Fender Review: HM Strat Type 2 Japan

History: I'm a hobbyist musician who contributes to my church on drums and guitar. I've decided guitars are my hobby and love learning about them and owning them. I'm also fussy on the instruments qualities.

Purchase: I bought my 87-88 Black Crackle HM Strat on eBay after playing a very beat up one with bad electronics that had been fiddled with a guy was trying to sell. He wouldn't come down in price enough. But it was such a cool neck and a unique look that i decided I'd get one. Shipped in the original large Fender plastic molded case from the US it was $580 Australian, total - bargain! I then spent a bit on it because i'm fussy, see below

What I Like About This Fender HM Strat Type 2 Japan: The sound - lots of sounds, anything you want almost. Strong sustain from all metal parts. It's lightweight too, less than 7.5 pounds. Has an 80's mojo to it. Very easy to play lead on. Not hard to play rhythm on either. Stays in tune unbelievable well, only really big changes in temperature move it.

What I Do NOT Like About The Fender HM Strat Type 2 Japan: Nothing really.

Fender HM Strat Type 2 Japan Quality Rating: Nice finish and good construction - very good value at the price they sell at. However you can make them absolutely excellent players by taking them to a good Guitar Tech with a Plek machine, who really knows how to use his machine. The Kahler system isn't radiused to the Fret Board on any of them. The Kahler Saddles and Nut are non-adjustable and the radius is around 20". The neck is 12.5!! Not a big difference and you mostly wouldn't know it, but the machine can 'see' it, and fix it. Milling the frets to 20" radius, even actually doing each fret slightly differently as the neck changes. The result is a fully corrected fretboard and you can't notice the loss of fret, it's a precision adjustment. The guitar now plays like a dream and every note is in tune.

Review Summary: Excellent guitar that is completely under recognised at the moment, my favourite to play in most circumstances, despite having other more expensive options that I love for different reasons.

Rating of this Fender product: 4

This Fender HM Strat Type 2 Japan Electric Guitars Review Submitted By: dig01blues

Review Date: 2007-06-16