"Stratocaster Prototype" on Craigslist...

[Rob]

A bandmate found this on a nearby Craigslist today:

https://cincinnati.craigslist.org/msg/d ... 90848.html

I'm no Stratocaster expert, but this looks like an obvious fraud to my untrained eye. If someone told me this was a '74 that ended up being heavily modified by a metal player in the 80s, I might believe it. But I don't believe this is a 1970, I don't believe it's any sort of prototype, I don't believe it was factory routed for a humbucker, I don't believe it was ever owned by Gary Kahler, and I don't believe this guy has a pickguard connected even by the most tenuous claim to Hendrix.

But I'll let the Strat experts weight in. What the hell are we looking at here?

[HNB]

Looks like a Japanese strat with the weird bridge. I had a red one.

[Unicorn Warrior]

What a load of garbage.

[countertext]

Some folks like “Fuck it, let’s go big with this lie and see if they’s any SUCKAZ out there!”

[Squirrel]

This tells me everything I need to know about the guy:

all I'm looking for right now in trade is a nice RV

[sallikaan]

well I haven't seen a 70s fender like that (not the expert as such, but had, owned, sold over 100 Fenders so far)
There's a 1980s version that looks like that, which is MIJ, not US. The floyd rose should read Fender, not any other brands.
But the best way of telling is checking the neck heel and the neck pocket stamps to see:
- what are the dates,
- do they match,
- do they even exist

Best of luck for the imaginary buyer, since 10k buys you a minimum of 2 custom shops, or 2 real vintage Strats, or 3-4 fresh vintage (1980s) Strats any day

[shadowplay]

This tells me everything I need to know about the guy:

all I'm looking for right now in trade is a nice RV

For the right trade I'll throw in the black, 1969 pickguard off of the #2 Mahogany Strat built for, (but never delivered to) Jimi Hendrix! As the lesser of the two was supposed to be destroyed.

As it sits there unbought expect this to be ammended to;

For the right trade I'll throw in a pickguard fashioned Jimmy Hendrix's coffin lid

The funny thing is that even if that bilge was true (it's not) it means nothing without provenance and that's why it's being sold in the craigslist gutter and not at a reputable auction.

Then again it would be a moot point if this added any value since it's a little like finding a pair of late 60's Levis that some 'designer' at Levis had converted into a pair of bellbottoms. Are they worth more because someone did something to them that makes them unwearable today or are they worth less? I'd say worth less because Kahler's are roughly as in vogue as a scrunch dried perm.

D

[NickD]

Looks like my old Japanese Strat but with a white guard and pickups. Mid 80s IIRC.

[rumfoord]

Lol,
ok,
yes, it makes total sense that Fender would drill a hole in a flat piece of metal instead of using a stratocaster jack plate.