Squier Bullet Strat - Mike Rutherford mods 2021

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So you've probably seen the internet lose its mind lately at the sight of Mike Rutherford on tour with Genesis playing a Squier Strat.
As not only a fan, but the guy who plays Mike's parts in a tribute band, I had to get my hands on one of these. Not so easy though! The story is well documented on the internet: Mike was stuck in South Africa at the beginning of the pandemic without any of his guitars, so he scrambled to buy a guitar to practice songs on while he was in Cape Town. He happened to get a couple of these Bullet Strats, one of which in Sonic Grey. This tremolo (vibrato!) version in this color was limited to the Asian and African market apparently, so it wasn't as easy as just running down to my local Guitar Center and grabbing one.
I scoured the Eastern Hemisphere from the comfort of my keyboard and found one in Japan and one in Malaysia. I performed the same mods Mike's tech did: GraphTech String Saver saddles and Gotoh tuners. My own personal touch is a tension spring down in the vibrato arm hole. I carefully removed the plastic film by loosening the screws first so no annoying little remnants are left sticking out. On guitar #1, I changed the high E to a .012 so I could tune it down to D like Mike does. I am willing to do the same on guitar #2 before I pack it up if the buyer chooses.
Here is me doing all the mods to guitar #2, which I have listed for sale on Reverb.com, and then playing Home By the Sea on guitar #1 (which is really an identical guitar - don't worry, buyers, no funny stuff here).
Enjoy!
For sale:
reverb.com/ite...

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18 сен 2024

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Комментарии : 65

@newtondelmar4416 4 месяца назад

I applaud Mike for throwing out the idea that expensive, vintage, highly collectable guitars are what "rock stars play"...Squier Bullets were selling for $99 not that long ago !!! And now...one of the biggest selling acts in history...is going on tour with them... Go Mike Go !!!

@jonathanpeden9930 2 года назад

Lmao soooo funny the Internet losing it's collective mind over that fact! I still have my 2007 Squire Bullet Strat and I still play it because the neck is fantastic. Fun fact: my cheap-o Bullet Strat has a flamed maple neck with rosewood fretboard and fake pearloid dot inlays. Specs on mid to high quality guitars today lol! This month I will do my first mods in 15 years - Fender vintage tuners and a Wilkinson Bridge with a pop-in wiggle stick. I was going to put in AlNiCo pick-ups but to be honest I'm happy with these old ceramics. Just found your channel and subscribed btw.

@claudiocruzat8777 2 года назад

watch out with vintage Kluson tuners. The E and B strings are a real drag. The old tuners are really outdated. Its strange that only" Floyd Rose guitars" come with a locking nut, don't you think? there should be a line of guitars with just a locking nut with a regular bridge. Its strange no one points that. cheers.

@bluwng Год назад

Does the Bullet neck have a finish on it. I don’t believe in raw wood like most I think guitar wood should be finished.

@JasonMendelson Год назад

It's naked back there... so one of these may not be your cup of tea. The good news is, you can probably either find someone to apply a clearcoat finish, or get a replacement neck, for not too much money.

@ramencurry6672 7 месяцев назад

I’m one of the people who lost their minds. I kept banging my fists

@trwsandford Год назад

I love my Squier. Did some recent upgrades, tuners and electronics. Plays very well.

@shawnreese6538 2 года назад

Squires are great guitars. It takes a little more setup and maybe a couple of mods, but after that, they're great playing and sounding.

@theroadrunners7703 2 года назад

I have the hard tailed version, same color. The best thing I like about it , is it weighs 6 lbs, 10 oz. I really like the thinner body.

@ernestcaruana7717 2 года назад

those are Fender strings with Fender colours on the ball -ends -thanks for the video- I have one of those guitars and I was surprised that Mike Rutherford would use these on stage -still I love this guitar and with a few upgrades and a good setup it is one of my favourite strats .

@markpickardlife 2 года назад

Nice mods. Good video. Thanks very much.

@hannosolo 4 месяца назад

I use latex tubing in the springs. Fold in half, pull through the spring with an old length of guitar string folded around the centre of the tubing, and trim the excess tubing ends after the spring is attached.

