Generally, Alnico pickups for strats operate at a higher impedance (between 6K - 8K), so the higher resistance tends to make them play cleaner, brighter, glassier. With the bridge pickup, this will generally produce 'thinner' sound. Alnico II vs Alnico V has to do with the difference in the composition of the aluminum, nickel and cobalt alloy that is alnico, V generally yielding the brighter, cleaner vintage sound, II yielding warmer shades. The original Leo Fender pickup choice for his classic design, Alnico V pups produce the higher degree of that 'vintage' strat rubbery 'quack' in the 'in between' 2 & 4 pup combo positions. Dont' forget your 250K pots and .022 mfd caps.
Ceramic mag pickups operate at a lower impedance than Alnico II or V pups(between 4K-6K), so the lower resistance allows for higher potential output with fewer turns of wire than an Alnico, and thus, allows for overdriving an amp (especially a tube amp) much more easily than an Alnico, a 'thicker' single coil sound.
Either way, any of the above characteristics are in turn tempered or accentuated by the resonance and density of the body wood -- ash or alder most common and true to Leo's original designs -- and to some degree, whether the fretboard is glossed maple as in the original mid-50's design, or rosewood, coming along a few years later.
The original design's 12" radius neck, a fairly flat radius, was not only a playability factor, but to help yield more balanced string vibration pickup. The other factor in that balancing act's equation was staggering the heights of the fixed polepieces.
Leo was an electronics genius first & foremost, not a guitar player; for that aspect of his designs, he turned first to Doc Kaufman when he started out building amps and lap steels, and later to Jimmy Bryant and George Fullerton. His likely 'hero' in terms of KISS manufacturing & marketing priciples was Henry Ford.
