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schul

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Hi, I recently decided I want to buy an electric guitar to replace my POS Squier Strat. I have been playing guitar for about 4 years, and own a Larrivee acoustic. I'm looking to spend between 300-600 dollars on a quality axe. After some online research I heard that Tokai among other Japanese brands is a well priced yet very high quality manufacturer of Les Paul and Strat lookalikes, among other things.

I'm trying to decide what exactly I want to spend my money on, and where to spend it. I looked on ebay but I'm not exactly sure what to trust in terms of authenticity and quality. Are there any esteemed dealers on ebay or elsewhere that I could check out? Also, should I buy new or vintage? I'm 20 years old and think it would be neat to own a guitar older than myself. Also, what models of Tokais are known to be the best for the money? Any help would be appreciated.
 
look at the model numbers. With a few exceptions the higher number models of any given year Tokai are the better quality. ST-60 and above strats from the 80s are really really good ... TST-55 and above are good... etc. I'm no tokai les paul expert but I'm sure someone here can help you out there.
 
hi schul
welcome to forum
if its a les paul yor after then definatly early 1980s ls70 0r higher or if your budget can stretch go for 1979 reborns
strats are a bit of a mixed bag in the states as they changed the headstock i think in 1985 and a lot of people dont like the pointed shape
although there is absolutly no problem with biuld quality. springy sound is probably the most sought after as they were the first ones then came silverstars which were only produced for the japanese market then came the goldstarsound these are probably the most desirable ones . ther are other models as well as telecasters, but i really cant comment on them as i have nfever played them but i can recomend ither springysound or goldstar sounds. some great deals on ebay, especially from japaneese ebayers . do an ebay search for this member hisashi0731 just had a quick look he does not have anything listed at the moment but he is very trustwothy . i bought a guitar fron him about 9 months ago it took about 4 days to reach the uk. if you are after a new one then ishibashi in japan is your man very good with english and really great prices
hope that helps
 
Thanks for the advice.

Well I looked on ebay a little bit and found this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7382438585

Is this an ST-60? I like the way it looks, and I'm leaning towards a Strat over a Les Paul. I honestly don't know that much about electric guitars and their parts but I'd like to get informed. What are your opinions on this guitar up for auction?
 
this is a silver star, not a springy sound, so it would be SS-XX instead of ST-XX.

It's probably not a 60 or above... might be an SS-38. These are often very fine guitars by some accounts but i've never played a silverstar. They certianly look cool.
 
hey schul,

I really like Silver Stars and agree with the guy in UK selling his. The pickups are perfect for blues. They have a real throaty clank to them. I have an AST-56 - great v-shaped neck but the bridge pickup is way too shrill for me but the SS pickups, even on the lower models are very good. If you buy one, leave them in for a good while - you may well leave them in for keeps. The only downside is that the rosewood board models tend to have narrower necks, which are correct per the Fender mid-70s specs. So if you have huge fingers it might get crowded. The other factor might be the three-bolt neck, which puts some people off, but I rescrew mine tight with a drop of Krazy Glue in the threads and they are very stable. This will definately blow the Squier Strat out of the tub in every way. Plus Tokai's three-color sunbursts were done very well. If you get one from Japan expect to pay about $100 for shipping to USA, but even with that it's worth it. Good luck!

Steve
 
Steve, Silver Star maple necks are wider too,I really liked that SSS36 maple neck I had.....
 
Right you are, Luis!

The maple board necks are i think 1 5/8 inch and the rosewood are closer to 1 9/16. But I've found some slight variation in Tokai neck widths, although they are generally spot on to specs. My 1980 LS50 Reborn Old neck is 1 11/16 wide (and 1958-style fat) and my 1980 Love Rock LS60 is closer to 1 5/8 wide, with a neck that feels more like a 1959 profile. I suppose some variation comes with the fact that the neck's final build also depends on the individual craftsman's eyes and touch.

thanks

Steve

p.s. I like the Silver Star maple necks too 8)
 
So I thought I wanted a strat style guitar due to its tremolo bar, but now I'm leaning towards a les paul simply due to its sexiness. I would definitely spring towards any good deal but I find myself gravitating towards the beauty that is the les paul style. Any recommendations/warnings about what I should look for/avoid? I already know of the ******** Chinese ebay ads that pop up with the same stupid obviously fake ****.
 
schul said:
Any recommendations/warnings about what I should look for/avoid?
Click to expand...
$300-600 for a Love Rock means either a new MIK, a new MIJ from a Japanese dealer (but only the lower models) or a used MIJ from Ebay, so it's up to you what you prefer.
 

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