Fender Lone Star Strat

This guitar smokes
could use a fatter neck

great for all styles except metal ; maybe

great

safe

perfect guitar would like to get one with rosewood neck as well

Great guitar loaded guitar, Im the second owner it rocks. Any style!

2001 Sienna Burst Ash American Series "Hot Rodded" Stratocaster with Dual Texas Specials and a Pearly Gates Plus. Maple board 9.5 radius and Med-Jumbo frets. I've owned FOUR of these over the years. A 96 a 97 a 2000 and this 2001. I like this one the best for a couple reasons. Its vert light and resonant at 7lb even and its Ash were my other three were Alder. Man these Texas Specials sound GREAT with ASH. I have Schaller Locking Tuners with this one also. The others held a Tuning well. A better Trem unit could have been used. But this is a KILLER Strat for the bucks. Find a nicely QC'd one and you'll have a KILLER USA Strat.

I'm getting great vinatge Strat Tones and a nice edgy raw bridge Tone with the Pearly gates Plus...Damn I love this pick-up.

As good as I ever seen on any USA Fender Strat and I grew up on 50;s and 60's Strats

Your Kidding a Strat? These are Lifelong instruments that can take an unreak amout of abuse. Ever see SRV play his? Or Jimi?

For Whatm never need them.

Like I said I've owned FOUR over the years. The upgraded Ash Body on this Strat really puts it over the Top. Especially this one being so well QC'd. A VERY VERY NICE Fender Strat. KEEPER comes to mind, and all STOCK....well Locking Tuners added.

2007 MIM Deluxe Lone Star Strat, 21 Frets, 3 burst Sunburst with red tortoise shell pickguard, SSH with the texas specials and seymour duncan pearly gates humbucker. Don't have a tremolo, but I might get one eventually.

Bought it used from the original owner, and he had it touched up by a pro guitar tech who was a good friend of his, and he did a freakin amazing job. No rough edges or anything.

I play alot of different types of stuff. Mostly rock, classic rock, alternative, grunge....I love it all. I'm not a big country music fan but if you are, you can get a nice twangy sound from this guitar with the neck pickup. If you want something a little beefier, the pearly gates is great. If you put the selector switch in position 4, it really gives you an amazing SRV sound, great for songs like Little Wing and what not...Very bright and clean, but like I said, if you switch to the humbucker, it gets very beefy. Not quite Gibson beefy, but it's a Strat. It's like comparing apples and oranges. I love the Strat because you have so many different types of sound, and they all sound great. The fact that it is MIM really doesn't matter. I've played USA ones and I CANNOT tell the difference at all. The pickups sound amazing, and the guitar very rarely goes out of tune.

Plays great with Pedals too. I've only run it thru a TS808 and a Crybaby, but sounds great with both of those. I have 10's on the guitar right now. They sound great.

The only real reason I gave it a 9 is because the Texas Specials produce a little buzz. It's nothing major, but its still noise. The Pearly Gates is incredibly quiet tho, no buzz at all. Positions 2 and 4 are my favorites....not alot of buzz on either of those.

Well like I said before, the guy I bought it from had it set up by one of his best friends who is a professional guitar tech guru guy...or something. But he did a fantastic job from what I can tell. No rough edges, no fret buzzing. Put 10's on it. No flaws whatsoever. Finish is great, no marks/chips. It's awesome.

Rock Solid says it all. I've only had it for a month, but no problems. I would use a backup, but only because I'm paranoid something would happen to it. Not because of something wrong with the guitar.

Never had to. bought it used.

Been playing for like 5 or 6 years, so I'm learning every day, but this Strat was a great steal IMO, and definitely worth the money. Mine was set up by a great guitar tech, so I'd probably recommend having that done, because it sounds and feels incredible.

If it were stolen I'd be upset. I'd most likely get another one if I could find one. The pickups are really what makes this guitar. If not I'd get an American and just upgrade the pickup's to Gilmour's or something...

I give it a 9, mainly because I wish the Texas Specials didn't buzz. Other than that, it's freakin awesome.

1996 USA Corona. HSS with Texas Specials and the Seymour Duncan humbucker. String-thru-body bridge. It's an alder body in black with pearl pickguard with a rosewood fretboard. I'm not sure about the frets - they might be a little fat but not jumbo-sized.
Standard rectangle case came with it. There's a good balance with the handle offset which has the additional feature whereby you can walk it with the case straight even when going up or down stairs, without it banging. That shows technique and care in manufacture.

I really like the sound this gives. The humbucker is real hot, but sometimes you need that to cut thru live. Mine gives a grunge sound that is not unlike a Gibson in strong power output but is sweeter in that the light bell sound comes through even with that grunge thing going on. It doesn't give the long sustain like a Gibson though. But it has a sweeter tone, imho.
I find the Texas Special on the neck SRV buttery in tone - beautiful in tone, but a little soft. But that softness may be an amplification issue or that my pick-up height is too low in the body. Or, I am too used to using the humbucker.
Sliding the pu selector is clean as.
There are five pick up settings. There is a lot of variety in the sounds, even a telecaster can twang through on what is it, setting four? Settings 2 and 3 are pretty neat though not used as much.

First of all, I find rosewood very warm. But rosewood is not slick like maple often is. My rosewood has to be worked. Playing the Lone Star for me is like working tough clay - it needs strong fingers. There's nothing slippery about it. Added to this is that I bought it used and the frets themselves are a little jaggedy - that is sometimes my fingers rather than slide over have to climb over them. Oh well, it least it ain't scalloped. Also with this though is that your fingers have to be planted firmly so the sound you ultimately get is pretty clear. But, it is not a speed guitar like Ibanez's seem to be. You can tap it, but as someone else here said, it ain't a metal guitar.
It stays in tune no matter what weather and what movements it goes through. It's got standard tuners but they keep the strings tuned. Tuning is a breeze. Stretch your new strings and wind them to their natural tuning and they will stay there.
However, I don't use tremolo so cannot comment on the bridge or strings after using tremelo. Bridge is bolted tight down to the body so no free play on the trem.
The neck is straight. The action is pretty much fine, although there is one particular fret that if I don't press hard for it it sometimes gives me a bung instead of a clear note. However, I have never adjusted the action, haven't replaced the nut - haven't done anything to it.
It has been well-used before; there is some wear on the board and a ding in the back of the body and a missing back plate. It may have been around a bit, but if that is the case it is holding up very well.

I've used it a few times only at gigs. I am a working father in another country so can't find gigs regularly. It seems to hold out well under lights and with a few bangs. I'm pretty careful where I lean it but it stands well when leaning against something. It's well balanced. Have never broken a string on it at any time, and I have played it hard on occasion.
It's dependable.
If I were a working band guy I'd want a back-up, for peace of mind. Also I'd want a few guitars, not just because it were my source of income, but that every guitarist dreams of having a few guitars.

Never had customer support as it was second hand and is older guitar now.

I once had a warm and unique Tama acoustic guitar. The rosewood Lone Star is up there in warmth.
I tested a maple HSS Lone Star. I prefer the rosewood for depth, though the maple put out some pretty and warm sound.
A Japanese Fender is much more limited in sound and is a little clangy in comparison.
I had a Squire once. Having 40 squires wouldn't be better than having one Lone Star - except that you could sell them to finance the purchase of your Lone Star.
If it were stolen I'd do my best to get another one just like it.
To compete with the Lone Star I'd want the one that Mark Knopfler uses (a Schecter?) or a signature Strat. I think the quality of the Lone Star is pretty high.
It's also a unique guitar. I haven't seen my one on the internet yet.

cherry apple with pearloid pickguard and all american hardware. Seymore duncan pearly gates humbucker and two texas special PUs

This guitar is so friggen veristile!! You can pretty much play anything but hardcore metal. Dont underestimate that pearly gates humbucker it really rocks and its got so much tone not even your mom could handle it!! However the texas special asre perfect for blues the beautiful sounds you get out of them just make me so happy. Just think stevie ray. This guitar sounds incredible its got everything!

This guitar was perfect when i got it. Fender really made this thing like they intended on making a tank. Extreme craftsmanship was put into this an dyou can tell emediately when you pick it up. The neck on this guitar is the best neck i ever played its perfect for my hands. Its like its part of my own body when i play it so i can just close my eyes and fly up and down the neck and i know itll play ok. This is my favorite part of the guitar. The nech alone is worth with the 900 i paid for it

This guitar got stolen from me and th epolice found it at a pawn shop. when i got it back there was a crack in the bottom of it and a tiny crack at teh top of the head stock. Besides that i beat the crap out of it and ut still plays and sounds great. I dunno why but i just feelliek ill keep it for ever and i know i cant breka it so i dont treat it that well. I gig with it all thetime its just an awesome awesome guitar you dont have to worry about anything.

overall id give this a 9 just because theres other guitar out there that are a few grand more an di bet there even better. HOwver for the price you cant beat this strat its got everything any body who like sgood music could want

mine lone star strat is in shoreline gold and a white perloid pickgaurd, i think it looks very sharp

when i first bought this guitar i pretty much only used the Seymore Duncan in the bridge spot when i gigged, fact i still pretty much do. But at home when i could fool around, i really liked the sound of the neck p/u. they don't really match for me. in fact i've sort of gotten to like the sound of single coils a bit more over time. i sometimes think i would kind of like to pull out that Duncan and put it in another body and slap a neck on it and put an alnico V PAF in there or a Lindy Frailin or something with just a bit more sparkle. i think the Duncan is a really nice P/U but it just doesn't go with Texas Specials for me.

this guitar has been resest a few times but right now its playing great. the finish on the fret board is chipping away, but it kinda looks cool. i don't know if i have to seal it or something. i really like the neck. Shoreline Gold is a wicked color

i always carry another guitar but i never have to use it unless i break a string in the middle of a set

????

i have had this guitar for maybe 12 years, its the first new guitar i ever owned. i have played for thousands of hours on this insturment. i have souped it up over the years, put a hipsot tuner on it and had the p?u all wired with the Player's Strat mod and a coil tap and phase split. i'm betting ready to put a Tram setter on it so i can use the Whammy Bar at bit more liberally. I play all kinds of styles on this ax ( idon't like it for jazz...but everything else. i've bought a few more guitars over the years.. a Les Paul, a Tele a Hagstrom with P90's and an ES335... and i still gig with the strat. its my main axe and always will be

Candy apple red finish strat with your standard American bridge. Fender tuners, 22 frets, SSH(2 Texas special singles and a Pearly Gates humbucker). Made in 2000.

One of the most if not THE most versitle guitars out there. Can go from Jazz to Metal with ease. I play Hard Rock and a lot of ballads and rock stuff at church and this guitar can do it all. I come from the hair metal days of the 80's and used to only play Charvels and Jacksons. I switched to strats about 6 years ago and haven't looked back since. It took me a while to find the Lonestar and when I did that was it. The Lonestar has the smoothest sound of any guitar I've played and the clean sound is the best.

I bought this used and was set up great when I got it. It is 7 years old now and still looks new.

I play this live at church every week and even though I am not running around or anything it stays in tune great and is just a solid guitar all around. Finish is great. Defintely can play without a backup but I always have extra strings on hand in case of a string breaking. Hasn't happend yet but you never know.

