I have a six-screw trem in my Squier and set the bridge flush. I haven't had a problem with it yet and it keeps in tune very well. I replaced the bridge bucker with a DiMarzio Tone Zone. Sounds great, plays great, looks great.
That sounds like a great instrument... I like those 6-screw tremolos also... The mods you did sound nice, especially with the DiMarzio pickup added... Thanks for watching!
Yeah, for sure! It took me a bit to actually figure out what happened. I didn't suspect that one at all. Hopefully it was just a fluke. They're sending me out a new one right away. But it was perfect that I actually caught it on video!
Thank you, it's a blessing and my wife is on board with the collection (within reason). My daughter helped me get this one going and she had to bring my grandson with her... I figured it was best just to work him into the clip!
Such a gorgeous colour! A couple of essential steps for making these budget guitars playable 1. New nut 2. Set the bridge as flat as possible 3. Consider replacing the tuners
I got the replacement from Fender. I immediately took off the neck and used it for another guitar. I took a Sonic neck (all maple) and put tuners and a new nut on it and installed that onto the body. Then I replaced the block with a nice brass one and set up the trem. I got it all intonated and strings adjusted (neck relief, nut height & saddle action), carved the new graph-tech nut and everything! Finally, I added two nice humbuckers, full-sized pots and nice switch... This thing plays so nice now! The trem is fully-functional and stays in great tune... I will make another video about all this soon, but it is a tremendous instrument! One of my favorites! Thanks for the tips and thanks for watching!!!
I still say these budget Strat style guitars (which are aimed for beginners) should come with hardtail bridges…newbies do not need the hassle and these trems rarely work properly…good luck with that one Ray!!!
Hey Eddie! I agree... Many times, I deck the trem anyway just to get better stability with tuning. But you're right about beginners, especially those who haven't really mastered even tuning the guitar yet. They don't need another variable to contend with... But many trems just don't stay in tune no-matter-what you do with them. I found one on Ali Express called ARM. They offer vintage 6-screw tremolos with nice push-in bars. I put one onto a Squier CV 70's Strat... It stays in great tune and is actually functional... It was under $30!!!
When I was playing in bands over 30 years ago, I only used USA Strats and Les Pauls. Now that I'm past all that I'm having a blast monkeying around with lower-level instruments and seeing what can be done to them to make them more playable... I actually think that some of them are just as enjoyable to play as my upper notch guitars. But I think that some of that is due to modern design methods and the ability of manufacturing to make parts that are cheap, but accurately milled. Thanks for watching!
I have the same guitar, I love it ! I find it has a nice clean sound. I'll probably end up adding a Seymour Duncan bridge pickup at some point. Sucks to see the damage that came with yours
Fender is sending me a replacement that should be here by the end of the week! I am looking forward to making that 2-point trem work with a brass block... I hope this first one was just a fluke... Thanks for watching!
Squiers are a great value. They've only improved. My first electric almost 40 years ago was a white Squier strat with a maple fretboard and my most recent ax is a natural wood finish Squier Strat with a maple fretboard. I love it. In between the years I've owned probably 100 different guitars, from high end like PRS and ESP, to every shred stick under the sun, Gibsons, Yamahas, Charvel, custom builds, etc. I'm happy with Squiers these days Why pay more just to have Fender on the headstock?
I think it's just amazing how good all guitars have become in recent years. I really like taking cheaper models and fixing them up... It's a great hobby and I've gotten a lot of enjoyment from it...Stay blessed and thanks for watching!
Wow man. I hope the new one doesn't give you this issue. That's Def a return there for sure. I can understand set up needs but broken cracked trem routed holes is a NO GO.
Hello Robert. Thanks for watching... I used their web-form and Fender replied back to me really fast with an apology for the inconvenience... I should have a replacement before the end of the week!
I feel like you may have just gotten a bad individual unit rather than it being a design flaw. When working with things like wood, you have knots and other stuff that can change how structurally sound it is.
