"Nashville Musical Instrument Co." ??? help ID

[msbedard]

Just picked up an NMI W610 over the weekend. Other than the sticker inside, the only mark is the ink stamp on a cross brace at the base of the neck which simply says "50". Pleasantly surprised as to how well this sounds. I was searching for an outside beater but this may turn out to be much, much more.

[carl cole]

I have a 73 f400 that doesn't say anything about Japan,label Nashville Musical Institute...was this actually made in Nashville?

[ship of fools]

Its possible that it might be a different maker all together the NMI are Nashville Musical Instruments and yours says Nashbille Musical Institute and you should not be advertising instruments for sale here, there is a classified area for that to happen.ship

[carl cole]

No,my mistake says Instrument,not Institute...have no idea where that came..anyway,no reference to Japan.

[RobG]

I have a Nashville N400D. Sounds pretty good. I bought it in San Francisco in 1976 or 1977. The dealer I bought it from said he got a bunch of Nashville Guitars when their factory went bankrupt in Matsumoto, Japan.

[dwjackson]

Hey, Enjoying the post about the NMI's. I was the "tape copy boy" at Tree Publishing Company in the late 70's and a few of the songwriters/session players were talking about a great little guitar that they had purchased. Of course, back then there were very few pickups in guitars so everything was miked and they said these guitars were so bright and recorded well that I thought that this is what I needed. ( I learned on a 20 dollar classical that my dad bought me on a church mission trip to Mexico in 67') I went over to 21st Ave in Hillsboro Village to a music store named Cotton's Music and I talked to one of the salesmen and he said he would look for a "good one" and call me. He did and I bought it for 300.00.(Still have the receipt) This was in 1980 and I still have it and play it all the time. I just bought a Martin but the NMI plays just as nice. Cheers guys. Hope this helps on your quest for the truth.

[wtobiassen]

My wife has an NMI that she bought in Chapel Hill, NC, in 1980, for $400. It appears to be a Martin copy, probably a D45. The rosewood back has a graft on the inside, making me believe that it's solid wood. It is beautifully appointed, with herringbone purfling and ivoroid binding. It has a bound ebony fret board with snowflake inlay. It has a pyramid shape carving on the neck-head joint, which I know is typical of certain Martins but I'm not sure which models. It plays great and sounds beautiful. My wife says she doesn't know if this is meaningful to anyone else, but Tommy Thompson of the Red Clay Ramblers used to play one, too.

[wurlstratzer]

Greetings, I own a Nashville N-40DS, I bought the guitar in 1977 new in the U.K. when I lived there. Today I decided to take the guitar out of its case, first time in about 8 years. I thought i'd research the web, see what's out there, none on ebay and this forum showed up, so here I am. My guitar is in near mint condition, plays superbly and i'm not just saying that because i own the guitar, prior to my purchase I tried many guitars, this one stood out, craftsmanship, tone that sings, in fact when I recorded an album in the mid 80s (u.k.) the engineer said that the guitar sounded as good as any Gibson D45....well i've tried D45s and I believe this guitar is superior. I was not aware that Martin Guitar co. had lawsuits out against the makers of this guitar back in the 70s, interesting reading this forum. If you youtube my handle your socks will probably be knocked off, well you know how inventive the brits can be! if there is a way to post pics on this forum of my Nashville I will add them... regards...

[DonsPickin]

I'm new here also. I have a NMI W613M . Anyone know anything about this model . It also has 0008 on the brace . Thanks

[Grover57]

I just dusted off my guitar and found this discussion. I also have a NMI 613. Original owner bought in 1978 for about $250. Nice playing and nice tone. Have enjoyed it for many years. Is there any new information in NMI guitars?

[sherpa]

Since my first post I have done some research. Here is what I have been able to find.
For those who's headstock read 'Nashville' these are probably made or distributed by Gower.
For those who's headstock read 'Nashville Musical Instrument Co' or 'NMI' these are probably made by Moridiara, a Japenese manufacturer.
The 'Nashville Musical Instrument Co.' label (inside) was used by both Gower and a Nashville based distributor in the mid to late 70's.
I'm not sure about the so called lawsuit but NMI did go out of business around 1980. NMI imported there guitars from Japan. Moridiara manufactured guitars sold under many US labels and are still making the Morris line of guitars (thus the Morris tuning pegs on some of these guitars).
I recently contacted Morris guitars in Japan and was told that there were no records dating back that far and that they did not record serial no.s back then. Sounds a little fishy, why stamp them and not record them? Could be a cover up if there was a lawsuit.
However, they did send me a catolog page of Morris guitars from that time period. They are not only the same Model no.s but are constructed of the same materials. From the picture of the W604, which is my guitar model, the only difference is the Morris has white trim on the headstock, otherwise it is identical.
So in my opinion, these are definately Moridiara guitars.

[SFCRetired]

Very cool. I love history and guitars. Thanks for letting us know.

One thing I have learned since the advent of the internet is there are many people who claim there were all these lawsuits concerning Martin guitars, but no record of these lawsuits has ever been proven to my knowledge. I believe there were some letters back and forth but that's about it. If these lawsuits did exist then why are people still copying Martin Guitars?

(sorry for straying off topic but it is kind of in the subject matter)

[SKINBANDIT]

~1980 in SF I bought two Nashville D45 copies, both made Sept 1977 N550D model. Think about $250 ea. Gave one to ex GF. Indian Rosewood (?ply on back, solid sides), ivory nut and saddle, ?ebony vs rosewood bridge, so dark, rosewood FB, hexagons, standard ?MOP flowerpot on rosewood headstock. Purfling very well done but ?imitation ab. Beautiful player, good tone, especially capoed. Equal at least to most postwar CFM D-28s incl a 1955 one that was stolen a year before. Arthritis keeps me from playing as much as I like but well pleased with this one.

1924 A-4 Snakehead Cherry burst w/ Virzi
2006 Gib SG Supreme Fireburst
1980 Masterclone, TopTension, style 5 Wreath cherry burst Reed L

[che1129]

Hi all,

I signed up for the forum because I was intrigued by the NMI discussion and the mystery behind the company. I have an NMI W601M. I took guitar lessons when I was 12 or so and that would have been 1975ish. It may not be that big of a deal when it comes to guitars but I would welcome feedback. I am a teacher who struggles financially in the summer and would like to sell this for more than $100 if it is worth more. I found one NMI guitar on ebay and it sold for $204 and was referred to as "the lawsuit guitar". Just not sure if a lot of people are aware of the apparent controversy with the company. Anyway, I am attempting to link to a dropbox folder so that you can see the photos. Again, any information would be appreciated. Thanks!
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/0i8obu3sn...cn7444F3a?dl=0

[carl cole]

I would like to help you if possible...where do you live?