My Friend Bought a Fake Fender Stratocaster
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- Опубликовано: 8 фев 2025
- In this video I look at a couple fake Fender Stratocaster guitars. Both claim to be made in usa, but they are not from what I can tell. Interestingly, they were both actually purchased too. That is the sad thing about this video, because I hate seeing people spend their hard earned money on a guitar that turns out to be fake. In this video I go through all the details that lead me to believe it is fake and hopefully this will help someone not get scammed.
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The logo on the first headstock was definitely added. It's pretty visible. Not even sure it's a waterslide...looks like a decal sticker.
7:40 7:40 It looks like a bullit badly done 70s bullit truss rod that should have a large headstock an bullit truss i personnely wouldnt go near it you can use the fender site aswell now that you put serial number in an it will tell you what it should be but that headstock it yeah its all wrong even shape of normal size headstock is all wrong but great job letting people know these problems are out there keep the strat cat alive my friend
I guess it depends on the price the purchaser paid for them, especially the second one. For $400 that's pretty close to a Custom Shop Rory Gallagher relic, as long as the pickups are OK. There are a lot of people who do 'relics' on eBay, and they may or may not be excellent guitars. The problem is when you put the Fender logo on them you are doing something illegal. The second problem is when someone sells them on as genuine, either in error or maliciously. Frankly, the main issue is that we live in a world where people are prepared to shell out $3000 up to have a reliced guitar, and (as I say to my students in Business Analysis) if something can be gamed it will be gamed.
I'd honestly suggest that people with a limited budget look for a good guitar, rather than a glamourous one: otherwise, you are making this market. If someone is offering to sell you a Custom Shop guitar for $400 it's not real. Get a Slik, Godin, Yamaha, Ibanez, or any one of a number of great guitar brands that you can afford, and mod it over time into the guitar you want. The Fender situation will get worse: they are incredibly easy to fake, and Chinese 'old' and 'high-end' ones are now easy to obtain and modify to make them look more 'authentic'. Frankly, it would be a better world if people focused on playing the damn things instead of using them as a weird form of jewelry.
Good stuff as always Kennis - that neck is bugging me as well. It looks like it could be a dual-action truss rod of the kind that has (literally) two rods. This is fundamentally different to some Fender ones (the Bi-Flex type) and has the second truss rod beneath the first which might explain the lower adjustment screw's location on the neck. Not a Fender thing as far as I know, but they did try stuff out, so who knows. If you find out I'd love to know.
Great info....nicely said!!!!
this my guitar love it. for the price it is a main stay in my collection.
My guess, If I have to give one is, the second guitar is heavily modified. Likely a MIM neck and body. The truss rod adjustments at both ends are likely 2 different necks. The plastic in the headstock is the actual neck. The neck shown off the body is another neck entirely and not the one on the guitar. The pickups, pickguard and tremolo "may" be MIM but I honestly suspect the trem is actually Squier. Ive owned MIM and Squier both. My MIMs have thick, normal sized American type trem block and my Squier has half thick.
this is my guitar and i still own it love found out through a friend that japan made a neck with 2 adjustments on the neck but hey who knows a cool guitar plays well no issues but i think you are right it is a mexi body
i couldn't find the comment, but someone said the relic one looked aliesxpress. It is true. Just write "relic strat" on ali
I subscribed your channel a few days ago to learn English and guitars:)
Your pronunciation is pleasant to listen!!
Thanks to upload videos!!
いいですね！
High school woodshop basics I remember: no horizontal woodgrain on surfaces that are away from the main body or a main support. That headstock was made for snapping. Anyone with basic woodworking knowledge would choose grain that ran vertically, towards the neck, with the fretboard. A counterfeiter, naturally, would not let any piece of wood go to waste.
Remember too that 400CAD is roughly equivalent to 300USD, which makes it more attractive. Another consideration: when did Fender start putting Custom Shop decals on the headstock? How could a guitar get so beat up and yet the decals remain pristine?
