Takamine Lawsuit, how you like yours?

[woodruff]

the very first steel string i had as a kid was an early 80's lawsuit takamine dread. lammy maple b/s, lammy spruce top. played and sounded fantastic. coming full circle, i got a chance to get a 1978 Takamine F 350M, the same model as mine, but a bit older.

anyone got one? how you like you lawsuit tak?

[SMan]

I have 3. Like them all.

F360S Solid top

F307 all Laminate with adjustable bridge

EF385 12 String with excellent electronics

[35fingerpicker]

I sold a bunch of them when I had my shop in the late '70s. They are great guitars for the money. I thought the Guild copies sounded more like the models that inspired them but the Martin copies looked more like Martins.

By the way, there never was a lawsuit; Takamine changed the look of the headstocks very soon after hearing from Martin's (and I assume Guild's) lawyers.

Bud

[David_Mead]

I have a Takamine F307 from the 70s. The sound is good – rich trebles, etc, but (understandably) lacking in bass... But for the price I'm certainly not complaining!

[woodruff]

Originally Posted by 35fingerpicker

I sold a bunch of them when I had my shop in the late '70s. They are great guitars for the money. I thought the Guild copies sounded more like the models that inspired them but the Martin copies looked more like Martins.

By the way, there never was a lawsuit; Takamine changed the look of the headstocks very soon after hearing from Martin's (and I assume Guild's) lawyers.

Bud

yeah, i read that too. great story.
i think for me it is more about getting my childhood guitar back....so to speak.

[jayhawk]

I have the F-395S. It is a copy of Guild's F512 right down to the logo. Great guitar. It is a 1977 model that I bought in 1979. Great guitar, for 25 years it was the only guitar I had. I don't play it as much any more because I am trying to learn finger style. I am starting to seriously consider selling it.

Jack

[kydave]

I used to have an EF-307S for a camp guitar. A little solid top 00-18 copy (except for the scale length) with the early factory Tak pickup/preamp combo... Sweet little guitar!

Here it is sandwiched by a 0 and 000 Martin.

[brian a.]

I had a 1978 F312, a copy of the Martin 00-16NY. Nice little guitar. I would still have it had it been the "S" model with a solid top.

[RustyAxe]

EF-349 ... knock off of a Martin D-17 ... with none of the tone ... . But for a mahogany laminate, it still plays very nicely, and sounds pretty good plugged in. It's been my main beater for years, and it's the one that's always out on a stand.

[Neil K Walk]

I've had my '73 F360 for about 17 years now. I haven't babied it, but I've enjoyed playing it the whole time. It's not in the best shape but I hope it lasts awhile longer.

[Bruce E]

Bought my F360S NOS in December of 1981. That makes it 28 years in my posession, and the serial number dates its manufacture to 1978. It's still the guitar I play the most. Just recently it was (once again) mistaken for a D28. I had to persuade the mistaker to actually read the headstock to assure him it was a Takamine.

[woodruff]

Originally Posted by Bruce E

Bought my F360S NOS in December of 1981. That makes it 28 years in my posession, and the serial number dates its manufacture to 1978. It's still the guitar I play the most. Just recently it was (once again) mistaken for a D28. I had to persuade the mistaker to actually read the headstock to assure him it was a Takamine.

awesome story. looks like i will be picking up "my" F 350M on monday. 1978 too. i have the chance to get back my first steel string. well, not my exact copy as that one was ruined in a terrible "humidity" accident.

but i wonder if it is the first real tone i can remember....hmmmm

[mcduffnw]

Hi All:
I owned a 1975 F-400s 12 string, bought it in a pawnshop in 1998. It was just a wonderful guitar, so easy to play fingerpicking/fingerstyle, almost as easy as a 6 string. The action was perfect, I never ever ever had to adjust it, and it had a wonderful full smooth sound with a surprisingly strong bass. It was just a superb guitar, which alas I had to sell due to the financial ravages of a divorce.

I have owned several other so called "lawsuit" Takamines over the years...an F-400 12 string, an F-307s, and F-360s. They were all really terrific guitars!!!

Some folks don't know, but those Takamines from '74 to 79' were really the groundbreaking guitars as far as really making serious inroads into the US acoustic guitar market and developing a really good reputation for foreign made acoustic guitars. Yamaha acoustics had been around much longer, but they did not have the reputation for quality that those early Takamine's developed with the general acoustic guitar buying public.

Occasionally we take one in trade at the GC that I work at, and I am still always impressed at how nicely those guitars are made, and how nice they look, play, and sound!
Very Best Regards
duff

P.S. I wish the weezils who sell on ebay would stop calling them "lawsuit" guitars...NO I don't mean everyone who sells guitars on ebay...just the weezils...you know the ones...who resort to calling guitars "lawsuit" because they think that makes them somehow more valuable or sell better...or whatever??? I think that kind of stuff is tacky and dishonest.

[woodruff]

Originally Posted by mcduffnw

Hi All:


P.S. I wish the weezils who sell on ebay would stop calling them "lawsuit" guitars...NO I don't mean everyone who sells guitars on ebay...just the weezils...you know the ones...who resort to calling guitars "lawsuit" because they think that makes them somehow more valuable or sell better...or whatever??? I think that kind of stuff is tacky and dishonest.

hey duff, i think the lawsuit reference is more about era than anything else. like red label nippon gakki yamahas. but right, there never was a lawsuit. and i am not aware how much takamine changed their design since there was made mention of a "lawsuit"....i thought they just changed the design of the headstock.

[Neil K Walk]

Originally Posted by mcduffnw

Some folks don't know, but those Takamines from '74 to 79' were really the groundbreaking guitars as far as really making serious inroads into the US acoustic guitar market and developing a really good reputation for foreign made acoustic guitars. Yamaha acoustics had been around much longer, but they did not have the reputation for quality that those early Takamine's developed with the general acoustic guitar buying public.

Guess that leaves my '73 out! It's beat!!! But still going strong!

BTW, has anybody ever have one in bad shape repaired? My F360 was in need of a neck reset but I was advised repeatedly not to waste my money. Well, several years ago I decided to have it fixed anyway, but not the right way. Since then I've have other transgressions with it, but it's still kicking and you know what? It's sounds d@mned good compared to several Martins that I've tried. I've tried it against brand new D-28s and they haven't impressed me. I've even tried it against some lower-end Martins and it's actually far outshone them.

Yeah they really came close IMO, but in the case of mine while to my ears its tone has improved over the years - even with the laminated top - the guitar's volume and sustain is still limited. Now that it's 30+ years old somehow even with the lam top it's suffering from the dreaded Martin "belly bulge" with the lifting bridge in addition to the degrading neck set and I've had the crazy idea that maybe she (yes, I feel like I'm married to it so it's a "she" to me!) finally needs an overhaul.

I guess maybe I need talked down, but I'm curious to see what a new top would do for it? I love the golden honey color that it got from natural aging, not toner but even a JLD wouldn't flatten that belly and there's a loose X brace on the treble side adjacent to the bridge. The bridge itself is cracked too so that'd need to be replaced as well.

What do you think? Am I nuts? Don't worry, it's just idle wondering, really. I'm just as likely to just retire it or go through another round of cheap fixes.