N/A

I have been playing since 1983 and this is my favorite guitar so far and I have owned just about every major brand out there. I would definitely buy another if it was lost or stolen.

My freind has a Shoreline Gold one, and I liked it so much I bought a Blue/green one. 2 Texas specials 1 Pearly gates humbucker. VERY versital for a strat!

I run it into: planet waves tuner, Maxon AF-9, 535q wah, Sparkle Drive, Mesa Lonestar, (effetcs loop) H2O chorus/echo, Small Stone, Short timer delay. This strat rocks! The Texas specials give a very twangy, yet still stratish tone. The duncun humbucker gets fairly close to my Les Paul.The 5 way switch allows you to use just one of the coils in the humbucker and that gives this guitar the "bell tone" No noise, even with the single coils. The Lonestar strat can handle anything from jazz to metal (I play in a reggae band and a tool-esque hard rock band. really shines in both situations. The only issue I have with this guitar is the volume drop when you switch to the single coils (I just use the volume knob or pick dynamics).

I bought this guitar used so........ But the guitar looks structurally solid

It is a USA fender... you know the drill

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I have been playing for 25 years and playng pro for 10 years. I own a customized Les paul special and a Tele. If it were stolen I would replace it. I love that although it is a strat, it sort of isn't. no wimpy sounds here. I wish it had one of the new fender noisless pickups for more versatility but what do you want for 500 bucks. This guitar is one of the best ones i have owned.

Mine is a Teal Green Metallic Finish with a white Pearloid pick guard. Everytime I bring it somewhere I get comments on how beautiful it is...for me the pick guard is what sets it off...the pearloid looks very sharp. Two Texas Special Single Coil pickups and the Seymour Duncan Humbucker as has already been documented. Mine has a rosewood neck that looks great.
---Just an aside...I remember reading that this guitar was actually designed by Seymour Duncan for Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top...so that would explain a lot.

I usually play Classic Rock and Blues...with very little country sometimes. I play through an 80 watt Crate amp, usually with some distortion but very little effects. As someone noted earlier, if you have the pickup in between the bridge and middle position you can get a very good Tele / Country sound. I personally love the Texax S pickups. You have to fiddle with them a little to get the right pickup height and the right tone on your amp and guitar. But they have a great sound. I use .013-.058 strings so that also affects the sound...but it sounded very similar when it had the normal .010-.046 on when I bought it.

I bought the guitar used but other than raising the strings a little bit off the neck I have done very little to it. Whoever had it before had a good set up on it (could have been the way it came from the factory for all I know). The first thing I did was tighten the strings attached to the bridge to death grip. I can still use the tremolo bar and it sounds the same...but now the bridge rests firmly on the guitar and it truly does make a difference in the sound. I would recommend tightening up those strings to anyone.

All of the pickups, selectors, knobs still look great and sound exactly the same they always have since I bought it. The guitar does not have a sing;le scratch in it, and I am not always easy on it (at one point I had a large blood stain on it that I left because it looked cool but my girlfriend made me wash it off). This is due in very large part because I use heavy strings but this thing stays in tune like a piano. I will take out the tuner every couple of weeks but normally there is one string,if that, out of tune. This might also be because I usually don't use the tremolo bar.

Never had any problems at all.

I had a Les Paul before this and I also own 3 Acoustics and a 12-string. I also have a 70s Epiphone electric. I have played several Les Pauls and other Strats along with many Teles. The only guitar that comes close to mine is my grandfather's '58 Strat. If anything happened to this guitar I would cry for days and pay whatever it cost to buy another one. But let me be frank. If you want a guitar to sound like a Les Paul...BUY a Les Paul. This guitar can certainly do songs like Led Zep, and Cream songs very well...and it really comes close to a LP sound....but it is a Strat, and a hell of a good one at that.

Shoreline Gold, maple fingerboard, pearlescent white scrathguard. I bought this recently second hand for 599GBP. It is dated to 1996. It has a couple of small marks on the neck but apart from that is mint condition. The fingerboard is actually better for being played plus the set-up is immaculate. I'm guessing it was part of someone's larger collection as there isn't much wear and tear on it and has obviously been well looked after.

This is a versatile guitar, I have a Fender Tele which is a 2006 model and that is good but this is EVEN better. I wanted to try and get a 'U2' 'Edge' sound and this is perfect. I was doubtful about the concept of humbucking bridge pickups on a strat but I am SO pleased I bought it despite my initial reservations. Sound is brilliant even through a 30W Marshall practice amp.

The set-up is great - as it is second hand it's difficult to say how much after work occurred but this just ouzes high quality.

This has already seen 10 years' action - 10/10 for me.

N/a

Get one.

The most versatile guitar you can get. I've owned mine for 10 years now and have played everything from Blues to Heavy Metal on it. I now play a clean blues/jazz style and I use an Ampeg SS-140 amp with minimal effects so this guitar has no help. 10 years later and she still sings like an angel.

I've put some work into my guitar. I've sanded the frets down a bit and blocked the tremolo to the body for a really low action. I've been told that this doesn't work on Fenders but this guitar still sounds as it did before but plays much faster.
That being said it was of great quality off of the showroom floor.
The finish is the Shorline Gold and it looks sharp. I've never seen another guitar with a similar color. It's 10 years old and has worn very well. Still looks like new, except for 1 or 2 dings.

Great live performer. I've played SRV, Metallica, Pink Floyd and the Police with this on the same night. Pretty diverse and durable.
I have gigged w/o a back-up and have never been worried.

I have never needed it. That tells you how good the instrument is.

I have been playing for nearly 30 years. I have a few other semi-hollow body guitars for a fuller jazz sound but this Lone Star is my only solid-body guitar I own. Sometimes, out of boredom, I try to get a new guitar...I can't do it. The Lone Star is the best Strat I've ever played, period.

1997-Think I paid like 6 or 7 hundred US ???
Would have paid a grand.
Got the hard shell case with it.
Eggshell white w/tortise shell pickguard
Flattened the bridge down all the way so I can go all night without tuning.

I play mostly original rock and have a variety of influences, and this guitar owns.
Currently using a 50watt Sovtek amp through an orange cabinet. THICKNESS!!!!
Also sounds real f'in good throught the twin reverb & the v-twin from mesa boogie.

Removed the volume knob cuz I'm alway banging it and turning it down when rocking.

Perfect out of the box.

Toured for 5 years and gigged localy another 10 and its going strong.
The maple neck has a few dings and the lam is coming off the dots, but I love it.
The finish is too good cuz I want it to look like hell. Oh well.

Never had too.

Playing for 20 years. Got a les paul studio (heavy). epi chet. martin. ebo bass. usa jazz bass.
If it were lost...suicide.

Dont know if it's for you, but its the answer for me.

I have four of these....All american! Two are original "Lonestar" strats two are standard American strats that have been upgraded to ALL the Lonestar specs, you can't tell the difference. Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates bridge pick-up, Texas Specials in neck and Middle. Five way strat "SUPER SWITCH" which is a must for any HSS guitar IMHO. Typical useless strat tone controls, don't know why any guitar has tone controls, they should be called "tone removers", but, they are needed to retain that classic strat look. Cool pearly pickguard too, I love the vintage toilet seat look!

If you want one guitar that can do it all.....this is as close as you'll ever get. I play in a cover band with a few originals thrown in and there is nothing I've found that this guitar can't handle. I have several Les Pauls and a Tele also that I use but could easily get through the night with out them if need be. The humbucker does metal well, back off the volume cotrol a little and get a nice AC/DC crunch. The singles sound great, bluesy and clean but HOT! Bonus, I'm not getting any younger and the weight of these guitars in much more managable all night long than a Les Paul. What does the strat "SUPER SWITCH" do you ask....Well, in position two you get half the humbucker mixed with the middle single coil wired in a humbucker mode for the standard position 2 strat sound.....kinda twangy, almose Tele like.

I've had great luck with all Fender products for many different years. Alot of people will bash the 90's products and that's great, it keeps the prices down for the average guy like me. When was the last time you bought a Les Paul standard for $450-$650?? I did....many time,in the early eighties! as with any guitar, you'll have to set it up to your liking before you get the most out of it. Recently I swapped a rosewood neck on one guitar for the maple neck on another to get a different look. One was a 97 the other a 95. Both necks fit properly as if they were done that way in the factory. Very consistant quality!!

I beat on these things weekend after weekend without fail....they come back for more! Stays in tune well....who needs a Floyd Rose?

Never had to deal with them, never had a problem that needed their attention!

I've been playing for 24 years. I've owned alot of guitars and still do. With most guitars I have specific "tweeks" I do as soon as I aquire them. Different pickups for example. This is the only guitar I've been happy with right out of the box, stock! What more do you need? I've swapped necks around on them for different looks (maple/rosewood) and everythiing fits together like original.

My Strat has a rosewood fretboard w/22 frets, made in 1997~, pearly-white finish and a turtoise pickgard. UGLY... but I like it anyhow.

I got this one used, and the guy I bought it from replaced the original tuning keys to a set of locking tuners, which are great.

He also had the tone knob replaced with one that looks the same, but you can pull on it to split the humbucker - highly recomended. the humbucker sound stays just the same (it's just a very simple electronic thing), plus you get that great strat single-coil sound on the bridge pickup.

The only thing wrond with mine is the bridge - the guy who owned it didn't like the original bridge, so he had it changed to something else. I didn't like the new one, so I had a fixed bridge (no tremolo) installed. and I must say I was really impressed - you could hear the change instantly. it really does sound a lot better when the bridge is bolted right to the body.

The original fender case is pretty lousy, btw. it's one of the old ones - just a big rectangular lump. if you're getting it used and can save a few $ on it - don't buy the case. buy a new fender case instead, the new ones are a lot more comfortable.

It used to be an 8. Now it's a 10. having a fixed bridge installed made a world of difference, and you won't believe me until you try it. as a said before, I didn't have the original bridge on it when I got it, so I really had nothing to lose.

If you have the original bridge, you can get the same results without risking anything: just try setting your guitar up so that the bridge'll rest right on the body, and give it a go.

The original TS singles are very bright and have a bit of a crunch into them. sounds great playing with a clean sound, and even better if you add just a liitle bit of dirt into it. the SD humbucker can scream like crazy with an overdrive or some real distortion, but it's a little dirty when you go too far with the gain (it's still a strat...).

Nothing special here. it's a strat, with all the little noises, buzzings and humms. The finish on it is excellent, though. the neck's great, the body's massive, and electronics seem to be good (and it's over 9 years old).

The locking tuners are a great addition to mine. I have to tune it once or twice a week, and even then it's just mild corrections.

This one is good to last. the electronics on my guitar is 9 years old and working great. as long as you take good care of it - it'll get the job done.

I think the American Standard line was a lot better than the new American Series line fender have out now. it's true for this specific model as well: the new Fat-Strat isn't too great. it doesn't have the same crunchy sound the older ones have (even though it might just be a wood-aging thing, and the new ones'll get better over time).

If you're looking for a bright and dirty sounding strat, the Lone Star is as good as it gets. the SD humbucker on it is a killer, and the TS singles have a great clean sound and an even better crunch when you give them just a little overdrive to work with.

