Yamaki Guitars

[brianf]

Who knows anything about these? A Yahoo search brought up nothing.

This guitar is at least 25 years old. So are the strings on it!!! A fellow at work brought it in and wanted me to restring it for him.

This thing looks great. Rosewood back and sides. Rosewood bridge. Three piece mahogany neck. All bracing looks ok at first glance. Nice flat rosewood fingerboard with NO FRET WEAR.

http://www.lilypix.com/photos/data/14bfa6bb14875e45bba028a21ed38046/482_p41005.jpg

http://www.lilypix.com/photos/data/14bfa6bb14875e45bba028a21ed38046/482_p41014.jpg

http://www.lilypix.com/photos/data/14bfa6bb14875e45bba028a21ed38046/482_p41009.jpg

http://www.lilypix.com/photos/data/14bfa6bb14875e45bba028a21ed38046/482_p41007.jpg

http://www.lilypix.com/photos/data/14bfa6bb14875e45bba028a21ed38046/482_p41011.jpg

http://www.lilypix.com/photos/data/14bfa6bb14875e45bba028a21ed38046/482_p41010.jpg

http://www.lilypix.com/photos/data/14bfa6bb14875e45bba028a21ed38046/482_p41003.jpg


brianf

[brianf]

Found this:

The complex story of Yamaki guitars is entwined with the histories of a number of other Japanese music companies. In the late 1940s, brothers Yasuyuki and Kazuyuki Teradaira started working for Tatsuno Mokko, an instrument-building firm that later split into two different companies, one of which was called Hayashi Gakki. In 1954 Hayashi Gakki was bought out by Zenon, a large music distributor. In 1962 Yasuyuki left Zenon to start an instrument distributor he called Daion, which means “big sound” in Japanese. In 1967 Kazuyuki left Zenon to produce classical guitars under the name Yamaki, an auspicious Japanese word meaning “happy trees on the mountain.” By the early 1970s, Kazuyuki expanded the Yamaki line to include a large number of steel-string guitars, many of which were based on C.F. Martin and Co.’s designs and were distributed exclusively through Daion. Along with Yamaki guitars, Daion sold instruments from Shinano, Mitsura Tamura, Chaki, and Hamox, some of which were built by Yamaki at various times, and Harptone guitars, which they imported from the US.

Sometime in the late 1960s, Daion began exporting Yamaki guitars to America, where they were well received. By the early 1980s, however, Daion felt that the Yamaki Martin-style guitars were getting lost among similar instruments from other Japanese builders like Takamine, Yasuma, and C.F. Mountain, so they redesigned the entire acoustic line and started building acoustic-electrics and solid-body electrics as well as oddities like double-neck acoustics. They dropped the Yamaki name and rebranded their instruments as Daion guitars. Daion began an extensive advertising campaign to introduce the new line around 1982, but this was a time when musicians were more interested in the new MIDI-equipped synthesizers than in guitars. In 1984 Daion stopped importing guitars to America and soon went out of business. Yamaki, on the other hand, survived the downturn of the 1980s and now makes parts for other Japanese guitar companies.


—Michael John Simmons

[Bolero]

I guess the 1st thing you want to do is verify whether it's solid wood or not...most offshore gtr's are some sort of ply

see if there's an endgrain in the soundhole, of if it's ply. sometimes it's hard to tell

also check the inside woodgrain on the sides/back against the outside...it should be consistent if it's solid. if it's ply the pattern will not match


if it is solid wood, great!!

I've never heard of them or seen one, it may well be a high quality gtr....traditional japanese woodworkers are reknowned for their skill

[brianf]

I guess the 1st thing you want to do is verify whether it's solid wood or not...most offshore gtr's are some sort of ply

see if there's an endgrain in the soundhole, of if it's ply. sometimes it's hard to tell

also check the inside woodgrain on the sides/back against the outside...it should be consistent if it's solid. if it's ply the pattern will not match


l

This sucker is solid rosewood. Same pattern inside as out!!! I offered him 300.00 for it but he does not want to sell it.

My 814CE will be in in the next 10 days and the 614CE shortly thereafter. I'll call you when I get them. I'd like you to try them.

brianf

[NeoFauve]

Sounds like it's time for a set of new strings, give the fretboard the once-over with #0000 steelwool and lemon oil, and see what that baby can do.