Maple? or Spruce?

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frpax

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You guys know the '99 LS-70 I just got...

All the information I've read about the guitar says it's a Spruce top, but it has some wicked flame. I've heard that Spruce doesn't flame.

So, do I have a Flame Maple top? Or, a Spruce top w/ "photo flame"? Or do I have it all wrong?

It sounds fantastic, though.
 
If you are refering to the earlier thread with the "first tokai....."

we need to know what model it is, as it could be Maple solid top or Sycamore laminate with a maple top beneath it.

Defenately not spruce!! Have a look at a dreadnought guitar, good quality Fiddle or mandolin top, they have spruce tops!
Yes You can get some "flame" but its very silky looking and very much smaller than maple and def not as outstanding
 
hawkeye2u said:
If you are refering to the earlier thread with the "first tokai....."

we need to know what model it is, as it could be Maple solid top or Sycamore laminate with a maple top beneath it.

Defenately not spruce!! Have a look at a dreadnought guitar, good quality Fiddle or mandolin top, they have spruce tops!
Yes You can get some "flame" but its very silky looking and very much smaller than maple and def not as outstanding
Sorry about that...it says LS-70 F down in the neck pickup cavity. The top looks to be one piece. Here are photos:

Neckpupcavity.jpg


Neckpupcavity-2.jpg
 
It lookes like its a maple top laminated (please correct me here if I'm wrong)
with a sycamore bookmatched laminate, same as my 98 LS-70F
The Laminate might be really thin!!

Have a look at the grain of the maple top, it looks, to me, like its a "slab cut" as it' growing rings are horizontally, and I cant see a seem in the middle of the guitar, as seen in the top!
In a quaertersawn top the growth rings would be vertically!!

ie cut like most wood, with the grain or imagine a round piece of wood, cut slices of it= slab cut,
to get that bookmarked look thats on your guitar, you need to get a quartersawn piece of wood,ie like a pie slice out of the wood, split that in half and then bookmatch them together, that produces the flame
look

Not to worry as the laminate is really thin and only for looks, the imp thing is the maple top bonded well to a good qual mahogany body, you also have a "ext neck joint, not short, not long , neck tenon, LOL thats what Ive been told on this forum re my 98 LS-70F
Man I love this guitar, my Les Paul Jr is now staying behind at gigs!!!!
 
Yeah, it's solid maple with a flamed sycamore laminate.

The 1-piece appearance just means that the join is quite far to the left or right somewhere, away from the pickup cavity.
 
OK, so the flamed Sycamore laminate is a paper-thin veneer that the finish is applied to?

I am immensly pleased with how this guitar sounds! Acoustically it is very vibrant. This Tokai sounds a LOT better than my Gibson LP Classic. :eek:

Thanks all for your input.

Anyone want to buy a Gibson LP Classic? :wink:
 
Paladin2019 said:
Welcome to the "even better than the real thing" club. :D
Thank you! I'm just glad I finally saw the light! Now I'm trying to convert my friends! All I have to do is let them play mine!
 
frpax said:
This Tokai sounds a LOT better than my Gibson LP Classic. :eek:

Anyone want to buy a Gibson LP Classic? :wink:

My LC80 blew my Gibson Les Paul Classic out of the water too. The Classic was a good guitar, especially with the Fralin PAF replicas I installed, but I sold it, because the Tokai made it redundant :D
 
Yes, I feel the same way, baggypants.

I put in Antiquities in my LP Classic, and it sounds good. But the Tokai is SO much better.

I'm sure I'll be looking for another nice Tokai to drop those Antiquities into and sell the LP.
 

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