Tokai ST80 1982

[Tom H]

You need to nitro test the guitar in an inconspicuous area (pickup cavity) if it’s nitro and it melts with the acetone on a cue tip then it’s ST80 or above (you can see online or YouTube how to do this just search ‘nitrocellulose acetone test) be careful not to get acetone anywhere it will destroy any nitro finish you have!) from the pictures I would be 90% sure this is a nitro finish.
Also take the neckplate screws out completely, does the neck fit the body without the screws in? if it does it’s possible they might not have been drilled properly from the factory (unusual with Tokai but everyone is entitled to a mistake now and again and one slips through the net) if so the screw holes on the neck could be plugged and re drilled. This would explain your intonation issues. As the scale length will not be correct due to the gap caused by the screws pulling the neck into an incorrect place.
Hoping some of that helps!

 

[Homer J. Simpson]

Sorry to hear about this! Is the pic of the bridge in fully intonated state? If so, it doesn't look much different from e.g. my Zeus Strat (at least on the treble side), meaning the overall neck position may not be that far off. Of course that gap isn't nice and if you can't get full intonation with it, gluing dowels in the holes and drilling new holes in the neck could be an option.



Edit: You wrote it's intonated, so the neck is in the correct position, it's just body and neck not matching. Bummer.

Wonder if the neck pocket has been opened up at some point to fit a non tokai neck.

Unless the body was refinished after that, it doesn't really look like that (the pics look like it's the same color coat at that spot). Maybe the body is from e.g. a 22 fret neck Tokai and the Tokai 22F necks have a slightly longer heel? Necks are often said to be interchangeable 21F -> 22F but the other way around?

Also an A which could mean it is an ST80 body.

The A is on the neck?

 

[ATO]

The A is on the neck?

Stamped on the body too.

 

[Homer J. Simpson]

Ah, there it is, so faint I missed it.

 

[Omiewise65]

https://www.strat-talk.com/threads/tokai-springy-sound.362155/page-2
There was a thread on Strat talk where someone posted about another Soringy Sound with the WB code !

 

[ATO]

White Blonde? Looks BL to me.

 

[ATO]

Were the Mary Kaye copies WB?

Edit: can see this has been discussed in an earlier thread on this guitar

 

[Homer J. Simpson]

White Blonde? Looks BL to me.

We discussed this before (about this particular guitar) here:
https://www.tokaiforum.com/threads/the-color-palette-of-vintage-tokais.26703/page-5#post-208070
But checking the seller pics in that thread again (also from the refret) and the ones on top of this thread, none of the pics look like there's such a pronounced gap between fretboard and pickguard? Of course they are no close-up shots but I imagine that would show at least a little bit? Did the guitar have a shim (near the body edge, to lower the neck angle) maybe?

Edit: I think there a liitle bit to see here:

 

[ATO]

Well spotted. Bizarre! Something has definitely happened during the refret.

 

[Sigmania]

Were the Mary Kaye copies WB?

Edit: can see this has been discussed in an earlier thread on this guitar

I screwed up. I think it is W8

 

[Sigmania]

There was a thread on Strat talk where someone posted about another Soringy Sound with the WB code !

I think it is actually W8 when I looked closer.

 

[Homer J. Simpson]

Here's both of them in a single stamp line:

 

[Sigmania]

To follow up on what I said above, here is my 1981 ST80 MRR. Note the A stamp on the body.

 

[Sigmania]

Not the first error in color codes that I’ve seen.

Errors, Odd, Incorrect Or Mismatched Body Codes

 

[Omiewise65]

After I put it together again , the gap is gone . The pickguard screws probably did not sit exactly in the holes I guess .
Thanks a lot everyone for helping me to find out what I have there . Will do the Acetone test to finally secure it‘s nitro lacquer..cheers

 

[Sigmania]

Oh good.

And the paint over the code reminds me of Sia's ST100.

Tokai ST-100 OW | SiaVintageGuitars

 

[ATO]

It certainly an odd one. To my eyes it looks to be a B rather than an 8, and with the ST100 on strat-talk having the same colour and stamp I would've thought it unlikely to be an error with the stamp. Same time period as the elusive TG!

 

[Sigmania]

It was made mid year. What is the serial number?

 

[ATO]

It was made mid year. What is the serial number?

0318. It's on another thread.

 

[Sigmania]

OK. That is an ST80 serial number.

I am not sure about where that falls since I don't see a lot of maple neck ST80s from 1980.

Interesting.