You're right! I received the replacement from Fender, and it was perfect... I worked it over and swapped some things around with another instrument and it now plays like a dream!!! I hope to do another video on that final outcome soon! Thanks for watching!
I love lightweight thin bodies if I wanted a thick heavy body I would have a custom guitar made out of granite. Weight, wood species and wood density is all superstitious nonsense.
Hi Kevlin, thanks for commenting, and thanks for watching! Yes, It eventually began to go out of tune after playing and using the trem for about an hour... The initial tuning was done using a Peterson Strobe Tuner, so it was definitely in-tune when we started... Two things about any trem system in general are that (1) it changes the turning just using it, and (2) when you bend a string you change the turning of all the strings because that event alters the tension of all the strings at the time you make a bend. You may just have a really great ear for tone... I can appreciate that!
@@RaymondLandis...I'm a 74 year old player, so understand all runs Ng problems, I personally never use a tremolo arm, too much trouble and hassle. Check out me demoing a new Squire Duet Stratocaster ...see kelvin smith on TH-cam. I also had an early affinity telecaster, I now use the Classic Vibe Squire Telecaster, sorry you had a bad experience with this new guitar ..all the best from the UK
@@RaymondLandis ....you were very unlucky there Ray, I'm a 74 year old player, so know all about tuning problems. I personally have no time for a tremelo arm, too much hassle tuning wise. Check out me demoing the new Squire Debut Stratocaster... playing slide and a blues in C,.... type in Kelvin Smith to see the clips. All the best from the UK.
@@kelvinsmith6854 Hi Again Kelvin! I just realized that this comment was on the original Affinity that I got and absolutely yes, yes, yes... This one didn't tune well at all... After I got the replacement from Fender, I modified it and ended up with the one that I mentioned in my first response above... (still trying to figure out all this stuff on TH-cam hahaha). The modified Affinity that I got stays in much better tune and that's the one that I was referring to... See that one here: th-cam.com/video/RETWOxR1Pac/w-d-xo.html And I did check out your videos... Nice work there!
The insert coming out isn’t a design flaw the guitar is a proven design it is a quality and workmanship,flaw. I seriously doubt Squier designed the post hole to be oversized, most likely someone used the wrong bit and ruined God know how many this is why you use in process inspection. I think your tuning issue came from split top tuners they are a b!tch to keep in the hole under pressure and this only happens with the B and high E strings. Physics won’t allow the bridge post to move while playing that is why I doubt it was the root cause.
I received a replacement from Fender, and it was perfect. As indicated in the video, I took the instrument all apart and went over it carefully. The thing I find with these is that the rout cavities are really rough. I rewired it with 2 nice humbuckers, a brass tremolo block and then used a maple Squier Sonic neck in place of the original neck. The instrument that came as a result is super nice! I'll share that in another video soon. The trem is fully functional now and it stays in perfect tune! I also put that Affinity Strat neck onto another body (I already had laying around) and that instrument is really nice too. Both are way-better than what the one instrument was... Thanks for your input and thanks for watching!
Hey Steve, thanks for piping in... I have some really nice high-end guitars too. Nevertheless, a lot of people are actually buying these for various reasons... Some can't afford to put-out the investment for an expensive guitar. Some just want to get something to learn to play on... Personally, I like messing around with them because there are some cheap models that can actually be modified into really nice instruments. This is my hobby, and it brings me a lot of enjoyment. I'm having a lot of fun doing it and I hope that my trials with these can inspire someone else to do something. God has blessed me to do it, so I'm paying it forward... I do appreciate you for watching. Stay blessed!
I have a six-screw trem in my Squier and set the bridge flush. I haven't had a problem with it yet and it keeps in tune very well. I replaced the bridge bucker with a DiMarzio Tone Zone. Sounds great, plays great, looks great.
That sounds like a great instrument... I like those 6-screw tremolos also... The mods you did sound nice, especially with the DiMarzio pickup added... Thanks for watching!
I've seen some loose bushings, but a cracked body! WOW!
