Mexi- vs. American-made

[VOXVENDOR]

I love my Mexi Strat... I have a bond with it.. It is on ALL of my recordings... I wouldn't trade it for anything...

I just bought a second Mexi... (sorry C7, but I don't care about that shit, I just like cheap, decent, name-brand quality guitars regardless of who is being put out of business...By the way where was the computer guts inside the computer that you are typing on manufactured... USA??)

Be solid man. All or none.. No compromise.

Had to comment... couldn't resist ...

Ok Im done, back to strats...

 

[VOXVENDOR]

Im a very, very Greedy Shithead.... I am Part Owner of a Canadian Steel Plant..... Lots, and Lots of U.S. Customers ... I love it, and they love the quality output I give......

 

[VOXVENDOR]

You know... I really love my Mexi Strat..... This thread inspired me to put some fresh strings on it

 

[jimistone]

Fender has done some hiring from what i've heard. I wouldn't be surprized if american strat sales didn't double the sales of Gibsons entire line of guitars. I seriously doubt that fender mex guitar sales are threatening american jobs at fender.

hey c7sus...where are you when people are bashing Peavey (a true american music equipment company)?

i believe that the necks and bodies of the mex strats are done in the U.S., then shipped to mexico for assembly and finish. The mex strat is the #1 selling guitar in the world. so, if we quit buying them it could cost american jobs. The finish is not as tough and durable as the american strats because they use a cheaper paint.
it was suggested that the saddles were cheaper metal....i don't think so....the chrome plating is probably a cheaper job though. the mex strats have vintage saddles, like the old strats use to. As far as rust...when i bought the '66 strat in 1976 the hardware was rusted to hell and back....thats normal with the vintage hardware.

I buy american stuff when its superior in quality...in a guitar the finish isn't important to me cause im very hard on a guitar and even a top notch finish won't hold up. same with the hardware, Playing hard every weekend with booze and pot in my system is gonna create rust (there are people paying 3 grand for the fender custom shop to wear out and chip the paint...and also to rust the guitars hardware...I CAN DO THAT FOR FREE!)

what IS important to me is the neck, the body, the frets, and the pick ups.
the mex strats get a 10 for the neck...a 10 for the body....a 10 for the fretwork....and a 5 on pickups

mex strat: $350 (used $200)
texas special pickup set: $129 bucks
heavy duty wiring and pots are probably another 30 bucks.
so for $360 (used) to $410 you can have one hell of a nice strat

look at it this way c7sus, the body, pickups, and neck are made in the u.s.a.,......so....all your giving the mexicans are the hardware, the paint job, and the assembly. A mex strat dressed with custom shop electrics and pickups is a true hybird that supports jobs on both sides of the border.

 

[crawdad]

A couple of opinions:

1: The powers that be could care less what we think about Mexican/Korean/Tiawan made vs. American made. They're using the cheapest sources of labor to pay for their Cadillacs and suburban homes. We can scream all we want and they'll just laugh all the way to the bank. Fact is, for every one of us that takes offense, there are a hundred young and hungry guitar players that will buy the cheaper version. I don't see the trend changing anytime soon, for better or for worse.

2. I once played a Mexican 50's Tele that felt and sounded just like one I bought new in 65. It was $550 bucks. I didn't buy it. I bought mine for $214 with case back then.

3. Take that same guitar, put in some Joe Bardens and Vintique hardware, put it in the hands of a Danny Gatton, and nobody would quibble about the tone.

4. My main axe is an 80's Japanese Strat. Everybody thats ever played it is amazed at the sound and the feel. I've played a few others from that era and I get the same impression.

5. Not counting the current American Standards, the ones they have offered in the last 10 years have been crap, IMO. Sterile and harsh pickups and flat, uncomfortable neck radius. In an attempt to improve on greatness, the improvements have dragged the Strat down, not risen it to its former glory.

6. Like someone said, there are so many versions of Fender that ya don't really know what Fender means anymore.

All this means very little, just my observations. I still think the Strat and Tele are the two greatest electric guitar designs of all time. Play a bunch and you'll find the stars in the woodpile. Might be made anywhere. Find a magic one and you will know.

