The Guitar Gallery Forums - The Guitar Legacy of Matsumoku

Q&A, discussion, and information for the labels covered by The Guitar Gallery (Specifically and exclusively guitars made by Matsumoku up to 1987)
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PostPosted: Mon 14 Nov 2011 09:03 AM 
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Axe Slinger
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My guitar guy has an Oakland XI-100 for sale that is in very good condition. It sounds awesome too. Doing some research on the net makes me think this was a badge-engineered Vantage that was sold in Europe.

Here is the link: http://translate.google.com/translate?h ... md%3Dimvns

The guitar for sale looks exactly like this: http://www.gitarrenboerse-online.de/gui ... 0-he-d.jpg
Image

Here are more pics of a darker XI-100: http://www.gitarrenboerse-online.de/gui ... 00-det.jpg
Image

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Orlando P Bass: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=8131
Jarock Electric: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=7923
Yairi DY-80 12: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=8529


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PostPosted: Mon 14 Nov 2011 10:59 AM 
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Nah, it looks just like the high end Skylark to me.


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PostPosted: Mon 14 Nov 2011 11:07 AM 
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Jorg wrote:
Nah, it looks just like the high end Skylark to me.


Funny. The headstock looks Skylark and I was going to say that instead of Vantage. :D

A top of the line neck-through Skylark with mid-level controls?
Image

The Oakland ZX1200 looks more like a top-of-the-line Skylark: http://www.gitarrenfundgrube.de/bilder/ ... 00-det.jpg
Image

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Orlando P Bass: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=8131
Jarock Electric: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=7923
Yairi DY-80 12: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=8529


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PostPosted: Mon 14 Nov 2011 12:26 PM 
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Location: Vienna, Austria
Oakland has been a guitar label for a German chain of music shops in the eighties: Luxor
"Luxor" was distributing Westone from April 1984 in Germany too!
(Vantage was distributed by "Paiste" in 1984/Germany)
Can't tell you where in Japan Luxor let produce Oakland guitars.
Matsumoku is possible. Some similarities to Vantage and particularly Skylark.
But there have been similar guitars from other factories too in the early eighties.
Natural wood finish + neck thru construction was very popular until 1983, 1984!
(Pushed away by the metal axe era from 1984. 1985...)

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All vantage-branded guitars were lower-priced instruments aimed at the beginner-to-intermediate market. It has no interest to collectors and very little demand among players! (www.allexperts.com)


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PostPosted: Mon 14 Nov 2011 02:56 PM 
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mozart wrote:
Oakland has been a guitar label for a German chain of music shops in the eighties: ...


Thanks for the info Amadeus! I inspected the Oakland and it is superbly built. Yeah, it could have been made by any Japanese company in the early '80s. I'll have to open her up to look for more clues. I love the neck-through, string-through natural style and the sound is really, really good.

...I'm GAS'ing so bad I don't know what to offer for her. She needs to join my stable of Notsomoku guitars (My Orlando P-Bass and Jarock Double-Cut) :D

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Orlando P Bass: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=8131
Jarock Electric: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=7923
Yairi DY-80 12: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=8529


Last edited by JarockSG on Mon 14 Nov 2011 03:28 PM, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Mon 14 Nov 2011 03:28 PM 
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I'm willing to bet its just as much a Mat as the Skylark.


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PostPosted: Mon 14 Nov 2011 05:49 PM 
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Jorg wrote:
I'm willing to bet its just as much a Mat as the Skylark.


Indeed. The whole Skylark story does leave open a big question about that big order to Matsumoku that was never completed by the original buyer. All we know of are the three colored guitars picked up by J.C.Penny. When I see guitars like the Oakland one has to wonder if perhaps a natural batch was made and this is it?

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Orlando P Bass: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=8131
Jarock Electric: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=7923
Yairi DY-80 12: http://www.matsumoku.org/ggboard/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=8529


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PostPosted: Mon 14 Nov 2011 06:34 PM 
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Even the TRC is the same.


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PostPosted: Mon 14 Nov 2011 09:35 PM 
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I'm with Jorg- that just screams Skylark to me and there is every reason to think that Matsumoku was tooled up to make more than the 1 year run they did for JC Penny. All conjecture of course......but I'm right. :rofl:


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PostPosted: Tue 15 Nov 2011 03:14 AM 
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I have to concurr with that conclusion. Those Oaklands are dead ringers for the Skylarks, down to small details. Hard to believe they were build somewhere else than at Matsumoku.

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of gathering info on guitars by non-commercial guitar lovers. Why?


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