 2011, getting ready to retire, I decided to clean out the closets and clear off the workbench. I eBayed out a couple of my beloved Silvertone-branded Harmonys, a few amps, and, just so I could sell the MIM Fender Squire as a factory-built guitar (rather than a partscaster), I put its original neck back on. To keep things tidy and tie up loose ends, I moved the maple neck that I had mounted on the MIM body over to this guitar... And it was, like, a whole new vibe. Gone from Liverpool, and on to Malibu!
When I did the neck swap, I also swapped out the Chromie for V.3 (easier for the unindoctrinated to navagate), and strung it up with my regular set of Fender Super Bullets. I posted it on eBay along with the other stuff, and it brought a fair price - but, the winner then begged off. I cancelled the sale with no malice or regret, and now I'm hoping I WILL play this guy a bit myself.
It sure is a classic look...