But if you want to use heavy distortion on it - don't. use something else. the singles won't be able to pull it off. the humbucker can scream allright, but it's too messy for any fast shredding, and it's crunchy sound'll just go to waste.

2002 Made. The features have been covered pretty much by other people here. The only thing which is special to my Lonestar is that it's got a REALLY nice ash body in Sienna Sunburst finish, which looks more or less like cherry burst to me. Any way it's not only the really great finish. This ash body vibrates so nice even unplugged. Briliant.
Locking tuners would've been nice though.

What can I say about the sound. It's just great. This is definitely partly due to the really nice ash body, but the pickups sound great in my opinion as well. You can get pretty much any sound you want. But I play mainly Jazz/Blues/Rock kind of stuff and this axe fits great.

Bought second hand off ebay, so not sure how it was set up from factory. I had to adjust the intonation though, since the previous owner had obviously used 9s and that's awful in my opinion. I imediately put 10s on and changed the trem setting a bit as well.

Pickups did'n need adjusting. What also impressed me about the finish and the wood selection is that you can't really tell if the guitar is made aout of 2 pieces or 1. Initally I thought it was one. But about a month after I had bought it I noticed that it's made out 2 pieces, but they are matched PERFECTLY, so you really have to look hard. Amazing.

This axe is built to last. Can't say more than that.

What would you need them for. This is not a some kind of crap.

I've been playing for over 20 years and earlier I used to play an AM tele. But the Strat is 1) more versatile 2) easier to play (countour body, easier bending due to trem) 3) it just feels right.
From playing a tele a long time I learned to finger pick quite well, cause this way you can get a much better and fatter sound even in the bridge pickup of a tele. I kind of always wanted the strat sound, but playing a tele wasn't giving me that.
Anyway, I think this is a great strat and you won't go wrong if you get one of those. I think fender stopped producing them in order to get people to by their CS models (which also have Tex Pickups). If it was stolen or lost I would definitely look to buy one of those again. Although in the mean time I think one can get a really nice Jap strat. Some of them are really well made and IMO are better than the AM Strats. I give an overall 9 since the Jap strats(Tokai, Fender, ESP...) are IMO better value for money

I've owned my Lone Star Strat Since 1996 it has since been welded to my inner self. 22 Frets of pure finger gliding excellence, Seymour Duncan Humbucker can scream louder than a woman on fire if the right gladiator has this instrument at hand. Better all round than any Gibson that I've owned personally, including my 88 Lessy. Any doubters should remember that U must make it love U, 2 truly bring out this guitars full potential. Better than any fat or super by far.

Rich and Versatile, Just like a true legendary guitar should sound

Best action ever on mine, dark sunburst, Rose Wood Neck, A GEM In Every Since, Not a Scratch on her. Babied Her Since 96

Tough as nails, a true gig guitar

Bought mine about 4 years ago, has been mine fav guitar since. ( I've owned a strat plus, deluxe plus, am standard, Gibson Les Paul standard and a Burny MG-350)

I bought it second hand and her previous owner replace 2 texas special with these stack seymour duncan pickups I'm not so sure about the model. Everything was great but i wanted a lot more so I took it to my technician and I have the 2-way switch replaced with 3 way switch so I could have my bridge pickup in pararelle mode plus i have one of the tone pot replace with a push-pull pot so i will give me a twangee sound when it's in pull position.

everthing is great except the strap button would fxxk up now and then but I got it fixed recently.

Wow, This guitar sounded damn great, I was a bit disappointed because with her previous owner set-up the neck pick up sound muddy, but after a few adjustment she sounded so good, dark sounding strat but yet retain the twang sound. I really love the neck pick up position and the bridge pick up would scream,

What i dislike is it's pretty hard to get a pinch harmonic of out this guitar, I'm not quite sure if it's because my technician set the bridge to float or is it the pick up.

This guitar is VERY EASY to play, I play funk, soul, 80's metal and modern rock (weird ehh?) and this guitar is far easiest guitar I've played so far BUT you have to get this guitar set up by a professional only otherwise it will buzz as hell.

I guess my grand child will still be playing this baby in his last 40's and this baby would stay the same.

never deal with fender directly, all my strat were second handed and does come with any warranty

I would cry if it were stolen and I would swear to god i will hunt it back but i dont' think i'm gonna go buy another Lone star cause every guitar sounded different feel different so I not sure if i ever gonna find another strat that play like mine again.

97 lone star usa. candy apple red, w/22 fret maple neck, cream pearloid pickgaurd. duncan pearly gates humbucker. all the awesome lone star goodies.

very versitle sound you name it and you can find it. (with a little tweaking)I didnt care for the texas specials until I got the hang of them. In my opinion the pearly gates / texas special combo is a tough one to get used to. I found dropping the bass string side of the single coils right even with the pickgaurd and leaving the treble side high solved all my issues.

unbelievable action. the way this guitar feels is what made this the only keeper in my arsonal. The candy aple red is one of my favorite fender colors. Mine unfortunately had one blemish on the back Thanks to the previous owner.

Played live in dive bars weekly and still other than minor neck wear has no other evidence of the abuse I put it through. holds tune almost indefinately.

never needed any customer support

This guitar was stollen. but i stopped at nothing and actually got it back. (For every thief, there is at least one snitch) this gutar is a member of my family. I have been playng for 7 years. I have owned over 50 guitars. and this is the only keeper.

This guitar is one of the first built in 1995. It is a Olympic White with a tortoise shell pick guard Fender/Shaller tuners, 2 Texas Specials with Duncan Pearly Gates Humbucker. The neck is a maple with a rosewood finger board and 22 frets.Built at the Corona Factory in California. It came with a nice tolex case. It has a five way switch with tone control for the rear pickup. Fender Wilkenson style trem bridge.

Well for those who are content with the sounds of the original pickups, all the power to yez. I pretty much bought the hype when these first came out. I found the Texas Specials to be extremely midrangy and muddy with my amps. I eventually had to replace the pickups with Lindy Frailin vintage hots. The Seymour Duncan Humbucker started to leak all of its pottting wax an began to unravel on me. The guitar sound fantastic now. I sold the original pickups to a friend of mine who installed them in a Mexican Strat. He loves them(to each his own).

I had originally wanted a Shoreline Gold color. However, they did'nt have one with a rosewood fingerboard. I settled for the Olympic white with tortoise pickguard because I liked the color combo. The feel of the original neck was pretty good. However, with in the year the finish began to crack and peel off. I could have lived with this problem but eventually, the neck began to delaminate and come apart. This is the only Fender guitar that I had so many problems with. Eventually I had to raise a stink with the Fender factory. I took it to the shop where I purchased the guitar from and even they said that the problems were extremely abnormal. Fender eventually made good on their end and sent the shop a new neck from the newer American models. It was even better than the original neck for comfort. This guitar has now become completely rebuilt. No original vintage value here for this axe, but it plays and sounds awesome now.

Aside from the previosly mentioned problems, I should now have this guitar for a long time. I have not had a repeat of the cracking and pealing of the finish. It has now been through some wear and tear, and is holding up fine. No guitar should not have a backup when gigging. That's asking for trouble.

At first, I would have giving Fender and "F" grade because they said the guitar was now longer under warranty. However, once they relized this guitar was a lemon, they stepped forward and corrected the problems and now I give the a grade "B".

I have been playing for over 30 years.I own and have owned dozens of guitars over the years. I like most Fender tube amps but I also like the Hughes & Kettner solid state amps. I think they have the best solid state tone. If I had to do it over again, I would have bought a standard american strat, either new or used and modified it to my own specifications. If you are pleased with the features and tone from this guitar, by all means go for it. I felt overall that the hype did not quite measure up to what was delivered. Be sure to play this guitar though you own amps before purchase. That way you will know for sure.

I purchased my Black US Fender Lonestar while living in Bermuda four years ago for $1100.00 US dollars. Yup, everything is more expensive in Bermuda.

It has a five way switch and I love the tone of the Seymore Duncan single position. However, I really did not like the Texas Specials so I took them out and replaced them with Seymore Duncans. One single in the center position which I can't remember what it is specifically. I believe that it is one of Duncans hot country Belly toned pickups. I put a Duncan Little 59'er in the neck position which gives a single or double. It wails. I play everything from Heavy rock to country. This is the most versitile guitar that I have ever owned. I use the Fender Cyber twin as my main amp. Also very versitile.

The factory setup was very impressive. The only flaw was that the neck bolts were a bit loose.

I use this guitar on all my live gigs. Ocassionally I will bring my 1980's Schecter Strat along but only if the gig is local as I don't like to fly with it.

Never had to use customer support.

I have been playing guitar for 25 years, own a recording studio (Lonestar wails in studio) and write for Capital Records. I would probably purchase another Lonestar if this one was stolen. However, the pickup upgrades did cost me quite a bit so I would be tempted to look for a guitar that had all Seymore Duncan's in it.

1997 Lonestar Strat bought brand new for $650 w/o case. Olympic White w/ red tortoise-shell pickguard. Duncan Pearly Gates Plus in Bridge + 2 Texas Specials. Lightweight alder body. Maple fingerboard.

Excellent vintage, woody tones from Texas Specials. Classic crunch from the humbucker. A little thin sounding for some genres. Had to have at least 10's for strings.

Fret edges were so sharp it impeded play. Lacquer peeled off fretboard in several spots in just 2 years. Fender wouldn't do anything about it. I traded it back to the dealer for a Natural Tele with the nice handrolled edges;haven't looked back since.

Had problems with the jack always loosening up. Already mentioned peeling fingerboard.

Least reliable Fender product I have ever owned. The newer ones are better. Also have a 91 Deluxe Strat Plus(reviewed here) that is rock solid.

This guitar was made in 96 or 97. I bought it off FEbay ( ebay ) with no pick ups or controls.Pickups are h/s I installed a EMG 81 in the lead and a blue lace sensor in the middle , I tried the lace sensor in the neck possition but it was VERY muddy. I wired it up to a three way switch, a volume and tone control. It was upgraded to a delux tremolo with the snap in arm. I like this but I need to put locking tuners on it or I cant use the trem. All of the other things are the same as other lonestar strats. It,s shoreline gold ????? LOOKS GREY OR SILVER TO ME!!! but I like it. It came in almost new condition with a like new case.

This has a LOT to do with pickups, your amp , ect.... If you play a 150$ guitar with a EMG 81 thru a Killer tube amp For bone crushing music it will work fine. If you plug a Les Paul custom or PRS or maybe a Fender Lonestar into a P.O.S. solid state amp it might not sound so good... well you get the picture.I have worked on pickup height a lot with this guitar and it sounds great for everything to southern rock to metal, But I change pickups like I change shoes or strings. This guitar sounds good unplugged and rings very nice on open chords notes ect..Since I put my on pickups in of course it sounds great.But I wish it had came with factory pickups, I have heard good things from others about them.

Well, since I got the guitar used but like new ,I will guess it was set up like I got it. With a little work it is the best playing strat I have ever played.The finish is good, the neck is tung oiled? not sure but it's fast and VERY COMFORTABLE.The only things I have found wronge is as mentioned in other reviews, the finish on the neck over the frets has came off like it was refretted but only on a few frets??? I'm pretty sure it has not been refretted. Locking tuners would have been a nice touch.Anyway all in all I like it.