I have a 78 fender strat, and a 93 mexico strat, and they both have damage in the same locations. The 78, I have owned since 81 and the 93 is a much newer purchase. Neither has any damage where the tuning pegs are, on the face of the head stock. However, the 78 has a bent tuning peg from a fall. They both have damage to the underside of the neck in the 1 and 2nd second fret positions, and damage to the body paint that literally fractured the finish to the under laying wood, from dropping the guitar straight down. Like what would happen when you are not holding the neck, but the back of the strap breaks or is not properly secured, sending the full weight of the guitar down to a single point from a couple of foot height.
You should make some videos on how to tell fake telecaster from real ones. That would really help. It seems Telecasters are a lot harder to figure out.
Great content - the fakes always fascinate me for some reason.. keep up the great work
I totally agree...i love this stuff!!!!
Even my dog knows it's missing a walnut plug. And it's been dead 6 years. Second guitar is a Squier with mex neck
I put new fender hands on my squire. And I put a real nice bridge on it and I put a nickel plate on the back of it that says fender, although I am leaving the Squier logo on the neck. This thing may play like a fender when I’m done with it, but it’s still a squire, it’s better to be honest than dishonest. I feel like squire really makes some nice guitars, and some of them are worth the money. I paid $469 from my squire and a case was another hundred and tax. Just the same it’s still a squire but I love my guitar and I think you’re right counterfeit guitars. Thanks for all of your good advice now most people know how to spot a fake. Thanks for your videos. Have a great night and a good day tomorrow.👍🏼👍🏼😁😎🎸
The second Strat's body could actually be worn that way over time, but only if you were someone like Rory Gallagher who's sweat is very acidic. His beloved Strat had almost all the finish wore off of it before his untimely death in the 80's, however some of the wear also came from the Strat being stolen and later found laying in a ditch, being rained on, etcetera. So whoever owns that guitar shouldn't think or feel that the relic job is bad and should look at photos of Rory's Strat to see why I say that.
yup it is my guitar and i love it. ty for the post. if it $600 canadian i still have bought it. the odd thing is that there is no edge to the decal at all almost like it was silk screened. crazy huh?
25 to 30 years ago, a large number of replica 56 to 65 strats were imported from Japan. Note replica not fake they had a fantastic finish, 21 frets. There was no serial number and no indication of fender. These guitars were turned into fakes so easily. The neck pockets were very slightly large. The inlays were slightly outboard on the 12 fret. The back plate had a plastic base with a blank polished steel fixing plate. They were cheap, looked fantastic. I have one. Would be happy to send photos of what it looks like now that it has original kinman a64 impersonator pick ups in. I call it a parts strat. Hope this helps.
Made in Japan is very desirable because the Japanese people put pride in everything they do, even if no one ever sees it.
I just bought a fake 1963 Fender Strat partsocaster for £100.00, and you know what: it feels, sounds and looks fantastic! However, if I didn't know what I was looking at, and someone had asked me for more than 100 quid, then I'd be very upset! It's great that you're letting people know what to look out for on here! Kudos!
Thanks 👍
Some Fender Japan necks also have that plastic around the trussrod nut. That “made in USA” is clearly another color than the rest of the logo, as if it’s newer. (Which I’m sure about)
still own the second guitar still love it.😁
That truss rod not having walnut is enough I’d walk away, wish I could see the back.
Aside from everything else - the font on the backplate Fender logo is different to the headstock logo...
Interesting video, and definitely useful! New guitars are so expensive that many people buy used! They seem to be both fake to me or at least not what they are sold for! In the second one the "Original Contour body" logo is exactly aligned with the Fender Stratocaster logo. normally that is not the case the angle is different. The Fender Strat logo is aligned to the angle of the headstock base (so pointing left not aligned with the neck), the original contour one is usually aligned with the neck angle. Also the dots on 12th fret on vintage replicas are a little more spaced than those. Usually A and the B strings cross them in the middle. The thinner floating bridge is typically the squier one. All fender strats have a serial number so that is probably not even a fender neck! Also the truss road near the neck pocket should be more in the middle of the neck, not on the base (at least the ones I have are like that!).
