Best buy?

Further to my last post, I was thinking of the best cheap guitar I ever bought. 

It was a Squier Stratocaster. It was love at first sight.  It was glossy black with a beautiful pearloid pick guard.  There was a worn spot where your forearm contacted the guitar.  The frets were in great shape, and the string action was nice and low. The maple neck was a vintage butterscotch tone, and it had the smaller, more attractive headstock with the spaghetti Fender logo.

But beyond all of this physical beauty was how it felt. Sure, it sounded good too, but I have never felt a guitar that felt so good in my hand in the business area, between the fifth and tenth fret.  It felt like it was made for my hand.  It was like when my dad taught me how to break in a baseball glove. Both cases, glove and guitar neck, felt like buttah.

I got it for a song, hunting around on Craigslist.  I had been on the hunt for a bit.  I'd played a few Squier Strats in stores, but was not impressed by the workmanship of the Affinity line especially.  They had flimsy components and sharp frets that hung out past the fretboards. But the gem I bought had no such issues. 

And where is this beauty now?  Well, that's the thing.  It was never meant to be mine in the first place.  I was looking for a nice gift for my brother in-law's fortieth birthday, and I came across this treasure. Okay, I admit that it crossed my mind to go find a different one for Kevin because I liked that one so much, but I knew that as a player he would really appreciate such a sweet guitar.  And he did. 

It turned out to be the perfect gift for him.  As added bonuses, I got to go hunting, and I do get to visit the little prize every so often.