Japanese Guitars 101

is a lot of information out there on the web already about old and new Japanese guitars. Thankfully a lot of people have already spent perhaps too much of their time looking into the fine details and variations in model specifications going back to the mid-70's for most major Japanese guitar brands.


Here is some information on the main brands out there and what you might expect to find in a Burny, Greco, Tokai, Navigator or Bacchus-brand Japanese guitar. Please don't take it for gospel as it is just based on my own experience with a limited number of Japanese guitars and may not reflect your view of things. Of course, it may not even be totally accurate! Content being added slowly.....

There have been many Japanese guitars brands over the years. Here are a few of the main ones that you will see around frequently.

Tokai Gakki

Tokai Gakki was originally founded in 1947 and began as a harmonica manufacturer. They started making guitars in the mid-60's with classical guitars and then went into electric guitar production a few years later. 

Around 1978 they came out with their amazingly well made replicas of classic Gibson and Fender designs with the "Les Paul Reborn" model along with the "Springy Sound" and "Breezy Sound" reproductions of the strat and telecaster. Tokai weren't the first to copy Gibson and Fender designs but when they did get into the game they produced arguably the best replicas. These replicas are still sought after and the 1978-1980 guitars in particular command a premium in the used guitar market over most other MIJ guitars produced at the time.

Current website: http://www1.odn.ne.jp/tokaigakki/

Official Tokai online store: http://www.theguitarshop.jp/

Tokai ST-80 "Springy Sound"

Greco
Greco is not a guitar manufacturer, but rather a brand created by the Kanda Shokai Corporation and manufactured over the years by companies such as Fujigen, Matsumoku (no longer in operation) and yes, even Tokai Gakki on an OEM basis. Kanda Shokai started the Greco brand in 1960 with original designs and by the late 60's and early 70's had introduced copies of popular Gibson and Fender guitars. 

Greco gained popularity for their low-priced copies compared with the prohibitive cost of buying the real deal. By the end of the 70's they were producing a full solid body and hollow body lineup with pretty much the same specifications as Gibson and Fender designs plus their own unique models.

"Super Real"-era Headstock

In 1980, likely spurred on by Tokai's success with their amazing LP and Strat/Tele copies, the Super Real series was introduced (1980 Catalog scans here!). A change in specifications and parts was made to more closely match the classic guitars from the 1950s and 1960s. Highlights in the lineup included the high-end EGF-1200 and EGC-1000 LP copies with DRY-Z pickups as well as the Fender strat and tele copies. 

DRY-Z Pickups

In late 1981 and early 1982 Fujigen started using CNC production machines (they were the first in the world to do this according to Fujigen) and Kanda Shokai took advantage to redesign the guitar lineup to make the guitars even more similar to original 50's LPs. However, at the same time Fujigen had won a contract (beating out Tokai) to produce the first licensed Fender guitars in Japan. This effectively knocked the Fender copies out of the Greco lineup leaving only Gibson replicas for the Mint Collection series. 

Mint Collection EG59-100

The Mint Collection series featured arguably the highest quality Greco copies to date due to the CNC production as well as adoption of long-tenon construction, however some may prefer the slightly rougher but "hand made" construction of earlier "Super Real" Greco models. The Mint Collection LP series continued in the 80's and 90's but had less prominence in the lineup than other Greco designs during the time.

The Greco brand eventually dropped out of production in the early 00's but lived on as Greco-Zemaitis with Japanese-licensed production of Zemaitis guitars. Since 2011 Kanda Shokai dropped Greco from the Zemaitis name and introduced a new Greco name with a new lineup of LP and Strat-inspired designs.

Mint Collection EC58-100

Burny and Fernandes

Early '80's Burny RLG-50

The Fernandes guitar company originally stared in February 1969 as Saito Gakki with wholesale business for guitars in the Tokyo areas. In 1972 the name changed to Fernandes and they stated selling “Fernandes” branded guitars.

Fernandes started making Fender and Gibson copies in the mid-'70s with Terada, Tokai, Matsumoku, Dynagakki and even Fujigen manufacturing their models over the years.  


While most Burny LPs are now made in China there are still a couple of MIJ Burny models made in Japan today (RLC and RLG-85).

Company website: http://www.fernandes.co.jp/

Catalogs: http://www.fernandes.co.jp/others/catalog.html

Deviser
This company is an umbrella for Bacchus, Headway, Momose and Seventy-Seven guitars. A relative newcomer compared to the older brands and manufacturers but one of the best in Japan and in the world for quality workmanship (in my opinion at least). There are also other Bacchus guitars made in China, the Philippines and Indonesia under Deviser's management and quality control. 

2012 Bacchus Classic FM 

Nice summary from where else, Guitars Japan!
Deviser website: http://www.deviser.co.jp/


ESP
Electric Sound Products-under construction