Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

[Tony_H]

Hi all,

Someone is offering this guitar at a local web ad site.

http://www.fender.cz/img_inz/90816.jpg

Made ca. 1972 Japan - custom by Fujigen Gakki, Matsumoku. Mahogany body with "palisander" (rosewood?) top, mahogany + rosewood neck.
I'd love to have it but I don't have the dough that I think it's worth. Can you suggest how much one like this would cost in the US these days? I'm just curious.

Tony

 

[Xeromus]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

I don't know, in the 70's Japanese products weren't exactly the best. I doubt that guitar is worth very much at all. But I don't really know much about them. In my opinion it's pretty ugly too. But if you like it, check it out and get more info on it and play it.

 

[beandip]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

Yeah, not really diggin it. Whoever posted that guitar with everything made out of wood and turquiose inlays, that was a purdy guitar.

 

[Tony_H]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

I don't know, in the 70's Japanese products weren't exactly the best. I doubt that guitar is worth very much at all. But I don't really know much about them. In my opinion it's pretty ugly too. But if you like it, check it out and get more info on it and play it.

I'm asking because several forum members here said some Japanese "pre-lawsuit" guitars were of pretty good quality. But I don't know what period "pre-lawsuit" refers to. And maybe I'm confused about what pre-lawsuit is.

 

[Colma]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

Yeah, not really diggin it. Whoever posted that guitar with everything made out of wood and turquiose inlays, that was a purdy guitar.

i didnt care for that guitar too much :-\

 

[Xeromus]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

I'm asking because several forum members here said some Japanese "pre-lawsuit" guitars were of pretty good quality. But I don't know what period "pre-lawsuit" refers to. And maybe I'm confused about what pre-lawsuit is.

There were specific japanese guitar makers that made awesome LP copies at the time. Ibanez was one of them. That doesn't mean ANY japanese LP copy is good just because it was made around the same period of time. That one looks like a pawn shop special and not worth much.

 

[Skarekrough]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

There were specific japanese guitar makers that made awesome LP copies at the time. Ibanez was one of them. That doesn't mean ANY japanese LP copy is good just because it was made around the same period of time. That one looks like a pawn shop special and not worth much.

The Japanese LP copies that were awesome were the ones being produced out of Fuji-GenGakki factory in Japan. This factory essentially made guitars to order for the company and were just branded for the different companies buying them.

Essentially there were several different names coming out of the same factory; Ibanez, Greco and Burny are the most notable. I believe Tokai might of been as well but I couldn't ever confirm it.

Ibanez is the most well known because they exported them into the United States and with Gibsons severely diminished quality control in the middle of the Norlins era they just stomped up and down on them. The Japanese Les Pauls smoked just about anything coming out of Kalamazoo and were a fraction of the price.

This is what prompted Gibson to draw up the lawsuit which would of been served at NAMM had Ibanez not changed their design (whether pre-emptively or not has never been said) and the lawsuit never ended up leaving Gibsons hands.

I find the quality of both Burnys and Grecos into even the 90's to be excellent. I own an 87' that has one of the nicest split-tops I've ever seen and the electronics are excellent on it. I've bought and re-sold a handfull of others as a profit-making venture and all of them have smoked Gibsons equivilant, even at an equal price-point. Go ahead and shave 3/4 of the cost and it's one of the best deals in the world of guitars at this day.

 

[pac112]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

is that an orville i see on the thrust rod cover?

 

[Xeromus]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

The Japanese LP copies that were awesome were the ones being produced out of Fuji-GenGakki factory in Japan. This factory essentially made guitars to order for the company and were just branded for the different companies buying them.

Essentially there were several different names coming out of the same factory; Ibanez, Greco and Burny are the most notable. I believe Tokai might of been as well but I couldn't ever confirm it.

Ibanez is the most well known because they exported them into the United States and with Gibsons severely diminished quality control in the middle of the Norlins era they just stomped up and down on them. The Japanese Les Pauls smoked just about anything coming out of Kalamazoo and were a fraction of the price.

