Here's the plan: Strats are so popular that there is literally no part or component that hasn't got some whizzy upgrade to replace it. I want to create a list of all the parts and the available upgrades - essentially a 'menu' that anyone can refer to when putting together or pimping their Strat. If you know of any parts please post a link and also any youtube vids and I will collate into this first post. In theory you could use this list to create (dum dum DUM) THE ULTIMATE STRAT. In fact I want this thread to create THE ULTIMATE STRAT including a final cost! Why the fuck not? It’s my OCD okay?
EDIT: I'd also like this thread to become a discussion of the relative merits of these parts, especially discussion weighing up the benefits between similar type upgrades and defining which seems 'the best'. For example: which whole trem unit would be best?
Step 1 - Buy a Jaguar body
Step 2 - Buy a Jaguar neck
and so on...
Don't have a problem with strats really, just hate the look of them. I always feel slightly disappointed if a guitarist I like uses one. Doesn't make much sense
I quite fancy the jag arm upgrade tho. Never made use of it as it is. Too rattley and fall outy. They good you reckon?
Drop-in replacement arm for wobble free action with controlled rotation. I ahve a lot of resepct gor the Jag arm i got from Stay Trem.
While I've got a lot of respect for the staytrem crew (have one of their collets on my Jazzmaster after I wore out the stock one and it got noisy), my favourite, and cheapest, strat upgrade is a trem tension screw: they cost about £3, or you can use a spring from a Biro if you want. As long as your trem block isn't drilled all the way through (HINT: you'll be able to see all the way through it if it is) like some cheaper import trems are, you can just stick a blob of vaseline on it and drop it down the hole, then screw your regular arm in on top. The spring tensions the arm, so it stays where you leave it, and you can tension it a bit too.
Makes the strat trem into possibly my favourite. And I've been a dyed in the wool Jazzmaster trem fan for years.
im gonna be the first to go all tdpri and say that "ultimate" is subjective, and with all these modern looking upgrades they end up looking bloody awful. and even then this list will be NEVERENDING
that said, can't go wrong with gfs bridge high mass bridge blocks as most imports have the little zinc kind.