Cheers
ty kennis great video my guitar is a strange one to me as well. but i love it and it plays really well. not bad i thouhgt for $400. i will be finishing it with genuine fender bridge and block,switch. i would never sell this guitar as the relic job is amazing.and i would never tell anyone it was a genuine fender. ty again your awesome.
Get urself a fender neck and pop it on there and it will be perfect lol
Also the neck Plate looks bent, where they put in the screws, like someone forced the neck onto the guitar body. I could be wrong, but I have seen this. Could be someone just checking for serial numbers or someone modifying a Chinese guitar..what do you think. 👍🎸
The second guitar look like a total fake, the relic job was done so badly. So badly. The neck has extra screw holes. The guitar in my opinion is a bigtime fake. I never thought, people would start making fake guitars, but they do today, because the money is bigtime. In my day, you bought what you bought. Fender was just like any other company. But the prices where reasonable. But today, they ask 5 grand for a Gibson les Paul, or a fender Strat. Back in my day, you could buy one, from $ 800, buck, and at the very high, maybe $2000 grand or lower. My first American made rely, I paid $600. 00, telecasters, were not sort after in my day, no one wanted them. Everyone wanted a Krammer, because of Eddie Van Halen. Go figure. Great video.
Both heel and neck truss rod adjusters, must be a licensed replacement neck
Why not check the serial number? Bought a fender from GC and it had a neck off a different strat and body was a no name. Got my money back. When I consider to buy a usa strat, I call Mike at Fender, and i give him the serial number and he will describe it to me what the guitar should look like.
Is that something he would do for everyone? I am about to but a used American Standard.
@@lancomedic I'm sure he would
cant even search for a "Fender" on offer up because everyone calls their squiers fender and flood the searches.
The fake Fender Strat thing been around for a long time. I think a lot of people buy fake ones for the real money.
Fender Made in Mex mostly uses a PVC truss rod plugs but Ive seen some FSR Models do have 22 frets with a walnut plug as well. to name one is the MiM Roland ready guitar. That first headstock shape is off and the placement of the waterslide is wayoff!
Second guitar is a Mexican, Another clue is the screw by the pick up switch is not adjacent, The neck is a bit of a conundrum but I think it could be Mexican with the serial number sanded off and the custom and made in USA waterslides added and polyurethane varnish finish clothed over. Basically, why bother doing this at all? If this is the case, they would have got $400 plus for the original without the work!!
The plate (an body) on the second one looks like a mexican ''Custom Shop designed Classic Player '' which is a good quality guitar but not a american Custom Shop with a american made neck.
Good one. I'm learning👍🏻
The neck plate if you look at the e in fender that e was used 50's early 60's I would say it is a fake....
the squier strats have plastic around the trussrod end
Most don’t. Some do.
Also American Fender never used a plastic plate under the metal neck plate!
I've only encountered one counterfeit and it was the serial number font stamp on the neck plate that gave it away when we compared it to mine
On the second guitar, the wear on the inside of the upper "horn" just doesn't look right. How could it get so scratched up in there?
If ya get a custom shop and it comes with paperwork you should be good right
I had a fender mustang that never ever never stayed in tune.God forbid you touched the whammy.Point is that guitar could have been improved by a fake and i would have been happy!
For me the neck plate of the first guitar looks wrong - I believe the real ones are stamped, that one looks like it's engraved by a cutting machine of some sort - see where the lines join in the middle of the F, the Rs and the As you can see a larger dot, to me that looks like where the engraver/cutting tool went back to start the next line. I could be wrong but I don't think you'd see that on a real one.
Number 1 is a fake, Number 2 is more of a Partscaster relic. Both become a fake if they are tried to be sold as original Fenders
The first one is clearly a fake. The headstock shape is wrong, the body shape is wrong, the upper strap button is in the wrong place, there are so many details that can be spotted a mile away. The second is, again, a fake. The headstock decal is a bizarre mishmash of logos and fonts. The neck could be Mexican - the plastic plug and the 12th-fret dots point to that - but it's impossible to say anything about the body without more pictures or a proper, close up examination. Even at only $400, I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. It's a disgrace that people are being conned out of substantial sums of money for these things.