It will take a beating,I have used it live, the hardware is sturdy enough and the finish seems like it will hold up. I think you could depend on it BUT in my humble opinion anyone who plays a show without a backup is a F***** IDIOT.I Saw a band last weekend in fact and the guitar player had no backup guitar and broke a string, so guess what an extra ten minute break while the band stood there and looked at each other and the singer tried to cover.Very unprofesional.Hell I have to take at least 5 since we use 3 different tunings and I like to have a backup for each guitar

Never delt with them.

I have played for 20+ years I have been lucky enough to have found some of the best guitars (for my taste)Les paul custom and classic a older explorer, a Kramer Nightswan, a washburn a 20 , USA ibanez custom shop, and 10 or so other guitars, AND THIS ONE STAND UP TO ALL OF THEM, it's a strat but one of the most deverse and easy playing strats around.If you Like strats but can't handle the thin sound This is your answer. For the money you will not find a better guitar.Locking tuners would have been cool.

This is a 97 made in the USA with all the same features of everybody else's. I enjoy the bright inside of the case. I mean, its a guitar.

It is a very bright, slightly noisy guitar, and the humbucker absolutely sucks. My favorite pickup is the neck one. I am using it for everything from jazz to funk to rock to blues, etc etc. It is pretty full bodied, but nothing really spectacular. I play it thorugh a deville 2x12, and occasionally use a small clone, delay, or a pod. It really isn't that good, sound wise.

It came in decent shape, but the bridge was a little bit off, and I have had to bring it in for repairs a couple of times.

The frets died on me. The guitar is now unplayable because of how much I wore down the frets. I don't play espescially hard, and I even have a second guitar that I use often. I would gig without a backup, but the guitar is almost nonfunctioning now. I don't think it would be unreasonable to ask for a guitar to last a little bit longer!

fender is a big corporation, booooo

I have been playing for 8 years and own a parker p-40, a fender deville amp, a bunch of the stuff mentioned earlier, and a lot of recording equipment. That is actually the main reason why I am writing this review. Due to the horrible intonation (I have gotten it set up multiple times), and the horrible fret buzz, the the overall thinness of the pickups, I cannot even record with it! It ruins recordings when I try. I think it is sad to see that a 450 dollar korean made guitar (the parker) is more reliable, versatile, and a better deal. I think that this is just another case of fender slapping their name on a product and assuming that people will fork over an enormous amount of money because of the headstock. Shame on you Fender!

mine is a 1997 black w/tortise pick guard and rosewood neck.

sounds great. The sound in position 2 and 4 are interesting because the space between pickups is different from a normal strat. The humbucker blennds well with the singles because it almost sounds like a single but with a little bit more balls. this is good for me because if you set the height correctly you can get an even balance in vol when switching p/u on a clean channel. The bucker has independant tone control (cool). It is NOT versitile if you want to play 20 different kinds of music. This is still a strat and unless you,re a strat lover (like me) dont waste you're time. It's not gonna sound like an LP or an SG or a PRS just because you see a bucker on it. I play blues and classic rock and the sound is perfect for me.

i bought it used and it was all messed up but i'm lucky enough that i repair and set up guitars for a living (besides giging) and i got it set up to my speks within an hour or so. I'm not a fan of the two point bridge because i block them and it easier to block the 6 screw bridge so what i did was put 5 high tension springs and tighten the claw all the way and flush the bridge to the body and readjust the action. perfect. the tight 5 string even give the guitar a natural reverbish tone. i liked it so much that i unblocked my other 6 screw strat and did the same thing. great tone volume and tuning stability. try it.

this guitar takes a beating and its still in tune at the end of the night. it will last long but then again, just about any american strat will so that aint saying much but i really do punish my guitars. Any repair i do myself so i guess it dont affect me as much as it might others but i recomend it and any other USA strat. but if you love strats you already know this and so i guess i can shut up.

i never had to deal with that but i hear the're ok

i've been playing professionaly (im not a rich famous guitar god but this is what i do for a living so i guess it my proffesion) for 18 years and i've owned i think 72 guitars since. i said before that i punish my guitars so i really never get to keep them for very long (after about 25 fret dressings) and i've had many many strats from japs and mex to 60's and 70's and all kinds of newer models. my current favorite guitar is actually a lower priced highway 1 that i put fender noiseless p/u and i love it. if you like strats buy one for the road because when that ugly paint dries and starts chipping (about 2 years of guitar abuse) thats when they start to sound really really GREAT. The lonestar is among the best strats i've ever had or played. REALLY! its not for everyone but its a good sounding one or maybee i just got lucky so dont burn me if yours sucks ok. i play through an old crybaby and two tubescreamers (a ts9 and an 808 for lead boost) and an original blues de ville 212 with jensen speakers. thats it. i record with a lot more gear but that depends on the client and their needs but my live set up is that simple. strats sound good like this but please try to get your own sound and dont try to be SRV or Clapton because the beauty of a strat is that it can really adapt to your own style and sound (if you have one) so.....the lone star is a bit expensive but it can do the job for a strat lover. very important though, if you love LPs and such, go read a LP review because the lonestar just aint for you.

In teoria dovrebbe trattarsi di una strato standard con pup's diversi,ma la realta e ben diversa.
Premetto che la mia e arrivata direttamente da Los Angeles ed e ovviamente una produzione destinata al mercato interno USA......
morale della favola la chitarra e in realta fatta con una cura superiore rispetto ai modelli che giungono da noi,suona molto MOLTO MEGLIO,la scelta dei legni e decisamente piu oculata ed il risultato finale si ripercuote in modo palese sul suono.
La chitarra mi e arrivata in un superbo hard case con chiavi e card,finitura sunburst superba manico e tastiera in acero (superbo anche lui) 2 pu texas special e al bridge un Duncan Pearly Gates.

Il suono che dire......
E' esattamente cio che ti aspetti da una Strato,oserei definirlo Strato al massimo della sua espressione.Gia,proprio quel suono alla Knopfler/Vaughan ,meraviglioso, tondo e cristallino, con in piu l'humb che gli conferisce ancora piu versatilita.
C'e poco da dire se non ami una chitarra simile non devi acquistare una strato perche non e la chitarra che fa per te.
Dicono che i Tex siano rumorosi...bah...francamente, forse sara la cura nell'assemblaggio,ma io li trovo pup stupendi e pochissimo rumorosi,e chiaro che se li compro per montarli su una koreana da 100 bucks il risultato magari sara pessimo,ma su questa bambina suonano divinamente...FOR US : It sound like God

Ottima,anzi fantastica.
La chitarra si lascia suonare con una facilita incredibile,e veramente morbidissima ed il manico puo piacerti tanto quanto un manico shred,io possiedo una Jem 7v e quindi puoi fidarti di quel che dico,anche se con un action un po alta la chitarra si lascia suonare divinamente.....FOR US : very very easy playable,even with action no too low,very great neck.

E' FENDER !!!!
Ne ho vista una un mese fa del 60' suonare in modo meraviglioso.

IT'S FENDER !!!!
THERE ARE strat 40 years old with a wonderful sound..
NO PROBLEM AT ALL!!!!

INUTILI !
UNNECESSARY !

Suono da una quindicina di anni,non sono un mostro di bravura ma riconosco una chitarra da una fetecchia,e questa ragazzi suona,Dio solo sa se suona.
Ci faccio di tutto con questa chitarra, dal pianobar alle serate estive,hard rock,blues,qualche volte metal,ed altre volte suono in una chiesa evangelica, mi piace tutta la musica e d'altronde non credo esistano molti modi per suonare la chitarra,ne esiste uno solo,SUONARLA BENE! Chitarristi come il grandissimo Portera ci insegnano che si puo esprimere il proprio "chitarrismo" anche facendo musica leggera.
In definitiva se siete in cerca di una super strato, acquistatela senza paura.
L'unico appunto che faccio riguarda la provenienza della chitarra.
Non ho provato altre Lonestar se non questa e non vorrei che la F. producesse per il mercato interno chitarre superiori rispetto allo standard da esportare,la qualita dei legni della mia NON E' QUELLA DELLA STANDARD,i legni sono molto piu belli e l'elettronica e molto curata,non vorrei dare adito a leggende metropolitane,magari il mio e solo culo,pero e meglio essere precisi per dovere di cronaca.
Credo che mi ci seppeliranno con la mia Lonestar...doh!
E questo e tutto...PEACE & LOVE

PS. Se ne cercate una direttamente dagli usa ditemelo che il mio amico e sempre disponibile

'97 U.S. Lone Star Strat, all stock (see other reviews for list of features).

I used to not like the Texas Specials (neck & mid) and was about to replace them with Fat 50's. However, after lowering the height of the pick-ps, I am very impressed with the sound. They have a nice dark Strat sound. By lowering the pick-ups, I was able to eliminate the mid-range spike that turned me off from them, but it sounds sweeter now. There may be some reduction of output from the pick-ups being further away from the strings, but the sound is so much better now. A very versatile Strat that can cover a variety of musical styles. The humbucker is o.k. for some metal, but the Lone Star is not really a Strat for true metal purists. It's great for blues and rock.

The guitar is flawless. No hardware problems or other issues here.

The guitar was built to excellent standards. I am not rough with my gear, but Fender's will stand up to a good bit of abuse. I've had the guiatr for seve years and it's in near mint condition.

N/A

I have grown to love this Strat. While I still prefer my American Standard Strat, this Lone Star is an excellent guitar. The secret is in the adjustment of the pick-up heights. That illustrates one of the nice things about Fender guitars; they can be easily adjusted to your liking. Unfortunately, Fender no longer makes this guitar as well as the updated Fat Strat Texas Special (same guitar). If it were stolen I would be pretty upset, but it would definateley be repalced.

My Lonestar Strat came to me through a co-worker. He bought it in New York, for too much money, and wanted to learn how to play. Fortunately for me, he never did and offered it to me, along with a Line 6 Spider amp, for $400!!!! Got lucky on this deal, so needless to say I took it home that night and met him later and forked over the money without a second thought.

It is the 3-tone sunburst with tortise shell pickgaurd and maple fretboard. As you probably know, it has 2 Texas specials (neck & mid) and a Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates (in the bridge). 22 medium jumbo frets, typical Start volume and tone pot configuration. I love this guitar!!!

I play a heavy sort of Blues Rock, along the lines of Cream, early Led Zep, Robin Trower, Rory Gallgher, Jimi Hendrix, SRV, etc. This guitar seems to fill my tonal needs very well. I am a plug in and play type of player and don't rely on too many effects. I am a die hard tube amp player, although I have played a couple digital amps that impressed me....BUT...I go back to the tubes time and time again. I plug into my GA-15RV Gibson Goldtone (class A at it's best) and link over to a customized Fender Blues JR. I use ONLY JJ Electronic tubes from Bob at Eurotubes. He supplies me with the best sounding tubes for my playing style every time I order from him. These tubes make a big difference in tonal quality. Give Bob a call or log onto www.eurotubes.com and send him an e-mail as to what you want out of your amp(s). He knows his stuff folks!!!

Note, as I said, I am a plug in and play kinda guy; but I do use a Morley Super Pro wah, and occasionally, a chorus pedal. Couldn't live without my wah wah!!!! The Morley is okay; but I will be getting a Vox wah soon as I like it's tonal sweep better than my Morley.