This is what prompted Gibson to draw up the lawsuit which would of been served at NAMM had Ibanez not changed their design (whether pre-emptively or not has never been said) and the lawsuit never ended up leaving Gibsons hands.

I find the quality of both Burnys and Grecos into even the 90's to be excellent. I own an 87' that has one of the nicest split-tops I've ever seen and the electronics are excellent on it. I've bought and re-sold a handfull of others as a profit-making venture and all of them have smoked Gibsons equivilant, even at an equal price-point. Go ahead and shave 3/4 of the cost and it's one of the best deals in the world of guitars at this day.

ah so that's why that name is familiar. What do you think of this guitar though? It's hard to place what it is exactly. It could be a nice guitar or a junker.

 

[theboatcandream]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

It looks nice?

 

[Skarekrough]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

ah so that's why that name is familiar. What do you think of this guitar though? It's hard to place what it is exactly. It could be a nice guitar or a junker.

It has two things going for it, which are related. The back of the tuners give the era and location of manufacture some credence. With that in mind it does have the potential to be an impressive instrument. The Ibanez Bob Weir models had that style of vine-inlay, and by all accounts they did a fine job with it.

For me the downside is that I love the Japanese guitars due to their ability to wholly "clone" an existing instrument. The Black Beauty LPC clone I have is just gorgeous and spot-on from stem to stern. When they were trying to make someone elses guitar they achieved amazing results. With this instrument NOT being their attempt to do that and their previous offerings from the late 60's being pretty dreadful I'm reluctant.

The pickups make me nervous as well. I'm becoming a believer that age of electronics can be a bigger factor than quality when dealing with tone. By rights the pickups on the Fuji-GenGakki made guitars were "cheap." Yet I keep finding that the ones that have 20 years on them sound fantastic. A few months ago I replaced the stock pickups on one of my own with a 59'/JB combo and felt that it was a tonal downgrade. There was a MUCH better tone from the pickups that had years of aging to them versus ones that were made to older specs but were still new.

It'd be a big dilemma with me on it. Bone-stock I'd have less of a struggle with it. I don't view the pickup change to be indicative of a negative asessment of the stock pickups; people do stupid things to good guitars all the time and try to make guitars that aren't made to play a style of music bend to their whim. Rosewood can make a nice top, but with so much of it in one place it looks unspectacular. It'd have to play like a dream and I'd want to have the chance to do that before I could make that asessment.

Man...I feel like I typed alot and never got an answer....

 

[Fresno Bob]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

I have a 1974 Univox LP (2-bolt), and love to to death. It plays like butter, and can handle a multitudes of alternate tunings while still sounding GOOD! The original pickups were awesome...soooo hot!

And to be quite honest, I think it runs circles around a lot of those $2k Gibsons that are out these days.



...and just think, it only cost me $197.

 

[hans-jürgen]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

Essentially there were several different names coming out of the same factory; Ibanez, Greco and Burny are the most notable. I believe Tokai might of been as well but I couldn't ever confirm it.

As far as I know Tokai Gakki always had their own factory, as they started as a rather small "family" company. You can find more info on the Tokai forum, also about other Japanese guitars.

 

[Tony_H]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

Man...I feel like I typed alot and never got an answer....

Well you gave me a lot of answers! Thanks a lot for your insights. I was just curious because I cannot afford this guitar at the moment anyway. And of course you have to try it before you buy it, and if this one weren't spectacular-sounding and playing, I wouldn't go for it even if I had the money. I still remember what my 1992 LP Studio was like (the best guitar I ever had and played), so I believe I can compare. Oh, and I do like the guitar, although the rosewood top sure looks kind of strange.
The guy says it's all original except for new frets, and from my previous dealings with him, I have no reason to suspect him of cheating. He offered a couple of old Japanese guitars on that site before.

 

[Guest]

Re: Look at this guitar ... gorgeous!

Palisander is from the same family as rosewood but not the same thing. My dad, a carpenter, says it some say its closer to ebony others to rosewood. Neither one of us has had any conact with this wood.

Oh, thats a great looking guitar in my book.