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Hi All

I am considering asking Alan to make me a Strat,and I was wondering if anyone already
had one and would they care to comment on it.

I would be interested in knowing how they compare to a Custom Shop model.

Also what parts were used and how long was delivery.

Thanks

Alan

asimmd wrote:Hi All

I am considering asking Alan to make me a Strat,and I was wondering if anyone already
had one and would they care to comment on it.

I would be interested in knowing how they compare to a Custom Shop model.

Also what parts were used and how long was delivery.

Thanks

Alan

Hi Alan, Stratpicker AKA sixchannel is your man

You can ask Alan to make you a whole guitar (BTW, he is not limited to Strat type guitars) and you can specify what kind of parts you want, or he can make you a neck, or a body, or both . . .

I am not in a position to compare Alan's "Strat" to a Fender Custom Shop Strat, but knowing the quality of Alan's workmanship and attention to detail, I am sure that his guitars are definitely first class. You can think of him as a master builder, not a Fender master builder, but definitely a master builder!!

Bojan

Thanks for the replies,I already have a Birdseye Maple Neck from Alan but I wanted to know about his guitars.

I have lost all his contact details as well so if anyone has them I would be grateful.

Thanks

Alan

I found recently that it doesn't matter how good or expensive a guitar is, regarding how good it makes you sound, I have obtained the results I was seeking with a modestly priced Strat, the important thing is knowing how to get the best out of it - i.e. set up, pickup height, playing technique and amp & echo set up.
I recently heard the Squier Biffy Clyro Strat with a few mods that ticks all the boxes for Shads stuff, it is owned by Tony Parnham and sounds and looks great.The guitar has an alder body, rosewood fingerboard and is finished in a a very close to the original fiesta red. All he did was change the trem block and pickups and it sounds awesome. I think the guitar costs around £250.00, the Sliders pickups £200.00 and whatever the price of a rolled steel block is, I reckon just over £500.00 the lot. I recently sold my Masterbuilt and replenished by bank account. As good as they are I am not yet pining for it.

Blimey Dave! Do you actually own and are you actually playing a Squier??!!

Thanks for the replies

Looks like I need to speak to Mr Parnham.

I don't want an expensive guitar because I am chasing a specific sound,I am not, I gave up doing that a long
time ago.

As you have already had a Masterbuilt Dave at least you know what it was like to own the best you could get.

Alan

Dave is right on the money. I own some very expensive guitars, including a Masterbuilt Strat - and, don't get me wrong, I still love 'em - but one of my favourites, and the one I often reach for for a quick play, is my Mark Griffiths/ Sue Ryder Tele which, even with the Fender Custom Shop pick-ups I added, only cost around £160.

Hi Alan,
I have only two Strats now and Dave is correct about the Biffy Clyro Strat. I bought it for £249 at Newark, upgraded the block to a Celtroka £29 and fitted the Sliders. It sounds really good but it also handles and feels great as well. You may be able to find a couple of sound files from Roland Billie Bilner, he has the same guitar but has left the stock pickups in. He gets an excellent sound but with my setup and in my room the sliders have the edge on the stock ones in my opinion anyway.

I was also lucky enough to buy a second hand Alan Brason strat about 18 months ago, its probably identical to Phil McGarricks with Kinman Pickups. I'm not crazy about the Kinmans but it gives the modern Hank sound and they are noiseless which is a bonus in a small room. When I acquired this Strat the neck was a little on the thick side for me so I sent it back to Alan and it's spot on now.
I've had two or three jobs done by Alan and make no mistake he is a Master Builder. The bottom line is with him (and this is what he told me) if you want a special guitar building to your own specification he can do it for a reasonable price it just wont have a number or say 'Fender' on it unless of course you buy a decal.
Alan is pretty much well known in Europe as he is here and even if you did want to sell it you wouldn't lose much because you wouldn't have given an arm and a leg anyway.
I seem to have come to a stand-still with Shadows related stuff now with these two guitars (old sound/new sound) I have an AC4 and my Echomatic 6 head so I can't see really improving on it. My favourite ingredient has to be the ESE though.
Best Tony