Fender Japan

[Diminished Triad]

The very few owners of Fender Japan guitars here all say their guitars are great. I've read the same from a few in the forums here too. I've only purchased one, through Ebay, a 12-string electric (Fender Japan) and so far haven't had any problems. The feel and sound are real nice (lipstick pickups, 7.25 radius, and nice work it seems everywhere on the guitar).

1. Are Fender Japan guitars (at any given price) as good or better than what you could get from an American Fender guitar? Because of the noticeable price difference (most of the time Fender Japan guitars are lower priced), I am wondering if the final Fender Japan product has differences that are not apparent or maybe there are reasons unknown to the average guitar player?

2. How is Fender Japan able to produce/manufacture/sell what appear to be comparable guitars at prices lower than Fender?

I understand most guitar factors are subjective but because I've read many positive reviews here and have seen for myself (both with my one 12 string and other comments in the forums, etc) I'd like to know from those who might know what these reasons are (lower price, same or higher quality). Japan is not otherwise known to produce lower priced products. Most things manufactured in Japan are relatively expensive. Yamaha drums for example remain on the high end (both for price and quality - but even more for price than quality in my opinion).

Often times "too good to be true" is in fact too good to be true. Are Fender Japan guitars as good a deal as they appear to be? Any connection at all left between Fender and Fender Japan? I wonder about the two companies' working relationship when I see Fender Japan making re-issues of Fender guitars. Thanks for any info you are able to share!

 

[uOpt]

Re: Fender Japan

This varies hugely. The first thing to understand is that there is several different contractors building these things in various more or less famous factories over the years. Also look up how complicated it got when it goes to Crafted in Japan (as opposed to made in Japan). Now you have a different factory making things for the domestic market.

Some hardware can be sub-par (e.g. trem block is usually zinc), as can the pickups. Some MIJ Fenders have semi-random body wood, namely basswood or Asian close relatives of trees we know here. Personally I think basswood is best in the first place.

Modern American reissues (AVRI) are definitely nitro finished. CIJ and MIM reissues are all poly.

 

[LReese]

Re: Fender Japan

My FJ Fenders are just really nice, but a little different to the American guitars. They are poly. Not a big deal to me. Hardware is going to depend on the model - some had CS Texas Specials stock. I'm sure certain models had a higher end bridge. My FJ Strat is alder and my Tele is ash. Bought the Tele directly from Ishibashi, and the Strat off ebay.

 

[Rand-O-Monium]

Re: Fender Japan

How long has FJ been around?

I did the s/n search,mine's an '85-6...

 

[uOpt]

Re: Fender Japan

How long has FJ been around?

I did the s/n search,mine's an '85-6...

In 1982 the first "Squier by Fender" made it to Europe. The same models were previously made the same way by the same factory for... I forgot... Tokai?

But hey they are the holy grail

 

[Rand-O-Monium]

Re: Fender Japan

Yeah,the s/n on mine is A00xxxx,so I thought it may be an earlier one...

 

[Kamanda~SD]

Re: Fender Japan

Yeah,the s/n on mine is A00xxxx,so I thought it may be an earlier one...

If its MIJ then your right, 85-86. CIJ then your looking at 97-98.

For the OP:

I have a MIJ from 89-90 (Floyd Rose Classic strat from my research) and I can honestly say its my highest quality guitar. I would put this up against ANY american Fender and it will easily stand tall among them. Still searching for a second one to be honest. So...

1) As good if not better for sure.

2) cheaper labour, longer working hours. Let's not also forget the culture. the Japanese take much more pride in their work and have a greater work ethic than Americans do. Sorry guys, but its true...

I have 3 other MIJ guitars (all from 88-90) in other price points and all are outstanding build quality. If it ads any credibility to my post, I work at a music store which sells Fender. In addition to the many US guitars we have I get quite a few Japanese fenders in for work, so my opinion is based on more than just the one I own.

 

[Funkfingers]

Re: Fender Japan

Right from the off, Fender (Japan) guitars were manufactured with closer tolerances than CBS/Fender was managing. In short, necks fitted snugly into pockets, first time. Attention had been paid to vintage body outlines and contours. The guitars were roughly the correct weight at a time when US-made Fenders were almost as heavy as a Les Paul.

The downsides of Fender (Japan) have always been the MIJ pickups and the body woods. It does not matter how well the pieces fit together if they are not made from top grade tone woods.

Case in point; ten days ago, I sold a CIJ Fender Jaguar re-issue. Four days ago, I purchased an AVRI version. The former was superbly engineered but lacked character. The latter is a musical instrument.

This is not to say that I am against Fender Japan instruments. My second favourite Stratocaster is a JV series Squier.

 

[LReese]

Re: Fender Japan

Not sure what the policy is today - surely will vary on the country you reside in. Used to be you could buy Japan market FJ guitars from a vendor like ishibashi directly. Certain models were available in the customary woods you would see on a US Fender (as well as CS pickups) - almost always a poly finish.

Just calling a spade a spade, I've had good experience with Fender and Fender Japan as well as a few other vendors.

 

[uOpt]

Re: Fender Japan

Yeah that's the thing.

There are great Strats, including vintage ones, which have ridiculous neck pockets. You can park a truck in the sides. Doesn't seem to do much harm as long as the neck doesn't move.