I have no problems nailing some Jimi and SRV tones through this guitar/amp set-up. Ironically, I seem to get some good old early ZZ Top Billy Gibbons sounds as well. I say ironically because the Rev. Billy G. usually, or always?, used Gibsons through Fender Tweeds in the early days. I may be wrong there; but I think that's what I read in Guitar Player Mag. years ago. Nevertheless, the SD Peaqrly Gates, as well as combining the neck and middle Texas Specials give me that old Tres Hombres tones that I live for!

I immediately changed over to SIT .10-.46's, re-set the intonation perfectly and jammed the next night with it in a local blues club. I have been satisfied with the pickup heights thus far. Fit and finish seemed very good, considering I bought it used. Neck and frets felt good with no sharp fret edges...they were dressed very well from the factory. This guitar stays in tune very well, even when dropping the hammer on the tremelo, which I rarely use. I will probably change over to Sperzel Locking tuners just because I prefer them.

Man, I have had at least 10 Strats over the years and currently have this one and another American Series, as well as an original 52 Tele, an American Deluxe Tele, and a US Hwy. 1 Tele. All I can say is if it was made in America, it will probably serve you well for many, many years! Unless you do some old Pete Townsend or Jimi guitar bashing...LOL! My 52 Tele sounds as good today as it did in 1976 when I bought it.

I cannot give a rating here because I have never had to deal with Fender on warranty issues. Never had a problem with their equipment during the 5 year warranty period they offer. Plus, I'm a take a part and fix it myself player.

I have been playing for 34 years now. I know good equipment and have always bought American, other than a Mex Strat I bought for my son. Other than the above mentioned Fenders I own, I have an original 57 Goldtop Les Paul, a mid 80's SG, an ES-135 Limited Edition w/ Classic 57's, a Reverend Rocco, a Rickenbacker 620-12 string, and a 1976 Martin HD-28 acoustic flat top.
If my Lonestar were stolen, I'd be fighting mad and would fork out the money for a new Texas Special Fat Strat, which took over for the Lonestar. I can't think of anything this guitar needs to suit my playing style. As much as I love my Gibsons, I always come back to the Fenders for the pure-blooded blues sounds I crave. But....and a BIG BUT, I must admit I have never played a guitar that sounds as good overall as my 57 Goldtop Les Paul for Cream and early Led Zep sounds.

Made in 1999 (I think) in the USA
22 frets, maple neck, candy apple red finish
5 way selector with the stock s/s/h Texas special Seymour Duncan humbucker
came with case (a Fender and a damned good one)

I play rock and blues through a Mesa Boogie DC-5
Effects? with that amp...no
it's not noisy at all
Lots of bottom particularly through the humbucker and the Boogie
I haven't had it that long (six months)
I love the feel of it...very easy to play

I did switch to John Pearse 10-46 electric strings from the get-go, set it up in about 10 minutes (intonation and all) and despite temperature changes between 0 F. and 75 F., haven't had to change a damned thing.
It stays in tune beautifully
It's very well built without any flaws that I can see...a good-looking and good sounding instrument

All I can say about it is that it looks good, feels solid, nothing rattles or wiggles that shouldn't.
I've only played a couple of dances with it and didn't have any problems...

I haven't had to deal with Fender for tech stuff...I have had two Strats and they've both been great instruments

I've been playing over 20 years
If it were stolen or lost, I would be a very nasty person. If that didn't work, I'd certainly buy another one...great instrument
I don't hate anything about it. That neck, the durability and the sound make me a happy guy.
It's the best instrument I've ever owned (a couple of Les Pauls, a Tele, another Strat were the ones worth mentioning)
All in all, it's a lovely guitar...I wonder why they stopped making it...I'm sure it wasn't a technical flaw. Maybe it's because they have about a zillion other models...they can't make guitars much better so they diversified.

Just kidding. It's a Strat, what do you expect? A straight-forward, no-frills design that has everything you need and nothing you don't.

Not the ultimate machine for shredheads, but handles most styles pretty well. I don't know if my particular example is atypical or what, but I don't hear what some others have described. The Texas Specials, far from sounding "dark" or muddy, seem to me to actually be a bit brighter than standard Strat pickups, and the Duncan humbucker, even when played squeaky clean, is very smooth and rich, not "screechy" at all. Overall, I haven't heard Strat tones like this coming out of my amp since I foolishly sold my candy apple red '65 back in '88. Guess it all depends on what you plug it into. And your playing style, of course. <G>

It's an American Strat. 'Nuff said. Mine's a 1996 model in teal green metallic with rosewood fretboard, and it's flawless. I'm not wild about the mother-of-toilet seat pickguard (too "country" for my taste), but twenty bucks, ten minutes and a screwdriver will fix that.

Typical Fender. Built to last.

Chez watt?!?!? Customer support for a Fender? These things last forever. I've seen 40 year old Fenders that were still perfectly playable. And besides, I can handle that stuff myself, thank you very much. :-)

I've been on the planet for almost 51 years, and have been playing for nearly 40 of them. I've owned a good many guitars in that time, including Washburn, Jackson, Kramer, etc. along with the obligatory Gibsons, but I always seem to come back to Fender. This one was really in rather sorry shape when I got it. My friend had given it to his son, who proceded to leave it sitting out of the case in a damp basement for a couple of years. It was filthy, the strings were totally rusted, and the neck was rather badly bowed. I put new strings on it, managed to get the neck straightened out and, much to my surprise, when I cleaned all the grunge and gunk off of it, it turned out to be in nearly new condition. All in all, not bad for free. <G>

I bought this in 2000, built in Corona California. It's got a beautiful Candy Apple Red finish and a white perloid pick gaurd. Nothing different about the configurations. I love the Duncans. I would never buy a strat without humbuckers. The Duncans get rid of that strat "buzz".

You can get a fat sound from the humbuckers, or draw in some nice blues tones with the old single coils. You get a very nice crunch out of the humbuckers, so it adds a nice edge to your sound. Only problem is there are a lot of strange spots on the guitar. For example, on the 16 frett of my a string i get a very strange vibrato like sound. Other than that you can get all the strat sounds with the extra humbucker crunch.

The screws were a little too tight when I bought it. I've noticed fenders tend to have that from the factory. Everything else was sturdy and has held up nicely. Have had no trouble with the pickup placement. Although there is a connection problem when putting the pickup selector to the middle. I get no sound out of the guitar, unless i fiddle with it a little. That is very annoying. The intonation had to be adjusted but other than that it's same old fender.

The guitar has held up very well over the years. The frets need polisihing but that's about it. The finish still sparkles after a fresh polish. Nothing has come loose, or rattles. Perfectly fit for live play.

I have dealt with fender, though not for my strat, but my amp. The service i got was an 11. They were very friendly and got my problem fixed fast. It was a warranty problem and the service shop was trying to screw me. Fender faxed them a copy of the warranty and dealt with them. Only dealt with them once, but it was about as good as it gets.

I've been playing about 4 years, and this was my first guitar. It has been everything i needed thus far. I don't think I'd ever buy another new fender. I'm sure i'll have this guitar my whole life. For a fender made past the 70's I think it's much above average. I chose this fender for the sole reason of it's humbuckers. Although, the beautiful finish added to the purchase.

Read the other reviews for the features. Mine is a '96, first year made, black with a maple neck. Neck is super fast, got it used from Elderly Music in Lansing Michigan, nice folks to do business with. Neck has nice toner on it, vintagey looking, frets nicely dressed, came w/OHSC (black tolex, COOL) and a nice black leather strap (bonus on a used guitar). Setup was OK for someone else (9s, action too low, etc.) All that was fixed (by me) easily. If you don't know how to set up your own electric guitar LEARN! There are numerous books (Dan Erlewine has a good one), articles and web info on the subject. Now if you have a fine acoustic that needs a neck reset, by all means take it to a good repairman. If your electric needs a refret, ditto. But to do a setup? It's not rocket science, if you take your guitar to a repairman to have it setup you are merely proclaiming your total patheticness to an uncaring world. Please.

For me, great. Mine is all stock, I love the texas specials and the pearly gates. I play it straight into a '93 Fender Pro 185. Sounds super, I play through the clean channel at a goodly volume, mostly rhythm for a praise and worship band. I like Eric Johnson's (as well as Jimi's and Stevie's) clean strat rhythm tones and this setup gives me that sound. I'm not a tube snob. I'm over that. I've owned a '60 Fender Showman, a '56 Fender Deluxe and 1 '71 Marshall 100 watt. I bought them all a long time ago when such things were affordable and have since sold them for food and drugs and family responsibilities. My Pro 185 is solid and reliable and never needs tubes and sounds great. I did have to raise the pickups on the strat for my sound. There are factory specs on strat pickup height all over the web but the bottom line is what sounds good to you. It takes a phillips screwdriver, your guitar and your amp and your ears, NOT a guitar repairman. Please.

Well I didn't expect the guitar to be set up perfectly for me so I wasn't disapointed. All materials and hardware are first class and everything was properly adjustable. Nut was cut a bit deep for me so rather than going for a new nut I filled in the low cuts a bit with a mixture of bone dust and super glue. That's a trick I learned from Dan Erlewine's book which I picked up at the local library. A somewhat tricky operation but well within the capabilities of the avg non retard. Take your time and think. Please.

Of course it'll withstand live playing, what kind of retard question is that? It's a USA Fender strat. It's my only electric, I'm a working stiff. Please.

No experience.

I'm 52, I've owned a boatload of stuff, who cares? This is a great guitar for me, might be for you, dunno. Please.

This is a 97 bought used for $700 with HSC. You know the hardware, so I'll skip all that. This one has the three tone suburst and a tortise shell pickguard. You know the features, already: 2 single coil texas specials and 1 pearly gates humbucker and standard strat controls.

I mostly play Gibson Les Pauls and historically have played for 10-15 years the type of music that is now being called "pop punk." Greenday, Pennywise, Offspring type bands were actually around before blink 182 (who I do like, though) and other modern day "pop punk" bands that get so much crap now. I have owned a wide variety of guitars and now own everything from Gibson Les pauls to Jackson dinkys to martin acoustics. I play through a marshall and through a class A tube amp. I like to think I have a lot of tone experience. Anyway, this guitar offers a very wide variety of tones that you can dial in during live situations with ease just by switching pickups and rolling up and down the volume pot--I have the humbucker cranked up really high and use it for good crunchy rocknroll rhythm playing. The neck humbucker I have cranked up medium high and it is good for singing lead & SRV type tones (I believe this is the pickup that SRV used and nails that tone for blues). The middle pickup I have cranked down low and roll off the volume and play clean tones with it. I use the in between bridge and middle for a hum-cancelling sound that is a little thicker for clean tones with a little more depth. In spite of the humbucker, this guitar does not sound anything like a Les Paul, which I guess is a good thing because it is a strat and should sound like a strat--which it does. The only negative tonally I would add is that this guitar does not do pure, clean, shimmery fender-type tones with the texas single coils quite as well as regular strat pickups--they have too much bite and treble. If you lower them down and roll the treble down quite a bit on the guitar and the amp, you still get a really good clean tone, but really not as good as a regular strat--again, not what this guitar was intended for, but not perfect strat versatility, either.