There are fender guitars with truss rod adjust in the headstock and the bottom.
what models?
Yesterday a guy tried to sell me a fake Strat and it had a walnut truss rod tunel insert... I think fakers are upping their game which's alarming as it's getting easier to be lied and money they ask is almost as for a real one.
I’m looking to buy a fender Stratocaster at the moment and I’m watching your vids to see if the one I’m going to buy is real or fake and I can’t tell, can I send you some photos ?
Thanks
The guy who is selling doesn’t know himself if it’s real or fake !
I bought the jim root fender strat replica. I changed the pickups, bridge and the strings. It is really cool. I costed me around 500 cad in total with the upgrades. I don't wanna spend 2500 cad for that guitar
And they have the pickgaurds on crooked alot.and also the bridge isn't lined up right on alot of them and the strings kinda just go off the side of the neck.and the saddles are fake...just printed wca fender logo.jus like the tuners.abd the back line is painted on.ubder the finish.
During the 90s some made in usa strats had the plastic truss rod
Ugh single ply pickguards don’t work on strats
The first one, the headstock is the wrong size, logo and string tree in the wrong locations and if they’re trying to pass it off as real, assuming vintage, wouldn’t that be a 70’s instrument with that logo? They’re missing the bullet truss rod adjuster
Three bolt neck as well
String tree on my strats are all by the F in Fender
Do have a guide to determine if fender or squire electric guitar was fake or class a product??
Real Fender string trees are lined up to the A string tuner usually.
wait 3 caps? there are only 2 tone knobs? dafugg?
Headstock is not Fender, string tree wrong location , and decal is for a large headstock. The neck plate has a different font. Smaller print on the real deal.🎸👍✌
The second one is not a Custom shop.Trem block is for a Squire. Neck looks to be after market,I've never seen a strat but on the edge.
Fender never used the 70's logo on the small Headstock..????? Better check your sources... Maybe look at an 80-83 Dan Smith Strat.
the second guitar is probably a Squier Standard. neck and body.
Only a few minutes in but you should have put a real one next to the fake to really show the difference Thanks Body too small as well as headstock Both have headstock issues Good demo
These are the fake fenders from Ali express. Completely fake! But they’re not that bad I’ve been told. With shipping though it’s about 200
the head shape of the first guitar didn't seem correct. It looked all goofy. And I noticed that the string tree is at the bottom of the headstock. And the logo seemed all over the place. It seemed to be a fake of a 70's style Strat but most 70's style Strats have a bullet truss rod and the ones that didn't have the bullet truss rod had a truss rod adjustment part at the bottom of the neck. The second on the other hand looks more like a replica of John Frusciante's 1962 Stratocaster made by a luthier. But I don't think a luthier would put a fender custom shop decal on the headstock. Something just doesn't look right about the logo on that Strat. Because it's a CBS 1965 logo but the 2nd guitar is based off of a 1962 Strat even though you can only really find the logo on a 1965 Strat. But the relic job is this Strat is terrible! So it is probably a really good fake.
Can we please dispense with the "relic" euphemism. The word is vandalised..
If your trousers have holes in the knees, you may not get this......
Ta.
Check the serial number first and see what it's pretending to be.
Heel trus rod are common on vintage or reissues models.
nothing makes sense on that guitar, the logo, the tuners, the plug, the lacement of the log.. the color and size of logo, ITS ALL FUBARED.. someone wasn't trying to fool anyone here, the squier truss plug reveals all
How the hell would someone wear out the inside of the strat's top horn like that unless whoever played it tied a chain to it instead of a strap😅
I'd buy it for $400 in a heartbeat. Maybe try to find a 'partscaster' waterslide.
