Well here goes for what it?s worth. My humble opinion on how two copies of this great guitar compare to the real thing.
Firstly, my long gone but well remembered 1959 TV D/C Junior.
This actual guitar appeared in a mid-late 1980?s Guitarist Mag Oldies but Goodies feature alongside a matching Les Paul Junior Champ type combo amp.
Don?t know if anyone remembers this feature. Andy Summers was the cover Artist.
It was in great but lovingly used condition. No breaks etc. Only issue was changed tuners & bridge, but I managed to locate these parts anyway. It was unfeasibly light in weight and had an unplugged sweet warm resonance that burst into life when plugged in
The neck was the chubby variety and once I got used to it, felt very comfortable & natural.
Alas, after a near miss at a gig, where some stupid idiot decided to drench everyone with a high powered water pistol, missing me by inches, I decided to retire it from gigs & as I couldn?t really afford to pop it under the bed & forget about it for a few years, off it went.
Tokai TJ60
I remember when these first came out and I got pretty fired up as previously, the only other accurate looking replicas I?d seen were 1980?s Burny?s which only seemed to be available overseas, before eBay changed all that.
Compared to my 59, I remember the TJ60 being quite weighty & sound wise, it was pretty good, although it did lack power/warmth.
Had I kept it, a pickup change would have been imminent. My main gripe was the Thick plasticy, slightly see through yellow finish.
The guitar had a chip in the paint and I could see the thickness of it.
It was almost like it?d been dipped in yellow goo and left to dry.
The neck was quite chunky, but not as much as the 59.
Edwards ESP TV Jnr
I saw one of these for sale on eBay, but from Japan, so by the time they?d added import duty & VAT etc it became quite expensive, so I felt very fortunate to find another for sale in the UK.
In the pictures, it looked extremely authentic. Thin finish. The right shade of TV yellow = not too bright. Shell pickguard etc & when I finally got it, I could not believe the lightness & resonance. Now this is much closer to the real thing.
These are equipped with a Seymour Duncan P90, so it comes much closer to the real thing in terms of power & tone. The neck seems a halfway between the chubby 59 and the slimmer 60?s shape and the quality of fretting is spot on. Also, this guitar will just not go out of tune. A problem I?ve often had with Gibson type guitars.
My only slight disappointment, but nothing that can?t be upgraded is the small cheap looking mini Vol & Tone pots. (Talk about sinking the ship etc)
Also on closer inspection, the Shell pickguard is a white backed laminate affair.
I might have to change/modify these at some point.
Mine is the LT = Lacquer Top model which I?m informed means it?s a Nitro finish.
So called the barely finished effect, to approximate a thin vintage finish.
This looks convincing from a distance & gives that dull patina, but only ok close up.
I think this definitely contributes to the resonance though.
All in all a very comfortable light resonant guitar and IMO is the best replica out of the few I?ve owned & tried.
Firstly, my long gone but well remembered 1959 TV D/C Junior.
This actual guitar appeared in a mid-late 1980?s Guitarist Mag Oldies but Goodies feature alongside a matching Les Paul Junior Champ type combo amp.
Don?t know if anyone remembers this feature. Andy Summers was the cover Artist.
It was in great but lovingly used condition. No breaks etc. Only issue was changed tuners & bridge, but I managed to locate these parts anyway. It was unfeasibly light in weight and had an unplugged sweet warm resonance that burst into life when plugged in
The neck was the chubby variety and once I got used to it, felt very comfortable & natural.
Alas, after a near miss at a gig, where some stupid idiot decided to drench everyone with a high powered water pistol, missing me by inches, I decided to retire it from gigs & as I couldn?t really afford to pop it under the bed & forget about it for a few years, off it went.
Tokai TJ60
I remember when these first came out and I got pretty fired up as previously, the only other accurate looking replicas I?d seen were 1980?s Burny?s which only seemed to be available overseas, before eBay changed all that.
Compared to my 59, I remember the TJ60 being quite weighty & sound wise, it was pretty good, although it did lack power/warmth.
Had I kept it, a pickup change would have been imminent. My main gripe was the Thick plasticy, slightly see through yellow finish.
The guitar had a chip in the paint and I could see the thickness of it.
It was almost like it?d been dipped in yellow goo and left to dry.
The neck was quite chunky, but not as much as the 59.
Edwards ESP TV Jnr
I saw one of these for sale on eBay, but from Japan, so by the time they?d added import duty & VAT etc it became quite expensive, so I felt very fortunate to find another for sale in the UK.
In the pictures, it looked extremely authentic. Thin finish. The right shade of TV yellow = not too bright. Shell pickguard etc & when I finally got it, I could not believe the lightness & resonance. Now this is much closer to the real thing.
These are equipped with a Seymour Duncan P90, so it comes much closer to the real thing in terms of power & tone. The neck seems a halfway between the chubby 59 and the slimmer 60?s shape and the quality of fretting is spot on. Also, this guitar will just not go out of tune. A problem I?ve often had with Gibson type guitars.
My only slight disappointment, but nothing that can?t be upgraded is the small cheap looking mini Vol & Tone pots. (Talk about sinking the ship etc)
Also on closer inspection, the Shell pickguard is a white backed laminate affair.
I might have to change/modify these at some point.
Mine is the LT = Lacquer Top model which I?m informed means it?s a Nitro finish.
So called the barely finished effect, to approximate a thin vintage finish.
This looks convincing from a distance & gives that dull patina, but only ok close up.
I think this definitely contributes to the resonance though.
All in all a very comfortable light resonant guitar and IMO is the best replica out of the few I?ve owned & tried.