I bought it used and the setup was horrid--but I bought it from someone who clearly didn't know how to play and who knows what he tried to do to it. After spending $50 for a full setup this thing plays really well. The finish is really sharp on the body, although the finish on the neck is starting to chip away slowly around the frets--this kind of just happens over time on these and adds to the vintage look, IMO

Fine to gig with--I try to bring a backup anyway. hardware is solid, high quality guitar all around. See my comment above though re neck finish.

never tried

If I were looking for a hard rockin, blues playing strat, this is the one.

It's made in 1997 USA, stood 1 or 2 years in the guitar shop and then in 1998 I bought it, Its finish is sunburst with the special pickguard, 2 texas special SCs and 1 perly gates HB. Normal Tuners, STandard Bridge, comes with black case ...

PERFEKT! it's THE guitar for me. I play mostly rock, blues, soul, jazz funk, and you can fit all. The texas special SCs are good for funk, jazz, soul etc. and the perly gates HB on the bridge position kicks ass for rock, hard rock, etc. ...
I use it with a Fender Hot rod deluxe and a marshall drive master.
The sound of the HB ist not as dark as that of my les paul (gibson), but a bit more agressiv and with more power ...

unfortunately, the action wasn't set up very well and now, after 5 years, i didn't have it set-up well because of my own lazyness, but the next months i will do that.

But on the otherside, it was flawless, very well finished, and everything is fine!

it WILL and DOES withstand live playing ... i play every gig since 1998 with it and it went through hell but still does its job perfectly.

I normally play with a backup guitar because strings can always brake. But the guitar itself would never give up!

never dealt with them

I own 4 Electric guitars, but I like this one best. The only bad thing is the action which wasn't perfect, but except from that, all the other things are excellent!

I love the beautiful Neck, the color of the wood, that there are no sharp edges because everything was rounded, the sweet tase of the wood.

I's a real working machine!!!

I recently acquired a used a "Lonestar" Strat. I also own a 2001 American Series Strat, which I will use as a point of comparison. The sound of the Texas special pickups seem like they have a "Mid" boost to them. I'm not sure if they have that much more output of regular Strat Std. pickups, but these have a certain edge and bite to them that focuses in the mid area. The tone of the Lone star is much more round, fuller sounder with a bit more depth to it than a regualr Strat. However, the down side to that is it lacks the clarity, snap, a bit of the sparkle of an American series strat. These diffs, can be heard clearly thru clean and overdriven channels.

Overall a solid guitar. If you want to move away from the classic fender strat sound and go with something a bit more beefier and fuller sounding (but at the cost of clarity and sparkle), check out the Lonestar. I find the SD PG Bridge pickup is a nice touch as it sounds much more deeper than the bridge pup of a std. Strat - which can sound thin, brittle, and ice picky at times (unless you swap it with a Fralin hot vintage or a SD stacked bucker:).

My Lonestar has a maple neck, alder body, Amd. Strat style bridge, medium-jumbo frets, Fender/Schaller Tuners, 2 Texas Special pickups (as found on the SRV signature) and a custom SD Pearly Gates on the bridge/lead- by the way this Pearly Gates is not the same as the one you can buy directly from Seymour Duncan, the Lonestar has custom wound Pearly Gates made especially for Fender which differs from the retail version.

I play mostly blues/jazz/and some rock. My main amp is an all tube 30 watt. I really like my Lonestar b/c it has a unique tone, the mid and neck pickups can be very punchy and aggressive ala - SRV when you have the tone knob dialed to 10 (pickup-selector position 4 and 5). When you roll off the tone knob, it soothes it down for a more subtle sound. The mid/neck texas special pickups handle overdriven tube distortion very nicely and articulate well. On clean channel, they are very bell-like and chime nicely with a round, full sound. When you roll of the tone you get a more balanced, calmer sound. I find these pickups to be very versatile.

The SD Pearly Gates has nice output and distorts extremely well. What I like best about it is that it sounds nothing like a single coil, so it adds an extra dimension to the Strat. With the tone up you get a sharp Texas-style biting sound and when you roll the tone down to around 3-4 it gets nice and warm and smooth (selector position 1).

Pickup position 2 (1 bridge coil + mid) gives a great twangy sound for country-picking techniques and position 3 (mid pickup only) gives a good rhythm sound that sounds much more passive than any other position.

Overall it is an extremely versatile guitar sonically and its an excellent match for someone who has good chops and a good ear. I find it responds well to volume/tone adjustments which is awesome b/c it gives you so much more control over your range of sounds.

I have read earlier reviews saying it sounds "too trebly/sharp" or "lacks the classic strat snap". Well, if you have a good tube amp, and you know how to use volume/tone/EQ knobs to shape sound & tone, and you have decent chops...you can ignore those comments:)

A little buzzing on the frets but nothing that I couldn't fix...overall very good quality.

Solid built guitar, I've had no problems yet.

N/A

The Lonestar is a great axe that's really versatile and has a strong voice to it. It encompasses the classic Strat sound and then some! I wouldn't advise beginners to get this guitar b/c it takes a good amp/chops/ear to make it shine. But thats the great thing about it b/c it separates the men from the boys right?

American Std. body w/Maple Fretboard. 2 "Texas Special" Pickups and 1 SD "Pearly Gates"...The rest of the features have been covered extensively (see below).

First of all the 2 Texas Specials are extremely punchy and piercing and they sound great thru my 30W all tube-combo boosted with a TS9 tube screamer and .10 GHS Nickel Rockers. This guitar is suited for blues and jazz players...rock players should give it a cautious test drive and metalheads should stay away. The Pearly Gates are a nice addition as it adds another dimension to the guitar. The key to this guitar is knowing how to control the TONE knobs. If you want a smooth sound you can roll off the treble and lower the volume a bit or if you want piercing sounds (ala SRV) crank the tone and vol. You definitely want to play this guitar thru a nice TUBE AMP. Very bright clean tones and an overall UNIQUE sounding guitar. BUT the pickups tend to be EXTREMELY noisy - so if you are very anal about that then oh well - that's the price that must be paid for tone :P

Fender Quality as usual. MADE IN AMERICA

I've had this guitar for about 6 years and I havent even needed to adjust the truss rod yet...by the way I've changed string guages about 20 times so far:)

In MY opinion I've had a great experience with this guitar and it sounds terrific to me - very lively and wild. Great clean tones. IF you have BAD CHOPS then stay away from this guitar b/c it will leave you with no place to hide!

IMPORTANT: Take all opinions with a grain of salt b/c in my 10 years of dealing with musicians/guitar techs/music store people I've realized that they are not the most intelligent ppl on earth - hey I consider myself half-retarded:) GO to the music store and TRY IT OUT! PLAY IT YOURSELF! TONE IS VERY SUBJECTIVE! See if YOU like it and don't rely on others to hear for you.

By the way for those of you who make comparisons btw the Strat and Les Paul...you should all burn in guitar hell. A STRAT will always be a STRAT and a LES PAUL will always be a LES PAUL! That's a FACT. Get both slappy slappy ding-dong.

Just want to clarify that the Lone Star or currently known as Fat Strat Texas Special is a versatile guitar that can nail a Les Paul and a Strat at the same time. This Fat Strat can sound more like a Les Paul than current production Les Pauls.

The Pearly Gates Plus is NOT a bright pickup like many reviewers claim in this page. The flathead screwdriver was invented long time ago and it is used to adjust polepieces to tailor the sound of your guitar.

The problem with guitar players is that either they are scared or lazy to play around with pickup heights and action of guitars let alone experimenting with amp tone controls. Come on guys, you bought it and it is yours. Break the guitar if you want to, but please do some adjustments. It is like adding salt to fine entree to suit your taste.

One thing for sure - if you use the Pearly Gates with solid state amps then it is nail-across-the-chalkboard time. They were designed to be appreciated thru a tube amp and thru a tube amp the Fat Strat Pearly Gates Plus sound warm, smooth, buttery, like a moist banana chiffon cake.

Mine is a 1999 Lone Star. Maple neck, 24 fret, absolutely gorgeous darling Shoreline Gold. Think the body is ash or alder. Medium-weight, perfect. The guitar of course came with the SD Pearly Gates 'bucker in the bridge, and the Texas Special single coils elsewhere. Came with absolutely drop-dead cool flaming orange lined hard Fender case. Nice touch.

I made significant mods to this guitar to customize it for my needs. I play in a very contemporary church worship service, everything from hard rock to country, so needed a versatile guitar. 1) Wasn't fond of the full-size 'bucker in the bridge position, and wasn't overly fond of the sound of the Pearly Gates. Seemed very bright and trebly...almost like a louder single coil. Replaced with Seymour Duncan Li'l 59 single-coil sized 'bucker (changed pickguard, obviously). 2) Replaced tremolo unit with LR Baggs X-Bridge piezo-acoustic unit. In this configuration, the jack becomes a stereo jack (can go to two separate destinations, i.e. pickups to amp, Baggs bridge to soundboard). 3) Replaced stock tuners with Sperzel locking tuners.

Like I said, I just wasn't fond of the Pearly Gates...very bright and piercing to my ears. For what I play, the Li'l 59 is perfect to be able to go to for hard rock stuff. In position 2, it splits that coil and joins with the middle Texas Special for that love-it-or-hate it (I love it) quack sound. This is really like having two guitars. People who review this guitar and say that the Pearly Gates allows you to "sound like a Les Paul" are smoking something...I have a Les Paul Goldtop, and the Strat will never, can never sound like that...and that's okay. It "approximates" that idea, but really doesn't come close. Your audience doesn't know that anyway, so who cares? We do, right?

One note: if you're thinking about doing this operation, and thinking that the position 2 will still be dead quiet, it may not because the replacement bridge 'bucker has to be built a certain way for that to happen...I'm not a techno-geek, but I called S.D. and asked (when I was shocked to find after the replacement, I had noise in that position) and they said I'd have to send the Lil 59 to them to reverse the polarity or something like that. I live with the noise.

I hear a lot of controversy about these Texas Specials...I think descriptions of "rude" and "twangy" are accurate...they have their own sound, and I've grown to like it. Very bright and very sparkly, they make you work for the love. Not to sound like every other guitar geek, but you really can cop some pretty close SRV tones...if only we could play like him. But if you like that sound, the Texas Specials in this guitar will do that. I love position 4 out of phase also. I have come close to replacing these pickups, and held back every time...I think I would miss them.

I do a lot of volume-pot manipulating to change the amount of overdrive, and this works very well on this guitar. I use a POD, usually on the Brit Hi Gain setting, with the drive set at about noon. With the Strat volume on 9 or 10, I can get a very big hi gain sound, good for hard rock stuff. Backing off to 6 or 7 cleans it up quite nicely, for punchy, bubbly clean tones.

Quick note on X-bridge: I don't use this all the time, only when I find myself without time to switch between electric and acoustic guitar. It sounds very convincing through a Tech21 Sansamp Acoustic DI, but when you start strumming hard, the fret buzz kills the "natural" acoustic tone. It's pretty cool. The design of the X-Bridge is nice, too. The tremolo arm slides in (don't know why all Strats don't have this...come on, Fender! Feel free to modernize some things on the old design!) and the tension is adjustable so it can swing free or stay right where you want it. I have mine set up for slight float, and use this quite often...it's become part of my style on mellow songs, quite lovely. Stays in tune fine, but I don't dive-bomb. The locking tuners helped this, too.

