Question for Squier VM Jazzmaster Owners

[Mike]

My brand new Squier VM Jazzmaster arrived yesterday. It's the first Jazzmaster I've owned (or played).

I have a question for Jazzmaster owners. I need confirmation that my guitar is screwed up or not. I've asked a similar question over at OSG, but I know there are a bunch of Jazzmaster players here.

Basically, I think they drilled the holes for my bridge about 0.1+" too close to the top edge of the guitar. Then they used a dremel enlarge the pickguard bridge post holes to make it fit over the bridge posts. The holes are oblong with rough inside edges in the oblong part, there are pickguard shavings in the area, and the protective plastic sheet hangs over the bridge post mounts.



I assume that these pickguards are stamped out by the thousands, and should fit the instrument almost perfectly. Mine required factory modifications. It also has some red and black markings on the edges, and I suspect there are scratches under the protective plastic sheet.

The strings on the guitar don't seem to run parallel to the edge of the fretboard unless I move the strings waaaay over in their saddle. Maybe this is normal for a Jazzmaster, but I'm not sure.

If I stick a straightedge on both sides of one of the pickups, I would expect the bridge and tremolo to be pretty well centered. They are not even close.

Does this seem right to you Jazzmaster players?

Thanks,

Mike

[skullservant]

Regarding the pickguard- I got my oly white jazzmaster with the tortoise guard which fit perfectly. I swapped it with a white guard from a different VM Jazzmaster and the holes for the rythm circuit were a bit off. I've not seen or heard of one that off, but unfortunately it seems like yours might be a lemon, especially with how cockeyed the strings are sitting over everything. Where did you order it from? You should be able to at least exchange it for another one

[Mike]

Thanks!

I got it from MF-- I had a credit and couldn't pass up the coupon deal.

I just stuck a couple of straightedges on the sides of the neck. The bridge is not centered between the straightedges.

I think it's time to arrange a return.

Mike

[skullservant]

Yeah dude. And I think they'd be really understanding. I actually got mine from MF as well!

[Mike]

So I sent it back last Wednesday. MF was great about it. I had the option to buy another one and have it ship right away, or send it back, wait for credit, and then reorder. With Thanksgiving, that could push it back a week or two. In the mean time there is black Friday, and with my luck it would go out of stock. I bought another. MF upgraded my shipping for free, and paid to ship the other one back.

The new one arrived today. I gave it a good inspection, and everything looks good. I played it for about an hour (with my wife on bass!), and it sounds great, even with 9s. It's a keeper. Lots of rattle to track down as expected, and I'm hoping 11s will help.

This is the first non-strat tremolo I have played. I really like it. It takes a lot less effort to push, but a lot more push to change the pitch compared to my Strats.

Thanks for the help!

Mike

[skullservant]

No problem dude, glad that the second one turned out to be a lot better for you. 11's will pretty much clear the buzz, you might also want to swap the saddle for an adjustable mustang bridge from Warmoth. They seem awesome for curing buzz and are only a few more bucks than a buzz stop!