So I made it to London and a day later took a trip down to Anderton’s to pickup my reserved Fender American Professional II Strat HSS in the Dark Night finish! It looks even more beautiful in person than in photos or videos and my concerns about how it would feel are allayed It feels amazing!
Of course being the tinkerer (and slightly OCD) that I am I had to do some quick mods so I replaced the stock Fender tuners with Fender Locking Tuners in Black as well as installed my go to Schaller strap locks (Black Chrome) to complete the look. I also installed new D’Addario XT 9-42 strings. First time trying coated strings so will report back if I notice a difference from the regular ones. I stuck with with 9-42s this time as the 10-46s that I installed on my Squier Affinity Strat seemed to increase the difficulty (and pain) of learning my first barre chord (F).
I’m ecstatic to have my first American Fender and can’t wait to set it up and play with it (bought a Fender Mustang Micro as my travel practice amp to complement it)
PS. It was really hard not to buy other guitars while there. So many amazing choices and special edition versions to play with
That is a beautiful beautiful guitar, congrats and have fun playing it!! The black tuning pegs, seems like such a small thing to change, but it sure does make it look more impressive. I’ve got an American Pro Strat as well, tobacco sunburst I think it’s called, and I made a change as well, from an Ivory pickguard to a black one, so I know that colour choice is great. Plays like a dream, I’m sure you’ll love it.
That looks like a keeper Firas !
I am not normally a lover of blue guitars but that colour really pops. And the black pegs really make a difference. Cool.
Congrats.
@Mari63 I’m a lover of all Sunburst finishes, and like you I always prefer black pickguards over white ones, so nice upgrade on your part too I used the lack of locking tuners on my Strat to justify replacing them with black ones and it really completes the Dark Night finish better in my opinion
@Malz I absolutely love the Music Nomad toolkits They’ve already paid for themselves as I’ve setup 3 of my guitars with them so far (4 setups if you count my Squier after a full mod replacement). They’re really compact and the instructions make setting up a guitar really simple and easy to follow. I also use their cleaning & polishing set. Amazing products!
@TheMadman_tobyjenner I love darker blues not royal shades. I was worried that the finish looked more black than blue in all the photos & videos I’ve seen. I was happy to see that it’s more blue than black with a bit of sparkle (not too much) and as you can see in my photos the shade varies from dark to light with the lighting which is beautiful. Really happy with how it looks especially with the upgraded black tuners
@Lisa_S I’m happy to report that it feels every bit as good as it looks. The rolled fretboard edges, satin neck finish, smooth and polished frets and deep C neck profile all make for an amazing feel in the hand
@Gunhild Yes it was really tempting to buy everything Guitars, amps, so much great gear. Here are a few photos I took of the store:
Oh WOW!!!
Gotta say Firas that your Strat is sooooo good looking!!! I Love the color & the black tuners too… let us see it in action soon! I have that exact model in my wish list but was hesitant because of the chrome tuners… I think they kinda clash with the overall look of that axe… so envious that you got to visit Anderton’s… I really wish to visit there if we ever make it to London!
Congratulations on your new 6-string buddy!!!
Thanks, Tod What can I say? You have good taste, my friend It sure is a beauty. I was more reluctant about the yellowish-looking neck, but it’s growing on me. Would’ve preferred a roasted maple neck, but I guess you can’t have it all
If you ever do make it to London, just make sure to give yourself plenty of travel time. It was 1.5 hours by taxi/car and around 2 hours by the “tube” (train/railway). Making that trip there & back in a day gave me a bit of car sickness but it was for a worthy cause
I hope you get to experience Anderton’s for yourself in the near future, it’s quite the musical wonderland
PS. I’ll have to learn a new song to post a video of me playing this new Strat. I’ve already recycled all the riffs and 5 songs I know with my Squier upgrade project so it might be a while
It feels amazing!
Guitars, amps, so much great gear. Here are a few photos I took of the store:
on your new 6-string buddy!!! 