The guitar came with 9's, I used 10's for quite a while, tried 11's, and remembered how lovely the tremolo was with 9's, very easy and floaty, so I'm back with those. I have to be honest here: I hear a lot of guys talk about how much their "tone" improved with 10's and 11's...I don't hear a bit of difference. I think this is an issue you have to settle with yourself. String gauge for me is mostly about "feel", not tone. On my Les Paul, I like to fight the strings and bang them a little harder. On the Strat, I tend to play with a lighter touch, and the lighter strings just seem to make it easier to play.

Love the feel of the neck. The guitar is made very well, I think. Feels very solid. Finish is thick, doesn't chip easily. I like the classic Fender logo on the headstock, and the satiny finish on the neck. My guitar does not have the "swimming pool" rout under the pickguard like I've seen some guys mention. Mine has the classic three-pickup rout. Hardware and pots, switches have held up fine under weekly use.

See above.

Never used.

I love this guitar. I suffer from serious gas...have owned over 30 guitars in 15 years...I have been trading less and less the last couple years. I have owned a Strat Plus with Lace Sensors, a Mexi-Strat with Rio Grande pickups, and a Japanese Strat. This is my 4th and last one, and my absolute favorite, in sound and feel, of all of these. I have come close to trading/selling it twice (in fact had it on Ebay a couple months ago for exactly one day, and pulled it off after looking at the pictures I took and posted with the auction!!!). I have decided I will always want a Strat. My only other electrics are a Danelectro DC reissue (fantastic value, awesome unique tone) and a Gibson Les Paul Standard Goldtop. I'm down to the basics, and if I had to lose either the Gibson or this Fender, the Gibson would probably go, due to the Fender's versatility.

I think basically everybody else cover it in this area. Mine is a 97 50th anniversery model. I bought it off of ebay. One thing I noticed is that it seems that you can't just get the middle pickup by itself. Instead it sound like an inbetween sound of a traditional strat which is good because i don't usually use the middle pickup by itself anyhow. Other than that, this is the most versatile guitar on the market.

Well i guess my musical style is undefinable. I love to play lead and pretty much any genre of music with the exception of most country. I didn't like the sound of the texas specials so i changed them out for fender fat 50's and i can honestly say that is the best sounding strat i have ever played. I am not an immitator of sound but i do appreciate and recognize and i must say i really dig the sound of the humbucker on overdrive or anything heavier. It has a really smooth sound and in combo with the fat 50's this guitar rivals my prs custom 22 as my favorite guitar. Really an awesome guitar, but i just didn't dig the texas specials even though they weren't bad they just were too mid rangy and muddy for my tastes. Before the pickup change i would give it an 8 but after a definite 10.

I picked this particular guitar because of its sweet looking tabacco sunburst finish. The action was pretty crappy when i got it, and the tremelo is still a little loose for my taste but overall it keeps its tune, has a wonderful neck and plays fast and smooth.

Well i bought this thing used and i don't have any troubles with it. It was made in the U.S.A. so i don't expect any major problems in this area.

I do wish they would have individually drilled for the pickups to allow the guitar to resonate a little better. But to tell you the truth i probably wouldn't be able to hear the difference anyhow. This is a great guitar and able cover any set out there along side the right amp and/or effects. And at the price i got it, i don't think it could be beat. Maybe by a G&L but those are hard to find with one humbucker and two singles.

'97 USA Lone Star Strat.
Bought used from a "Swap/Consignment Shop" in San Jose, Ca., for $500+ tx, w Fender deluxe form fit and strap.
Two Texas Special single coils (humbucking when combined, upper tone pot affects both)
SD Pearly Gates Plus (alnico V polepieces vs II on regular Pearly Gates) Fender/Seymour Duncan collaboration (I assume F spacing) humbucker in bridge pos, with it's own tone pot (lower pot).

Rosewood board; 22 medium frets.
Schaller/Fender sealed machines, Am std trem.
Shoreline Gold paint (metallic biege) on alder body.

Typical Fender Strat with a bit more sack.

Versatile general Fender sounds. Nice that the bridge pu is fat and can roll off highs with its own pot.
Not "fragile" Strat sounds, a bit beefier.
Thin bridge Strat sound has been taken care of by humbucker and tone pot.
Texas Specials a bit hotter than "normal" or "vintage" Strat single coils, but still chime some. Blend good with Bridge humbucker (middle only).
When blended with bridge pu, the lower tone pot doesn't affect it that I can hear, but the middle pot does the job then.

Good for Rock and Blues, Country, even Jazz.
I endosre Tech 21 amps. I also have a Frontline Reverb for home. practice.

Typical Fender US fit and finish (which is to say good, in my book)
I blocked the trem, which helped the sustain some, though it was OK to begin with. It doesn't sustain like a Les Paul, and it's got more twang than a LP, but it has enough for me.
The rolled edge seems OK. Maple examples seem more rolled to me (this one is rosewood). No big. It's fine as is.

Typical Fender maple bolt-neck rugged. No worries.
Electrical controls seem good and work/sound smooth.
StrapLoks (Schaller) included.
Form Fit Fender Deluxe case is plenty protective for ground travel, but I wouldn't fly commercial airliners with it underneath (baggage handlers are mal-contents, wouldn't you be, at their pay?).
It's a dependable guitar for jobs. I personally usually keep a spare handy, but not always.

N/A

Bought used.

I do my own work, setups, repairs, whatever.

New Fenders have limited lifetime warranties. I don't sweat it with bolt-neck solidbodies with decent OEM parts like this guitar.

I'd replace it in kind, maybe w maple neck (I prefer), but used ones you get what you get.
The current Fender model is the Hot rodded American Fat series, I think. 'Bout the same but maybe pearl dots, H/S/H routing (don't know what this one has for routing, and don't care: swimming pool rout would be OK with me, I don't think it matters).
I've played guitar for 40 years, all style.

This '97 U.S. features an alder body with ash veneers on the top and back, Fender/Schaller tuning machines, American Standard Hardware, a faux-tortoise shell pick guard, a beautiful 3-color sunburst, and a maple neck with a rose wood finger board. Electronics included are two Texas-Special single coils, a Pearly Gates humbucker (Seymour Duncan), and a 5-way pickup selector. This is basicaly a hot rodded version of the American Standard Strat.

Let me say that if you are looking for a traditional Strat sound, this guitar is not the way to go. The Texas Specials are very mid-rangey and don't have the "spank" that a Strat is known for. Don't get me wrong, I do like the way the guitar sounds but just keep in mind that it is "different" than your typical Strat tone. You will either love it or hate it. The Texas Specials and the humbucker makes this guitar better suited for light to mederate overdrive although the humbucker does come in handy for heavier rock styles. The clean tone is not as nice IMO as an American Standard, but it is decent. Overall I would say that this is a very versatile guitar

The guitar feels great. I love the 9.5" radius of the American Standard neck. I have adjusted the guitar to accomodate my playing style. I use GHS Boomers guaged 11-50, tuned down a half step. The guitar is flawless, construction and workmanship are excellent. The controls and hardware feel nice and smooth, no complaints here.

I don't abuse my guitars, but this Strat seems like it's built well enough to withstand some punishment. I don't forsee any reliability issues with the Lone Star and it can definately stand up to lots and lots of playing. I would gig without a backup if not for the fact that I break E and B strings alot (looks like Graphtech saddles are in my futre). I have an oler American Standard Strat that is still in great shape and I expect to have a similar experience with the Lone Star as time goes by.

Never had to deal with them.

I have been playing for 20 years, but have not owned alot of guitars during that time. This is the second Fender Strat that I have owned and I don't regret spending my hard earned money on it. If it were lost or stolen I would replace it in a heart beat. I think that the Texas Specials are good pickups as long as you know that it's not going to sound like a pristine vintage Strat. I chose the Lone Star becaus I wanted to have another Strat, but with a different personality than the American Standard. This guitar delivers the goods and adds a little variety to my small arsenal.

I mean its the usual fender setup. The pickups are amazing even though I onlyt really use the humbucker. But besides that their is nothing out of the ordinary

The perfect guitar! It truely has the perfect soun ive played 100s of guitars and nothing can even compare to this. The palm muting is incredible. I mean i use really big strings, 12 gauge, so that does help the tone i think alot but the sound is beyond belief.

When i first played it at teh store it the action was ok i mean the brige was raised though. Then i got it fixed and now its incredible and i havent had to adjust it once. The only reason its not a 10 cuz i have played a few guitars wit slightly better action.

It has great durability that guitar has been dropped, thrown, dragged, strached, punched basically everything except me smashing it like the who or nirvana if u get me. But it still stays in tune the whole time and still looks great. Actually the pick guard turned a yelowish color but i dont really care about that.

n/a

AMAZING!

go to fender.com , hot rotted american serie .
Mine is three color sunburst.

I give only six point , because she's less effective than my ESP H301 or Ibanez JS-1.After all , it's normal , ESP and Ibanez are from the 90s , the stratocaster from the 60s.

I'm using it with a Peavey Bandit 112 , and a Boss GT2 with some others boss distortion (DS2 , OD2 ,...).

And all I can say is FUCK !
That sounds really reallly good!
Texas specials deliver you a true vintage sound(think of stevie ray vaughan , and Hendrix).And the SD is is is...my english is not rich enought but he is so great...A push/pull ar push/push would be welcomed.

The strings were a little to high for me ,
and the guitar , it don't know how you say that , the strings maked a kind a vibration before i fixed it.

it's a strat , it's fender , a you know what it means.

I dealt with a Fender autorized shop.
Excellent at all. LIFE WARRANTY !!!(I use it often )

I started playing in 1997.
This guitar is less modern than my JS1 for example.It means that if I wanna play some Satriani or metal things(which you need to go to the higher frets) it's harder to do it with the strat.
But if you want the true vintage sound , that when your are playing you feel it into you soul , this is your guitar!
If she was stolen , I would buy another immediatly , this guitar has THE sound , try it , you will understand

Two texas special single coils, one seymour duncan pearly gates plus humbucker at the bridge, and the rest of the usual strat stuff. (Bolt on neck, 5-way switch, etc.) Mine had a maple fretboard. Much better sound (in my opinion) than the average strat, due to these nice pickups.

Great for that Dire Straits "Sultans of Swing" type of sound. Works great for blues soloing and light riffing. Due to the single coils, it doesn't have a lot of chunk to it. So if you're looking to your guitar to produce most of your band's sound, go find yourself something else. But it does have a great sound to it - if it suits you. Not a lot of sustain, due to light wood and bolt-on neck, but strats aren't really known for that anyway. Nice smooth neck, easily adjustable action and intonation.

I don't remember how it was setup when I got it, but I just sold it and I had it pretty good. Someone who really knows what they're doing can really set it up nice. The guitar parts all fit very nice, and the finish was great. My only cosmetic complaint is that after a few years I noticed that my frets had some kind of hard clear stuff on them. I guess that's the clear coat they spray on the neck? Anyway, from all the use and string bends it was starting to come off - so I just scraped it off the frets and gave it a polish. Didn't ever affect the sound, but taking it off took a few chips off of the fretboard finish too. Oh well.