Not me.you can buy your own in any color you want from China for under $200. Why pay $400
@@thefuneralparade ............I have learned so much since I said that. I'm embarrassed. Forgive me. ..now? I wouldn't even look at these guitars. ..the good news is I never did make any dumb purchases. I have 3 Firelys, 335,335,LP knockoffs. They're fantastic... and a new Danelectro 59X12 ... which is Heaven.
No details on the photos to tell for sure. Where is the neck stamps and marks?. THe wear looks real for a 70's-80's and prolly a transition guitar from 70's-80's. Those are things people don't like about the transition Strats. [2nd guit]. Similar but, thrown together from several guitars. Always,......watch out when you buy a Strat guitar. Could be from stolen guitars and disguised this way. Buy from a major Guitar shop and you prolly get the real deal but, you pay many $ Dollars. People have always been wrecking good guitars they paid good money for. Oh well, it looks like automotive paint [real paint jobs] I'll just re-paint it.
The headstock logo is just crooked.fender don't make crooked logos.
Fender logo only $680 usa add guitar extra $70.
Second guitar ...the original contour logo is way too big, also the tuner ferrules are wrong. Look like a Mexican made Fender with oversized ferrules for the vintage type tuners, that rear truss rod adjustment must be fake it's either one or the other.
I love fake fenders, i have two and would never consider buying a genuine one when the fakes are such good value for money. The chinese know what they are doing, kudos to them.
Really? Chinese guitars are junk to me, sorry. Happy to have bought a real Fender American Professional Strat right here in the good old states. I tell you who makes a mad SG copy, and that’s Harley Benton. Thing came stock with Grover tuners, Roswell pickups and D’Addario strings. Check them out sometime, lot of bang for the buck. My copy SG was made in Vietnam and the finish is stunning, mahogany neck/body - Harley Benton DC Custom. Amazing guitar. I’m not a gear snob, just appreciate a quality product.
@@DayOneAdeleFans My two chinese strats are easily as good as any genuine american made that i've tried. The only issue i experienced was slight intonation being out. Cannot recomend chinese fakes enough.
@@sb-ez2ss I've had to fix up every single Chinese guitar I own but my fake med Paul plays great.im still wrestling w my u string sg copies and my 7 string les paul copy to get them to play smooth and comfortably.im prolly gonna havta regret all of them w extra jumbo frets
Hey kennis, I have a 1982 fender custom shop “the Strat” with real plated gold hardware. I’ve been told it’s either super rare or a fake, but I know it real because my great grandfather was a fender dealer and it came with the original tag and fender USA case. Overtime I lost the tag like an immature kid lol guitar it’s still only played from myself. It was brand new passed down to me. Would you like to do a video on it? I think it would be a cool and very educational video on how to separate rare older customs vs fakes. Let me know brother
Ya the 1982 the strat is a pretty cool guitar. They aren't super rare really but rare enough especially to find one all original...funny they put so much gold plating on them that they lost money on them...oh also they were not a custom shop guitar...the custom shop didn't come around until think 1992 I believe
Sorry custom shop started in 1987
You can buy real Fender neck plates cheaply. So it's not necessary for a crook to use a fake one. And a legit Fender plate is often a way to trick people into thinking the whole guitar is legit. But not all Fender guitars have the same neck plates. There are several types, each with different stamps. Buyers should do their homework on the particular neck plate style that the guitar model you're buying is supposed to have. And the truss rod style, the headstock style, the decal style - do you homework, it's not hard ! If a used guitar has a different neck plate, it's possible someone has swapped out just the neck plate (but why would you ?). But it also increases the chance that the guitar is not legit. You can also look up the neck serial number on the Fender site. Most of the crooks aren't too smart. It's up to the buyer to be smart. BTW if it's a heavy relic, they are almost always off aliexpress - so does your homework, again.
I followed your clues and even found that corona California neck plate on aliexpress for 99 cents. What a steal!