Yeah, for sure! It took me a bit to actually figure out what happened. I didn't suspect that one at all. Hopefully it was just a fluke. They're sending me out a new one right away. But it was perfect that I actually caught it on video!
I love your wall of guitars, the baby cooing in the background was great too.
Thank you, it's a blessing and my wife is on board with the collection (within reason). My daughter helped me get this one going and she had to bring my grandson with her... I figured it was best just to work him into the clip!
@@RaymondLandis it did add some nice effect in the areas where you could hear him
Such a gorgeous colour!
A couple of essential steps for making these budget guitars playable 1. New nut 2. Set the bridge as flat as possible 3. Consider replacing the tuners
I got the replacement from Fender. I immediately took off the neck and used it for another guitar. I took a Sonic neck (all maple) and put tuners and a new nut on it and installed that onto the body. Then I replaced the block with a nice brass one and set up the trem. I got it all intonated and strings adjusted (neck relief, nut height & saddle action), carved the new graph-tech nut and everything! Finally, I added two nice humbuckers, full-sized pots and nice switch... This thing plays so nice now! The trem is fully-functional and stays in great tune... I will make another video about all this soon, but it is a tremendous instrument! One of my favorites! Thanks for the tips and thanks for watching!!!
I still say these budget Strat style guitars (which are aimed for beginners) should come with hardtail bridges…newbies do not need the hassle and these trems rarely work properly…good luck with that one Ray!!!
Hey Eddie! I agree... Many times, I deck the trem anyway just to get better stability with tuning. But you're right about beginners, especially those who haven't really mastered even tuning the guitar yet. They don't need another variable to contend with... But many trems just don't stay in tune no-matter-what you do with them. I found one on Ali Express called ARM. They offer vintage 6-screw tremolos with nice push-in bars. I put one onto a Squier CV 70's Strat... It stays in great tune and is actually functional... It was under $30!!!
I disagree. Different strokes.
Nice colour, shame about the defects. If I was a learner this is the sort of thing to go for.
When I was playing in bands over 30 years ago, I only used USA Strats and Les Pauls. Now that I'm past all that I'm having a blast monkeying around with lower-level instruments and seeing what can be done to them to make them more playable... I actually think that some of them are just as enjoyable to play as my upper notch guitars. But I think that some of that is due to modern design methods and the ability of manufacturing to make parts that are cheap, but accurately milled. Thanks for watching!
I have the same guitar, I love it ! I find it has a nice clean sound. I'll probably end up adding a Seymour Duncan bridge pickup at some point. Sucks to see the damage that came with yours
Fender is sending me a replacement that should be here by the end of the week! I am looking forward to making that 2-point trem work with a brass block... I hope this first one was just a fluke... Thanks for watching!
Squiers are a great value. They've only improved. My first electric almost 40 years ago was a white Squier strat with a maple fretboard and my most recent ax is a natural wood finish Squier Strat with a maple fretboard. I love it. In between the years I've owned probably 100 different guitars, from high end like PRS and ESP, to every shred stick under the sun, Gibsons, Yamahas, Charvel, custom builds, etc. I'm happy with Squiers these days Why pay more just to have Fender on the headstock?
I think it's just amazing how good all guitars have become in recent years. I really like taking cheaper models and fixing them up... It's a great hobby and I've gotten a lot of enjoyment from it...Stay blessed and thanks for watching!
I like the color of your new Affinity. Sort of Seafoam green, which I dig.
Yeah, that green is really creamy! I changed the pickguard to white pearlized with black pickups and black pick-guard screws... Looks way sharp now!
Wow man. I hope the new one doesn't give you this issue. That's Def a return there for sure. I can understand set up needs but broken cracked trem routed holes is a NO GO.
Hello Robert. Thanks for watching... I used their web-form and Fender replied back to me really fast with an apology for the inconvenience... I should have a replacement before the end of the week!
@RaymondLandis that's outstanding!!!!
