Yea the American ones are a bit more expensive and the beginner my be better off leaning to the Mexican mades for that reason.
But, If you are a serious about playing and have the cash, the American made ones are better quality IMO.
The fret board for starters. The Mexican strat I have had to have the frets filed down and evened out. The edges of the frets were sharp and the heights were off. This caused my fingers to get chewed up by the frets and the strings would "fret out" or hit against/rattle against frets further up the neck, especially during bends. I had to pay a tech to fix that for me. The American Strat was smooth and propper. 2: The Pickups. Generally, the Mexican ones usually come with the cheaper pickups that to a tone snob like me really sounded kind of flat and cheap. I spent a few hundred bucks more and put in some nice custom ones. The American Strat came with some nice Texas Specials. The electronics in the Mexican strat were cheaper quality and more haistaly hooked up with no shielding. I spent a bit of time and money changing/ rewiring and shielding the guts of the Mexi. The American one was a bit better off. 3. Cosmetics: On close examination, you can tell the difference in quality and workmanship. The Mexican one had some glue residue on the fretboard/nut, some file marks (prior to the tech filing down the frets) on the fretboard and some other parts. The Mexi has some kind of Polly Laquer, where the American has the more expensive Nitro laquer. 4. The wood, sound, and feel: The American strat just felt better, more comfortable which leads to easier playing. Im not sure what wood the mexican strat is made of, but the kind of wood can effect your tone. I like the fuller sound of the American one better. Lastly the overall feel... that one is hard to describe. But its like when you play it, especially before you plug in, you can hear/feel the difference in resonance in the wood, which too, can effect your tone and sustain.
So really the Mexi strat cost me about 500 less than the American one did off the shelf. But, after the setup/fret work, new pickups and electronics, shielding and stuff I probably spent at least 500 more on the Mexi to get it to where I wanted it, probably more, and am left with less than perfect cosmetics. So for me the American Strat was a better deal over all, not to mention it comes with a HArdshell case the Mexi does not (another 150 bucks).
If you are a beginner on a budget, I am sure the Mexi would be just fine after a $50.00 set up. Then if you want down the road, you can start upgrading the parts as you see fit.
If you are a more experienced player, or have the cash, the American Strat is worth the extra money in my opinion. I would suggest going to the music store and try out a mexi and an American one and see if you can see, feel, hear a difference and if that difference is worth the extra dough to you.
Hope this helps!
Rock on |..|,