@andrewmize823 2 года назад

One of the first strats I owned was a Squier with upgraded hardware and pickups. The previous owner had put a bootleg Fender decal on the headstock and put a fairly authentic vintage finish on the neck, so my friends thought I was rocking the real deal--but I actually only payed about $200 for it. I sold it a few years later for $150, with full disclosure that it wasn't legit, but the kid who bought it thought it was pretty awesome, anyway.

@danielhartman5086 2 года назад

Jason I think you did a fantastic job on the bullet strat.

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

Thank you!

@_Yep_Yep_ Год назад

Man...jamming to Phil Collins. This is the mark of a passionate individual. This guy can extract energy from literally anything.

@ericr7367 2 года назад

I wouldn't trade my '00 Indonesian bullet HT for anything, it simply comes alive, and besides I hand carved the body and it now contains my actual blood stains, but it's the neck, OMG! not only is it wicked fast but it's incredibly beautiful, birdseye with flame, the small 50's headstock & a slab of I'm guessin' Brazil rosewood, not flamboyant BUT noticeable from across the room and more than what you would expect on a sub $100 guitar. I feel lucky every time I look at her, let alone when I plug in.

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

Very cool

@santibanks 2 года назад

The "noiseless" pickups from Fender are actually rebranded Lace Sensor Gold pickups. These are the standard for the Pro and Clapton strats and are the basis for the sound from Clapton, Rutherford, and Stuermer since the late 80ies. The noiseless aspect is just a nice byproduct, but the tone they give is very typical and differs from this very jangly tone the pickups in your model have. Apart from that, not really sure about the chord voicings you use for HBTS. I understand the high E is dropped to D but even then, 90% of the chord action should take place on the 3 highest strings in the 5th-9th fret box. That said, it was great to see Mike using those Squiers on stage, good that he ditched that line6 amp and used the fender instead. Though in my opinion his sound was best on We can't dance with the Clapton strats and the Groove Tubes Trio amps.

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

Excellent info! Ive never properly learned the Mike 6-string guitar parts... getting into that now. Thanks for sharing those details!

@ernestcaruana7717 2 года назад

vintage noiseless are not Lace sensors -the noiseless are stacked humbuckers but Lace senors are a completely different construction method - AFAIK - Clapton models came with both these type of pickups at different times - I believe Fender changed to noiseless when they ditched the Lace sensors

@83RED_ 2 года назад

Squires are the on the go to modifications! Some are made of good wood even!

@divebomb99 Год назад

Nice video! I've got two Bullet Mustangs that I've done major setups on. Gotta polish the heck out of the frets and oil those fretboards.

@TodayIFeelLike 2 года назад

That looks like and awesome guitar.

@Raul1971xxx Год назад

I would put locking tuners.

@AndrewAHayes Год назад

If your lip balm is made from bees wax then it is good forever.

@michaelmarine6593 2 года назад

Candlewax. I always keep a tealight candle in my toolbox for just such an occasion.

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

Cool tip - it's been a minute since I made the video... which part are you referring to please?

@michaelmarine6593 2 года назад

@@JasonMendelson Any screw that goes into wood; neck screws, trem screws, anything that contacts wood gets lubed up a bit with candlewax.

@chrishunkins4305 2 года назад

Jason, great vid! Wondering if you had to widen the tuner holes on your squire head to fit your Gotoh tuners. I know the Grover tuners are a bit too thick for squire strat holes, to where they need to be widened. (I’d certainly opt for the Gotohs to avoid widening the holes). Thanks!

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

Thanks! I did not have to widen the holes. The work you see done here was everything.

@darkelive660 2 года назад

I did not in mine, either. Fiesta Red color. Easy drop in replacement.

@rsaathoff Год назад

I got a used Squier Bullet Mustang Off CL locally. It was cheap. I wanted to see if with setup and elbow grease how much of a player I could make it. It's very well set up now and plays well. The tuning machines slip a bit though so I might replace those. I changed the pots to some CTS and a russian .047uf cap I had in my bin. Big difference! It's a great player now. Only just over 6 lbs. I have a laces sensor red and a RWRP silver I'm going to put in it this week.

@utube321piotr 2 года назад

I got a sunburst HSS w/ tremolo in Sept 2019 here in Europe

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

Very cool!