 

[philboyd studge]

Who made the vintage Fenders? Mostly hispanics.

 

[NYMorningstar]

Dumb Question

Why isn't Mexican made considered made in America? Last time I checked that's where it was.

 

[SBax]

I think one of the first few threads had it right. You can get great American, Japanese, or Mexican strats but you have to fish through them. I fished through about 8 Amer strats before I found what I thought was a special one even though the fret edges were a little rough on some upper frets.

Then I saw a band where the guy played what I thought was a great sounding strat. I saw he used a BF Pro Reverb with it. I didn't get a close look at the strat but when I talked to him at the bar he goes, "It's a '65 Pro Reverb and a Jap strat." I couldn't believe it. He goes, "It's all in the hands, man!" I hate when they say that. I'll bet that sweet sounding amp had a lot to do with his great tone! Yes and no, it was the strat and the amp and him.

 

[Badger]

That's a great attitude until it puts YOU out of business.

I'd buy all-American components for my computer, car, studio, whatever. IF THEY WERE AVAILABLE.

So, you'll be rushing out to buy a micron, won't you, because they do make thier own components right here in the USA. We got some here at work, and we couldnt get rid of them fast enough because they sucked, but hey, thier real American....

Course, I cant talk, because my job is safe....The company I work for builds Warplanes. Cant outsource that, ITAR restrictions and all. Nope, you wanna build stuff to blow up brown people, ya gotta build it here in tha states...I can walk out the door and look down out in the factory and see planes being built to go to Israel, United Arab Emmerance, Japan (well, part of a plane for japan), Norway, and host of other feruners...When it comes to death dealing hardware, buy merican or buy the farm.

 

[jimistone]

i dunno...when it comes to death dealing hardware I prefer vintage hardware out of France. The guillotine (spelling?) is a pretty cool death dealing peice of hardware.

 

[Badger]

i dunno...when it comes to death dealing hardware I prefer vintage hardware out of France. The guillotine (spelling?) is a pretty cool death dealing peice of hardware.

Yeah, but on a much smaller scale. Try carrying one into combat, just getting the for'ner to put his head in there, I mean, THey aint as stupid as in the Bugs Bunny cartoons...

 

[crawdad]

Just to maintain the relevancy to this thread, its about 60 degrees here tonight. A good night to pick up a Strat of unknown origin and write something cool.

 

[64Firebird]

Buy American? Well, what if the product is overpriced and inferior. Should I pay extra to buy American junk?

What if I want a new strat but I don't have $1200.00? Do I have to go without?

Do you really expect mom and dad to to buy a $1200.00 guitar for a 13 year old kid?

And what about all those people working 70 hours for $50.00 a week (or whatever under paid wage they get). They have to feed thier familys too.

Or, maybe they could all make the swim North so that we can all buy American.

American production costs are lower now than they have ever been, but the priceses are higher. American corperatoins are making record profits but they are still laying off workers every chance they get.

The only thing we can do about it is vote for Ralph Nader!

 

[Treeline]

Or we could practice what we preach...

Which means there would never, ever, ever be a Leahy, Kennedy, NEA, or Nader bumper sticker on a Volvo or Toyota wagon...

Or that somebody with an apparently "aggressive" anti Mex Strat approach to his site would manage to avoid showing a Mexican strat in the first image that pops up (advocating his invisible Buzz Feiten retrofit with the Mexneck).

Or, maybe it could be about guitars..







-------------------
This is Jim Highwader hearing someone else say
"Practice what we preach? Sure - when shrimps learn to whistle..."

 

[crawdad]

Really. All this telling everybody what to buy, what to boycott and being the internet police of ethics and values does get old after a while. Nobody seems to have a problem buying a German or Chinese mic, so why is guitar origin so different. And just because something is American made doesn't mean that most of the materials aren't from overseas. Oh, and its OK to buy something British, cause they are more "like us".

Fact is, markets and manufacturing are always in flux. I buy what I need for a fair price. I'm always happy to buy an American product, but if there is something much better for half the price...sorry, I am not that patriotic. Peavey is an American company, but I don't want to use their amps (actually, I use another American company's model).

