After reading guides written by others on here, i feel compelled to share MY experiences. I strongly disagree with some of the things i've read.

Let me start by saying i've been playing guitar over 30 years, so i've seen many, and i'm a luthier hobbyist -- that is, i usually don't make guitars with the intention of selling, i make them for myself; however, i HAVE sold several, all at a profit, with one in particular selling at $2800 with case.  the buyer had seen this guitar from the original slab of wood, and  knew my cash outlay, which was less than $700.  These bodies and necks were made completely from scratch, and aftermarket parts were used to complete them.

That having been said, i have also made a few guitars from parts (including bodies and necks) bought from dealers on ebay and elsewhere. these guitars were copies of fender strats and telecasters. also, i've bought parts to replace broken/worn OEM parts, and to satisfy my own preferences on my own guitars.

I bought 3 allparts strat switches.  2 stopped working properly in less than a month.  I didn't bother using the 3rd.

I bought 2 allparts strat pickguards.  Neither fit a standard Fender-made strat, whether american or mexican.  i'm not just talking about screw hole placement, i'm talking about the entire fit.

I bought ONE Warmouth neck, new.  the fretboard/frets weren't even close to straight & flat -- looking down the fingerboard reminded me of a well-used woods road.

i bought a few (i don't remember exactly how many) mighty mite strat pickguards.  screw hole placement was fair at best, but that by itself isn't a major concern -- they DID line up properly other than that on mexican strats.  i didn't try them on american strats.

I bought 3 Mighty Mite strat bodies.  2 were used to replace Squier strat bodies, and were of considerably better quality than the original bodies, to the point of excellence and total satisfaction of the guitar's owner.  the 3rd was used in essentially an all mighty mite guitar, including mighty mite pickups and mighty mite neck.  this guitar rivals ANY strat i've ever tried, including fender american series strats.

i bought 3 mighty mite telecaster necks, and 1 mighty mite strat neck.  1 tele neck was very good but had finish flaws.  the other 3 were excellent in all respects. (for the record, these necks do NOT have a shiny finish -- it's either a satin finish or just a sealer.  either way, they do NOT collect dirt in the pores of the wood) 

i bought somewhere around a dozen mighty mite strat pickups.  all sounded great, very close to original fender pickups, with somewhat less single-coil hum.

i bought a mighty mite / wilkinson hardtail bridge. it's excellent, but it is NOT a direct replacement for the strat trem bridge.

those statements are all facts;  now i'll offer my opinions.

for necks, i'll buy mighty mite or OEM.

for bodies, i'll buy mighty mite or OEM.

for pickguards and trem covers, i'll buy genuine fender or OEM. 

for bridges i'll buy mighty mite/wilkinson or schaller or OEM.

for tuning keys i'll buy schaller, grover, or fender/schaller PERIOD.

for switches, pots, etc i'll buy OEM unless i'm making a modification that requires a different part.

for pickups i'll buy OEM, seymour duncan, or mighty mite as MY choices -- or whatever the guitar's owner prefers for other pickups.

i will NOT recommend a particular ebay seller here -- read my feedbacks if you like.

if you know a particular product, and you like it, stick with that one unless you're experimenting.

if you DON'T know a particular product, try to read feedbacks given about that product, or read reviews on other sites such as harmony central.

i will gladly share my experiences with anyone who has a question related to electric guitars. if i know a fact, i will state that it's a fact. if i have an opinion, i'll tell you it's simply my opinion. if i just plain don't know, i'll tell you that too.

please do NOT use wifey's kmmsgems email for questions related to this "guide"...  use mine, below.

tberry51@hotmail.com