I feel like you may have just gotten a bad individual unit rather than it being a design flaw. When working with things like wood, you have knots and other stuff that can change how structurally sound it is.
You're right! I received the replacement from Fender, and it was perfect... I worked it over and swapped some things around with another instrument and it now plays like a dream!!! I hope to do another video on that final outcome soon! Thanks for watching!
@@RaymondLandis great, I look forward to seeing it! I've got several strats myself. Most versatile guitar on the planet!
I love lightweight thin bodies if I wanted a thick heavy body I would have a custom guitar made out of granite. Weight, wood species and wood density is all superstitious nonsense.
You're right on! People just like these!
You havent tuned it properly....can't you hear that ?
Hi Kevlin, thanks for commenting, and thanks for watching! Yes, It eventually began to go out of tune after playing and using the trem for about an hour... The initial tuning was done using a Peterson Strobe Tuner, so it was definitely in-tune when we started... Two things about any trem system in general are that (1) it changes the turning just using it, and (2) when you bend a string you change the turning of all the strings because that event alters the tension of all the strings at the time you make a bend. You may just have a really great ear for tone... I can appreciate that!
@@RaymondLandis...I'm a 74 year old player, so understand all runs Ng problems, I personally never use a tremolo arm, too much trouble and hassle. Check out me demoing a new Squire Duet Stratocaster ...see kelvin smith on TH-cam. I also had an early affinity telecaster, I now use the Classic Vibe Squire Telecaster, sorry you had a bad experience with this new guitar ..all the best from the UK
@@RaymondLandis ....you were very unlucky there Ray, I'm a 74 year old player, so know all about tuning problems. I personally have no time for a tremelo arm, too much hassle tuning wise. Check out me demoing the new Squire Debut Stratocaster... playing slide and a blues in C,.... type in Kelvin Smith to see the clips. All the best from the UK.
@@kelvinsmith6854 Hi Again Kelvin! I just realized that this comment was on the original Affinity that I got and absolutely yes, yes, yes... This one didn't tune well at all... After I got the replacement from Fender, I modified it and ended up with the one that I mentioned in my first response above... (still trying to figure out all this stuff on TH-cam hahaha). The modified Affinity that I got stays in much better tune and that's the one that I was referring to... See that one here: th-cam.com/video/RETWOxR1Pac/w-d-xo.html And I did check out your videos... Nice work there!
@@RaymondLandis ..glad your all sorted....keep up the good work ! 👍🎸
The insert coming out isn’t a design flaw the guitar is a proven design it is a quality and workmanship,flaw. I seriously doubt Squier designed the post hole to be oversized, most likely someone used the wrong bit and ruined God know how many this is why you use in process inspection. I think your tuning issue came from split top tuners they are a b!tch to keep in the hole under pressure and this only happens with the B and high E strings. Physics won’t allow the bridge post to move while playing that is why I doubt it was the root cause.
I received a replacement from Fender, and it was perfect. As indicated in the video, I took the instrument all apart and went over it carefully. The thing I find with these is that the rout cavities are really rough. I rewired it with 2 nice humbuckers, a brass tremolo block and then used a maple Squier Sonic neck in place of the original neck. The instrument that came as a result is super nice! I'll share that in another video soon. The trem is fully functional now and it stays in perfect tune! I also put that Affinity Strat neck onto another body (I already had laying around) and that instrument is really nice too. Both are way-better than what the one instrument was... Thanks for your input and thanks for watching!
Why do people keep buying these crappy beginner guitars???
Hey Steve, thanks for piping in... I have some really nice high-end guitars too. Nevertheless, a lot of people are actually buying these for various reasons... Some can't afford to put-out the investment for an expensive guitar. Some just want to get something to learn to play on... Personally, I like messing around with them because there are some cheap models that can actually be modified into really nice instruments. This is my hobby, and it brings me a lot of enjoyment. I'm having a lot of fun doing it and I hope that my trials with these can inspire someone else to do something. God has blessed me to do it, so I'm paying it forward... I do appreciate you for watching. Stay blessed!