Some of the Squier models have the black plastic insert around the trust rod cavity too. New Squier classic vibe even have the wood insert. Check it out www.musiciansfriend.com/guitars/squier-classic-vibe-70s-stratocaster-electric-guitar
The cheapest Squiers have a thinner body not the 1 3/4 like a Mexican Fender. Squier volume and tone pots shaft size is 8mm where the Fender or CTS is 10mm ,
Selling fake guitars for top dollar is the same as someone taking a Plymouth Fury and putting Road Runner badges on it and selling it as the real deal. If they sell it as a clone, for less money it's ok, but selling it as a real Road Runner, for top dollar, is just wrong.👍😎🎸🎶
No it's similar but not the same thing. For one, there's only a limited number of Plymouth Furies out there to turn into fakes, there's a very limited market for someone willing to shell out big money for a Road Runner and it's easier to identify real cars because better records were kept and anyone with a brain is going to do their due diligence on a car that costs tens of thousands of dollars.
Guitars are often bought online, or as gifts by spouses, friends etc. I know enough about Gibsons to tell a fake one from a real one as far as the average counterfeit goes but what about my girlfriend or a family member buying me one as a gift or something? They could easily get screwed.
The govt needs to step up and enforce counterfeiting laws because China actually encourages IP theft and thanks to the internet there's no shortage of idiots lining up to buy counterfeits.
It should be ILLEGAL to sell them in the US, period. It should be ILLEGAL to knowingly buy one.
Counterfeits and IP theft is a serious problem right now.
The trem block and 5 way switch on the second guitar are a definite give away for me. I have a Strat copy that I built from a kit. Has the same thin block and import switch. That double access truss rod adjustment is weird, too. Never saw that before. I know at one time, the Chinese were making relic Strat copies. Could be one of those. Who knows?👍😎🎸🎶
the lettering on the neck plate has been lasered and way too many start and stops
The second Strat has a truss rod adjustment hole by the nut, and at the end of the neck. Fake for sure. Fender doesn't make em like that.
Is that a windscreen from a Sm7b on a ksm?
No it’s a At 3035
@@kennisrussell hey Kennis. You ok brother? Haven't seen ya on here in a couple weeks. 🤷♂️
there were somw custom shops that had multiple screw holes fom being mounted on other guitars there are a few articles on it. but definitely fake otherwise
Everything good bro? You have been radio silent for a while.....
Thanks for asking. Been super busy with some stuff non RUclips related. I’ll be posting this week.
@@kennisrussell when is this months drawing?
First one is a Squier. Second one is a Chender.
That first white strat... the logo could be correct if it were claiming to be possibly an '82? maybe? I had a legit 1982 USA strat 30 years ago with that headstock and logo, this one however- the logo isn't even close to being placed correctly on the headstock, horrible job and yeah, unless its just an "off" taken pic, that logo is a blurry mess. You're also spot on about the truss rod situation
That first one is so fake, second one too! I always look at the truss rod hole
Fender logo sticker only $680 extra $70.
Fender better get in gear before people start actually preferring the fake Chinese guitars because they’re higher quality,,,, like what happened to Gibson. 😂
You can get a Chinese fake Buckethead LP that smokes the Gibson version. Lol 😆 😊
6:24 that red guitar Nice
yea but the neck is really convincing.
You look like Dave Mustaine, sorry if you've heard that 1,000 times lol
It's a really poor fake as well
60s neck 70s decal red Flag!
Both clearly fakes! far too many things wrong with each of them so avoid
It "seems" that this reviewer has the best of intentions but my patience and trust were tested by the many uncertainties and number of times that he said 'i guess and 'it seems''.
I prefer seeing credible evidence.
I shut it off a few minutes into it.
Dude the first one is clearly a fake😂 how can you be fooled! I feel bad for the buyer :/
That’s pretty low mister . Thx man . I’m an old player and can’t believe all the fakes all over . Numbers, colors . Headstock, fonts l decals . Saddle . Bridges . Cheap metal covers . Chrome .. Kennis you rock. Keep on,making your videos
No one would sell you a real Fender Strat for $400 thats a give away. The first one is a Fake 100%
👍
Tuners to long
That relic guitar is a MAJOR FAKE !!!
Conan Obrian
Fake