I play a few small gigs here and there, and I never had a backup. Construction and electronics are made to work well - Fender knows how to make their stuff stand up. I don't even baby my guitars as well as I should, and this has never let me down. Made great.

N/A

Like I said, I just sold this guitar. Not because it wasn't great, but I simply wanted something with a little more chunk and sustain, like a Les Paul or something. But I did have the guitar for a few years. My preference just changed a little. If you already like Strats, and are comfortable with the scale and all, I would definately recommend this one. I haven't played too many others, but this one did have a nice unique sound, and having the humbucker is a great option too.

I think the 2 Tex-Special, 1 Humbucker is a great feature which puts this Strat over the usual 3-single coil setup. For the blues and rock tunes I play, I couldnt ask for anything more.

Perfect blues/rock sound. I use a VOX Cambridge at home, and a Hot Rod Deluxe for playing with friends. I have never played a "gig", so I am not the authority on stage sound, but I think it sounds great. The Texas Specials are a little hotter than classic strat single coils, but I think the neck-pickup is perfect for playing Texas-blues.
Semour Duncan bridge humbucker is as close as you can get to Les Paul sound from a strat.

Played great right from the start, but I use heavy strings, so I have to raise my action a bit. For my technique, I prefer a little high action anyway. The fit and finish of American Fenders is second to none.

Well, I never have, and never will abuse a guitar, so Im sure it will last me forever. I have know individuals that beat the crap out of their strats, and they just keep on going. Hell, look at what SRV and Jimmy did to thiers !

Never had to use Fender Customer Support.

The only complaint I have ever heard about strats, is their lack of a humbucker, and maybe a few complaints about the radius of the neck (which any luthier can modify). The Lonestar strat gives you the humbucker slot, and puts a damn good pickup in there. Plus the guitar is a relative bargain when you look at other comparable ones.

This is a year 2000 USA made lonestar strat. Has 22 frets. Usual tone, tone, and volume control from fender. It is a H/S/S set up which is passive. Neck and middle pick ups are fenders texas specials and the neck 'bucker is a seymour duncan pearly gates plus. The body is alder with a beautiful rosewood neck (was after a maple neck). finished in black with a strange looking tortoiseshell pickgaurd which works well.It is the standard strat shape, that being double ctaway with ease to the upper frets.It has a fender tremolo bridge.Tuners not sure about but they are chrome and so far its has not gone out of tune.Included was a moulded fender black case,strap,tools and fender cable and 5 sets of strings. Not the most loaded guitar for features but none the less not stripped either.

This guitar sound splendid. I play rock to metal. Its suits me well.
I run it straight into a mesa boogie nomad 55 2x12. With bucker on via the distortion sounds great. Not muddy at all. Lots of growl but not over the top. I have to admit that clarity is always maintianed. The SD pearly gates is a great pickup. Plenty of output, but not noisy.
The texas specials for what they are sound OK. Great for a claen sound for softer toons. But I did not buy it for that.
Overall impressed.

I bought it off the rack and the set up was A1. The action was not too low and without any buzzing (this does not bother me anyway).
When I purchased it the guitar tech in the shop restrung it with 9's
and did a full pro set up. with regards to the finish one small flaw where a minute paint bubble has appeared. Soon saw to that.The neck is like butter. I had to get use to how fast it was.
Apart from that well built and solid.

I do not play live. Just do session work in studios(usuall my own).
It seems that it will last. Very solid esp. with the alder wood for the body.Has straplocks already fitted (nice touch).
As for using it without a back: Assumption is the mother of F**kups.
ALways take a backup.I have only given it a 5 as it would be unfair to say it was indestructable.Seems like it would take a bollocking though.

Have never had to deal with the company.
From what my oppo's say good support.
So until I call upon them no comment.

I have been playing for 14 years. I also own Ibanez Jem 7VWH,Jem 7DBK,
Jem 77FP, Jem 10, Jem 90, Jem 77BFP, Jem 7BSB, Jem 777DY, Jem 77SK, JS1000BTB, ESP KH-2 + KH-2 OUIJA, PRS 24 Custom, Ibanez RG570EX, Jackson SL2-H, ESP M-100, Jackson DK3 custom, Charvel model 6.
I have always avoided fender because of the kind of music I play but after picking this up and strumming in the shop I was impressed.
Its is a an excellent axe for hard rock (look at R Sambora, Dave Murray, Janick Gers, Bobby Gustafson,). Even good for metal as well.
If it was stolen I would hunt down the MF disembowel him and F**K his girl was he was slowly dying in front of him. Oh and screw his dog as well if I had time.
I like the whole axe. As a whole piece it works well and I take back all those bad things I ever said about fender.
I dont know what the rest of the range is like but I can vouch for this model.
I cant compare as I think all guitars have their own uses, good and bad.
But for under #800 this is a guitar worth consodering(now hot rodded sereis I beleve).
thumbs up fender.

1998 LONESTAR STRAT. 22 FRETS. BEAUTIFUL SUNBUST. ASH BODY, WITH ROSEWOOD FRETBOARD. PEARLY GATES PICKUP IN THE SADDLE, WITH TEXAS SPECIALS IN THE MIDDLE AND BRIDGE POSITION.

I PLAY EVERYTHING FROM CLASSIC ROCK TO COUNTRY. I RUN IT THRU A "65" FENDER BASSMAN THAT IS HOTRODDED TO SIMULATE A BOOGIE. THE PEALY GATES ARE GREAT A LITTLE DISSAPOINTED WITH THE TEXAS SPECIALS BUT THEY PERFORM FLAWLESSLY, A DIFFERENT TONE FROM CLASSIC STRAT PU'S

SET UP WAS PERFECT FROM THE STORE I BOUGHT IT FROM. I HAVEN'T TOUCHED THE ACTION. PERFECT INTONATION. LOVE THE TREMELO. HARDLEY EVER GOES OUT OF TUNE,EVEN WITH A LOT OF WHAMMY BAR ACTION.

HAVE USED IT EXCLUSIVELY FOR 2 YEARS NEVER A PROBLEM. GOT DRUNK A GIG WAS PLAYING ON TOP OF THE TABLES LEAPT FROM THE TABLES, FELL FLAT ON MY ASS, TOOK A CHIP OUT OF THE FINISH SURFED ON IT FOR A COUPLE OF FEET PICKED IT UP AND WAS IN TUNE. ALWAYS TAKE A BACKUP NEVER HAD TO USE IT. LOVE THIS GUITAR.

NEVER

BEEN PLAYING FOR 30 YEARS, I HAVE A KRAMER FOCUS(POS), IBANEZ ARTIST (BEAUTIFUL GUITAR) TWO LES PAUL GOLD TOPS 59 AND 65(NEVER LEAVE THE STUDIO) LOVE THE STRAT VERY VERSATILE GUITAR

I Got a Fender "Lone Star" Stratocaster, I bought it second-hand in january of 2001. Made in 1996 in Califonia its got a little "50 years of Fender 56-96" sticker on the back of the headstock, dont know how much relivence that is... its got 22 frets(one more than usual)and the usual 1 Vol,2 Tone,5-way pick-up selector. This guitar is your bog standard US Strat but its got lots of nice special humbuckers; two Texas special single coils(bridge and mid) and a Seymour Duncan Pearly gates humbucker at the bridge. I didnt get no hardcase with it...poo!

This guitars main feature is its versitility, you can get your strat tones with the individual single coils or like a tele with both the single coils on(there out of phase) or a big rocking metal demon with the humbucker at the back, if it wasnt for the fact that there is something a bit wrong with it(not the pick-ups), im sure it would sound great and id give it a higher mark

As soon as i walked into the shop i thought i had to have it. Second hand so it was cheap but without a scratch on it and my friend owns a Big-apple strat which i thought was great. The colour was perfect, all my guitars are sunburst and this was no exception.For some strange reason, the guy who had it before me had set the bridge as high as it would go( i mean really high!)and some stupidly heavy gauge strings on. I thought i could easily sort the action out but i just can't get it right. The guitar has NO sustain which sucks and i break strings on it almost every time i play which is not down to poor technique or string winding skills. Im hoping if i get it set up properly and the bridge filed down it might stop being so annoying

This guitar feels pretty flimsy. It almost feels like i could break the neck with my bare hands. It has however survived a PA stack falling on top of it with only a few minor scratches.

Dont Know....

The day i bought it i thought this would be the guitar i would keep and play for the rest of my life. Largly because it was the first expensive(if bought new) proper guitar i had bought ( but not my first Fender, i got 3) and because my friends Big apple strat was so good, but there is a huge difference between the two even though there isnt a huge difference in price or model. I want rid of it. Anyone want to trade for a Travis Bean?...thought not.

It's an American 99-00 model, not sure but I got it brand new from the store. It's got an alder body and maple neck. It came with 2 of Fender's Texas Special single coils at neck and bridge, and a Seymore Duncan Pearly Gates humbucker at the bridge. Volume knob, two tones, 5 way selector switch. Body is black, with a tortoise shell pickguard. I don't think they make that combination, and it was actually a screwup, supposed to come with a white one. It was a gift, so I didn't really get to pick it out, and it was ordered via online from Georgia. Came with lots of Fender docs about authenticity and all that, plus a nice case.

I play blues and rock, and I run it through various Boss pedals into a Marshall MG80RCD. I noticed after I got a Monster cable, I could have my amp turned up, have a couple pedals running, switch it to the humbucker, and set my guitar in the stand right next my amp and not hear a thing. When I do make noise with it though, it's sweet. I use it for the bucker mostly, and it's awesome. It's loud, hot, and sounds sweet when running it through overdrive or distortion. I can also run it clean and get a really nice strum. When I do use the single coils, it's mostly for softer stuff or different sounding blues work, and they're nice too.

Oh man, the first time I pulled it out of the case, it was absolutely cherry. Smooth playing, gleaming finish, happy guy. The only problem I had with it, was that a week or two later, my neck pickup went out. I had it serviced, and it turns out it was just a loose connection, but for the price and quality, I'd have expected a little better/

I've only gotten a chance to play it live a couple times, but it played great and I got some compliments. The hardware and finish all look good. Besides, it's a Strat, I could get a friend and play catch with it for a while and it'd still be in tune. I've been forced to use it without a backup, but it's never something I'd recommend.

I'm not sure off the top of my head how long the warranty is, and I'm too lazy to go get it, but I know it's really good, and as long as you get it serviced at one of their "Authorized Fender Dealers" they'll do anything free. The only problem with it was with the pickup, and I had it taken in, I went out of town, and I had it picked up and waiting for me when I got home. No problems at all.

I've been playing for 6 or 7 years, and this is the best guitar I've owned. The only beef I've got is that I wouldn't have wanted it black, but hey, can't say no to a free guitar, right? If it was stolen or lost, honestly, I'd probably get Fender's Fat Tele to replace it, just because I'm beginning to prefer the lighter weight and smaller size. But it'd be a huge loss, because this is an outstanding guitar, I can get any sound of it that I want, and I'd definitely miss it. Regardless of price or marketing hype, this is one of Fender's top guitars, and I'd definitely recommend it to a friend.