@83RED_ 2 года назад

I JUST SAW a Magick deck righ there!!! \m/

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

Good eye! Do you play? I bought this deck, and there are some other players in my town that get together but I haven't found the time to get into it yet.

@83RED_ 2 года назад

@@JasonMendelson Yep! I play too! Little outta time since two years ago, hahaha sold 3 decks, and now just one left. I think I’ll check them now hahaha My drummer is judge for local tournaments. The only partner player I know near.

@darkelive660 2 года назад

Add roller string trees and you've got what I did. Non locking tuners on mine, though. Mine's a hradtail and eventually going to go stringthrough with it. Will also be putting gen IV noiseless in it. The ones that came with it are way too bright for me.

@garyseven4441 2 года назад

Fun to watch , subscribed

@5thGateLotus 2 года назад

What size saddles are they

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

The correct ones are 2 1/16". I have the leftover incorrect set for sale on Reverb, they are 2 3/16".

@chessward4832 2 года назад

Is there a specific size I need for the Gotoh tuners to fit on a Squier Strat Bullet? Or will one size fit all (with the understanding I will still have to drill an additional hole). Thank you for the help!

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

StewMac item #1951, but I got a better price from FretNation. I did not have to widen the post holes, they drop right in.

@chessward4832 2 года назад

@@JasonMendelson Cool. Thanks so much, Jason!

@ernestcaruana7717 2 года назад

the older Bullet tuners- with the trapezoid covers -are not 10mm -only vintage style tuners are a direct fit -the newer ones with sealed tuners should be 10mm

@chessward4832 2 года назад

Is it that important to replace the bridge saddles if I have a hardtail?

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

I'm no expert, but I think yes. Apparently the upgrades provide a smoother spot for the string to sit and stretch across, increasing the duration it can sit there at tension without breaking. But a proper tech can answer this much better, I'm sure.

@hectortoriko5870 Год назад

Genial, nombre de la canción?

@JasonMendelson Год назад

Home By The Sea, y muchas gracias!

@rsaathoff Год назад

Do you know the specific model of gotoh tuners those are?

@JasonMendelson Год назад

Gotoh Schaller-style Knob 6-In-Line Tuners (on StewMac it's #1951) and has this description: Precision 16:1 gear ratio, sealed lubrication, cast housings and removable metal knobs. 10mm (13/32")-diameter pegholes required.

@kiranatv5999 2 года назад

Cool guitar....i like guitar squier..greetings to all friend....

@donseibert4847 Год назад

Can you put the item numbers for the saddles and tuners here please.

@JasonMendelson Год назад

1951 tuners; 4756 saddles (StewMac numbers)

@piscesoutofwater5185 Год назад

Hey dudes Can anyone tell me what colour that is She’s beautiful

@JasonMendelson Год назад

Sonic Grey

@piscesoutofwater5185 Год назад

@@JasonMendelson thank you brother

@jasujokelainen5073 2 года назад

What you mean, "about 200 - 300 dollars Guitar? Bullet strat 2021 model? Or do you mean guitar, gotoh tuners and so on.. Is that much In the end? Thank you 🙂

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

These cost about $200-300 new. The mods bring that cost way up!

@jasujokelainen5073 2 года назад

@@JasonMendelson yeah, you ment New Guitar + mods = 200-300! 👍🙂

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

Tuners are about $50. Saddles $75. If you can install them yourself, labor is free. Otherwise a tech will charge you for their time as well. So you could be looking at $325 at the bare minimum. Possibly closer to $500 once you factor in tax and shipping for all items, including the guitar. Since my Bullets were made in Indoesia and purchased from Japan and Malaysia (I bought and modded two, and sold one), I had to pay import duty/tax/fees here in the USA.

@ramencurry6672 7 месяцев назад

If the neck is a perfect fit for your hands, after mods to your taste and for better stability, it’s just as good as a $10,000 guitar. However the price for specific mods may bump the price up to a very high amount depending on what you want

@Trashpanda_404 2 года назад

Where did you get a bullet with a tremolo? They’re all hard tails with only 2 knobs.

@JasonMendelson 2 года назад

It was only made for the Asia/Africa market. Mike got his in South Africa right at the start of Covid in 2020 since he was stuck there for lockdown. I was able to find one in Japan and one in Malaysia. One I kept and one I sold to another Genesis fan.