Gee, this has sure turned into a fun thread ... :roll:
I'm no expert so I can't make a call here, but it seems that there is no rock-solid way to tell if what's being sold online is an LS100 or LS 120, because the stickers are almost always gone. True, the neck angle and pickup models offer clues, but it doesn't seem definitive to me. And what exactly does "Tiger Flame," (on the translated spec sheet) mean, anyway?
The catalogs on the Registry show some LS80s with almost as much flame as the LS120. They also show LS120s with covered Dimarzios and also uncovered. If Gottfried is right, that the real LS120s have the deep neck joint with an extended tongue (sounds kinda gross, huh?), then this really throws a spanner into the works. This could mean that people could be overestimating their guitars' model numbers and hence, valuation.
But this LS120 flap raises other issues. For example, it makes economic sense to me that Tokai sold more LS100s than 120s. Were there were really that many Japanese customers in the early 1980s who would pay an extra 20,000-40,000 Yen (more than an LS100) for a bit of extra flame? For a copy of a Gibson? If this is so, why are there so many LS120s out there? Or are they LS100s in sheep's clothing? Who can tell? The LS120s should be more scarce, but lately there has been quite a few 120s on eBay. Why are all these "Holy Grail" Tokais beginning to show up as their asking price approaches and exceeds the $2K plateau?
I love the controversies on these issues, but until we get a definitive word on how to ID LS120s (and higher models) from the Tokai craftsmen who made them (ie., a dead-accurate book) or more catalogs that are acurately translated, it seems very specious to me. I wouldn't spend that kind of jack for an LS120 when it could be a 100 or even an LS80 with some flame. But then, as a former reporter, I can't help being skeptical.
I also love this Website, because it reflects all the hard work to make it so accurate and impartial. Kudos to Ned, once again.