Hi again Brad
Really not trying to start an argument here ...
I have the feeling we could be comparing apples and oranges. Just popped the guard off my 79 ss38:
Let's see, grey bottom vintage Mark II (definitely alnicos) and although the bridge is cast metal with no markings, it has the proper trem block screwed on per CBS specs. In short, everything a CBS three-bolt genuine Tokai copy oughtta be. :wink:
Perhaps you are confusing the Silver Stars with the later Custom Editions, which are not the same guitars. (the quality really started to slip after 1985 and Tokai started to use cheaper components)
What I'm trying to say is that the Silver Stars, even the cheaper ones, have a pretty high quality sound. Hence, soundwise, they are relatively good deals right now, even with the outrageous shipping from Japan. Of course they are going up in price, like everything else, unfortunately. And they are three-bolts, which are anathema to most Strat players. I sold a beat-up (reliced) SS38 in vintage white (rosewood board) at cost to a friend and he promptly got rid of his American Strat, and now his buddies are trying to buy the Silver Star off him.
Hey, how is that es347? I read an article on them in Vintage Guitar a few years back. Does yours have those sustain sister dirty finger pickups? I'll bet it sounds awesome. And I agree that newer G*bson electrics have really fallen off the table, which is why I just picked up a 1980 Reborn Old.
Also I'm not questioning your ears ... of course you play for a living, and I don't (have played a few weddings, of all things, which were pretty fun actually, mostly because they didn't throw us out of the hall :lol
. But I do play every day through a dry Fender tube amp and I do appreciate good sounds.
Have a nice holiday in the Big Apple! Have you ever seen Les Paul at the Iridium? I know I'd like to.
take care
Steve