Guitar Tricks Insider November / December Issue | Page 54

GEAR REVIEWS
and gradually morphing to a ‘D’ shape
as you progress up the fretboard, which
means easy playing and great to grip
for chording, riffing, and soloing. The
fret manicure job is superior and has
a smooth ‘worn in’ feel up and down
the neck. Another nifty upgrade is the
contoured heel where neck and body
join, remedying the ‘blocky’ feel with a
rounded asymmetrical heel for effortless
string bending and taking care of business
in higher regions of the fretboard. Not to
be out matched, the fingerboard features
a compound radius that’s a bit rounded
at the nut for chording and flattens out
towards the higher frets, and conducive to
lower action and faster playability with no
fretting out.
The modern whammy bar bridge pivots
on two points rather than six screws
(like on older Strat models) and paired
with the locking tuners, improves tuning
consistency. And speaking of whammy
bar…….. whether you have an itch for dive
bomb mayhem or subtle chord vibrato, the
easy snap-in whammy bar is a timesaver
compared to traditional threaded screw-
in types, and is fully adjustable (with the
accompanying Allen wrench) to stay in
one fixed position for a quick grab or let it
hang loose and out of the way. Gone are
the days of peg winders, gobs of excess
string wrapped around tuning posts, and
string slippage. Whether you’re a beginner
or gigging machine, the locking tuners and
short posts make restringing a breeze as
well as increase tuning stability. Feed the
string through the post hole, pull tight,
lock the tuner down (from the backside),
tune up, and you’re ready to rock! Bowed
neck? No worries or need to remove
the neck to change relief - the exposed
double-action truss rod adjustment wheel
conveniently positioned between the 22nd
fret and the neck pickup allows hassle-
free on the fly neck adjustments.
The model reviewed here came in a
beautiful Ocean Turquoise blue finish, but
is offered in eight additional color/finishes
54
GUITAR TRICKS INSIDER
DIGITAL EDITION
NOVEMBER / DECEMBER