Do sharp fret ends from a lazy bum in a 1970s american factory hurt the sound? No, but...

It's all about what's important to you.

Having said that, yes, the AVRI seem to have everything, at least the newer ones which are actually nitro.

 

[ItsaBass]

Re: Fender Japan

I've owned many Japanese Fenders. They are built very well. They skimp on electronics, and often use "non-standard" woods, like poplar, sen, or basswood on guitars that are traditionally made of alder or ash. That's why they are cheaper - not because of build quality.

That said, it's all generalization anyhow. Whether a guitar is good or bad is never really an issue of what country it's made in. It's a question of what the contract for that particular run of guitars states. If the factory has stated that they will make Fender a certain number of guitars with certain specs for a certain price, then they make the guitars in such a way that that will be profitable for them. Sometimes that means rushing and/or cutting corners. Other times the terms of the contract allow the factory to make good money even if they take their time and build the guitars better. Depends on the individual contract in question.

So, I won't say they're good just because they're made in Japan. But I will say that I've never seen a Japanese Fender that is built any worse than an American Fender in terms of the actual quality of craftsmanship. Materials and electronics, yes. But not raw build quality. (Of course, it helps that American Fenders are not really shining examples of quality guitar building anyhow, but...)

MIM Fenders are another story. You can clearly see signs of lower quality workmanship on every single one. No, they aren't absolutely horrible (I own, and love, two of them despite their problems with build quality), but you can easily tell, just by looking at them from several feet away, why they are "budget" versions of the American guitars. And that's after improving greatly over how bad they were in the '90's. My Japanese Fenders, OTOH, look no different from American ones, even up close.

I think Fender has simply been willing to pay more money for their Japanese-made guitars over the years than they have been willing to put into their Mexican, Korean, Indonesian, Chinese, etc. ones. Therefore, the factories that they have had make the guitars for them over the years have had the luxury of being able to do better quality jobs.

 

[uOpt]

Re: Fender Japan

MIM Fenders are another story. You can clearly see signs of lower quality workmanship on every single one. No, they aren't absolutely horrible (I own, and love, two of them despite their problems with build quality), but you can easily tell, just by looking at them from several feet away, why they are "budget" versions of the American guitars. And that's after improving greatly over how bad they were in the '90's. My Japanese Fenders, OTOH, look no different from American ones, even up close.

Well, there is a huge difference between the run of the mill MIM ("standard", as in we have lowered the standards enough) and the reissues. In the bass world I have a MIM 50s and a CIJ 51 neck and they are pretty much of equal quality. Wood, finish (both gloss), fretwork. The CIJ might have a bit rougher fretwork and the MIM a bit less wood quality.

 

[Evan Skopp]

Re: Fender Japan

There's too much misinformation in this thread to address it all. But keep this in mind. None of you has ever been to the Fender Japan factory. Why? Because there isn't one.

Most of their instruments were crafted at Tokai, Dyna Gakki, and Fujigen. There were many other non-Fender guitars built at those factories too including Fernandes and Ibanez.

 

[gottalovethe80s]

Re: Fender Japan

2. How is Fender Japan able to produce/manufacture/sell what appear to be comparable guitars at prices lower than Fender?

the guitar market in japan isn't exactly like in the US, there are like hundreds of brands that I'm sure none of you guys here have even heard of before.
and as nameless as they are, they can produce some damn good guitars. you can get les paul, strat or tele knock-offs for as low as 100~150 dollars, and the quality is AT LEAST on par with epiphones and squiers. the reason why fender decided to make their guitars there is to compete with those japanese brands, the same goes with gibson and their japanese orvilles/orville by gibson's/japanese epiphones.
as for their "quality" vs the american fenders, it's a subjective matter, but I can guarantee you the japanese fenders I've played feel and sound damn nice. I think they go for higher over there in the US but here in asia, I can find used MIJ strats and teles for like 250~300$, which means pretty nice value for the price

 

[Evan Skopp]

Re: Fender Japan

the reason why fender decided to make their guitars there is to compete with those japanese brands

Actually, the reason Fender decided to use Japanese factories had to do with the management buy-out from CBS in the '80s. Lead by Bill Schultz, the new owners had a company, but they didn't have a factory: at least not at first. Fender's Japanese distributor was a major financier in the buy-out plus they had direct access to Tokai and Fujigen. So the new owners relied on the Japanese office to help arrange production through their factory connections. In fact, in the beginning, the Americans actually sent over work-in-progress: necks and bodies from the USA to Japan for assembly, finish and set-up.

Here's my '85 Made in Japan Strat. I've replaced just about everything on it except the wood and frets. In '89 or '90, I bought it used at Lentine's Music in Akron, Ohio for $175.

 

[ratherdashing]

Re: Fender Japan

I have an '84 Strat and an '85 Tele from Japan. Both are amazing guitars, especially the Strat. Based on the grain pattern in the trem cavity, it appears to have an alder body, which is very unusual for a MIJ Fender.

Japan WAS known for producing lower-priced products in the 70's and 80's, but they were also known for producing high-quality products by the end of that era. The lower-priced side of the equation has now been largely replaced with Chinese and other Asian manufacturing.

If you try to buy a new MIJ Fender now, you will be looking at close to US Fender prices, assuming you can even get your hands on one. I bought both mine used at what would now be considered stupidly low prices.