To each his own, but if you're preaching to me, you are wasting your time.

 

[flapo1]

I don't mean to offend anyone but there are some things that I disagree completely with C7sus:

1st.- American economy WILL NOT collapse if you buy things in foreign countries. What the jobs do is move to "higher" level, not manufacturing, but other things like advertising, marketing, entertainment and arts, etc.

2nd.- A great part of the wealth returns to the USA after all (isn't Fender or other brands that manufacturate in other countries still american?) via corportative offices.

3rd.- You seem to think that USA is the only country in the world. Let me dissapoint you. Countries like mine (Mexico) need external economic resources to get by, resources which can come thru a loan by banks or thru productive sources, like manufacturing. Meanwhile loans are a load for Mexican economy, manufacturing helps it come to life. People from other countries can MAKE A LIVING too from manufacturing plants that settle in those countries. Contrary to your belief, I am a mexican "native" and I do know a lot of "natives" that feed their families (mine included) thanks to those plants, and generally speaking we do not want to raise on arms against our government. In my opinion, our government is democratic and doesn't even "buy weapons" to keep us humiliated.

Be real, man. we live in a global world. A lot of times I will buy American-made cars (I own a Chevrolet) or somethings similar. With global stuff WE ALL BENEFIT. I think it's not very nice from you that you want to keep jobs for your countrymen and give a f%&k about any other people.

Pardon my french.

And thanks to all other guys who trust in mexican (or chinese or whatever) workers.

 

[jimistone]

one last word...
i have been playing strats since the early 70's....the poorest strats fender ever made were the AMERICAN made ones during the CBS takeover. quality control was shit. I come from the old school of thought which is: if you want a great strat find a "pre-CBS". CBS took over in '66....the '66 strat parts were made in '65 so any strat '66 and older would be pre-CBS. In my humble opinion the mex strats are better than the the american made cbs strats (with the exception of the pickups)neck and body are without a doubt.

The other guitar player in our band has a '75 strat and its a piece of shit...but its worth money cause its "vintage"

I find it funny that 70's era strats are fetching real high prices nowdays....the guitar players I came up with wouldn't give you 300 bucks for a 70's era strat.

in musicians friend catalog they have "the 70's era strat" and the discription says "a definative era in rock and roll"....they should have followed that with "and a lousy era for fender"

 

[monty]

For several weeks I’ve hit every music store within a 50-mile radius. Two Guitar Centers, two Skips Music, two Music-Go-Rounds, two Music Boxes, and private parties, not to mention ebay and internet resources. I’ve asked many questions and had my hands on many guitars. There are material and quality differences all down the line, and there’s no comparison to the way they feel. Buy a new American (not American Standard) Strat, or American Fat Strat…period. My 2 cents.

 

[Gidge]

Moderator pleeze move this to the Politics forums as it has gotten off topic.....

 

[gibs]

"

"Spend your money however you want. But maybe we all need to stop and think about how the money we spend circulates through the economy and who it goes to support."

Yeah...supports people like you that quit a job and expect benefits......right?....................

It's great you're back and up to your old shit in all the wrong forums.....now that there's no moderation here at all, I guess you can really go wild......


Why don't you get some of your union buddies to float you a loan while you so earnestly search for honest emplyment for a decent wage?...or are they all too busy bullying and intimidating people that actually work for a living?....

I think you might recall my sweet story about about being a little kid and having union goons terrorize my mother and me because my father worked in management.......or maybe you don't recall, because, after all, it's all about you, isn't it, and your past and current "victim" status......

you said all the same shit when yer boy Clinton was in charge..........and you were just as unemployed because you evidently can't hold a fucking job.....all that great money you made 3 months a year is gone, I guess.....what a fucking shame................

Put a silk suit on Jimmy Hoffa and he's still just a low class stiff in concrete, because despite the rhetoric, it's all about Number One....ain't it?............

No one is in charge to delete this, so I might as well say what I want to....You're a fucking turd.....


gibs (remember me?....the one upon whose self and family you wished a pox?.....)