The Guitar Gallery Forums - The Guitar Legacy of Matsumoku

This one puzzles me a lot : when nowhere MIJ or Japan is mentioned than I'd go for MIK(made in Korea) but this one ...I don't know .
I have a digpic in my database of the same Kawai and supposinly it's made in Japan ( according the ref's from the Ebay seller...although they never state MIK I presume...)
But here ...nothing .The only glue remains indicates that a sticker was present...hélàs gone ..
But this one has the un-symetrical bolts neckplate as the Teisco's.
On the other hand it's build out of (very thick-)layered wood/plywood/multiplex , and has a three layered(wbw)pickguard,with very beauthifull design.
What do you think ???

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lordbizarre's electric guitar and amp museum
Wange,belgium,€pe
electric guitar and amp repair & expertise
http://www.lordbizarre.com

well seek no more !!!
I've compared this guitar with a Kawai S80 ( early 60's ) and the head , tuners & neck are spot-on the same .
It's unimaginable that Korea could or would copy that narrow on the dimensions . Although on this guitar nowhere is mentioned MIJ !
But it seems to me that this guitar , at least the hardware , was one of the major cheap examples that the Koreans used to copy MIJ in the early and mid 70's :pu & trem are the same as on several early Hondo's , as is the neck .
But it can also be that Kawai had some guitars made in Taiwan and those instruments neither have any indications (as f.i. the Kay K-20B or the Kay-2T )

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lordbizarre's electric guitar and amp museum
Wange,belgium,€pe
electric guitar and amp repair & expertise
http://www.lordbizarre.com

Yes , now it's for sure : it's MIJ . I bought ( $ 14)another one and the original MIJ sticker was still on the back of the head.Now to find out what model number it had...?...

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lordbizarre's electric guitar and amp museum
Wange,belgium,€pe
electric guitar and amp repair & expertise
http://www.lordbizarre.com

I was going to say that If I had to guess it would be MIJ based there having been a sticker. I have not seen a MIK with a sticker but I think you have more experience.

Yep,MIK stickers do exist.....same size and same color as the MIJ ones....

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MAA Member since June 29th 2009, taking one baby step at a time..... and failing miserably!

I've looked at all my tags and this is what came out : many many MIJ still on the guitars as this one, only a few ones on the MIK guitars(often or always removed , with a dark rectangular stain or glue remains).The above is from this second Kawai , the one underneath is from Hondo(Samick).MIJ gold or white on black field,MIK black on a silver field.
there can be others , but MIK tags...don't find them easely...are they that bad..?
...and of course MIJ sounds much better on some-bays than MIK...

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lordbizarre's electric guitar and amp museum
Wange,belgium,€pe
electric guitar and amp repair & expertise
http://www.lordbizarre.com