How would you appraise this rare 1968 Kazuo Yairi Masterworks dreadnought?

[mcduffnw]

Originally Posted by luke_h

Spruce and Brazilian rosewood
Adjustable truss rod
Pearl inlays
Beautiful, rich sound

Need help learning more about it.

Photos: http://imgur.com/gallery/n2U4jTJ

The back and sides are Indian Rosewood not Brazilian and the inlays on the fingerboard are Mother of Plastic, not Mother of Pearl.

It is not an upper line Yairi model...middle of the pack...a decent guitar.


duff
Be A Player...Not A Polisher

[luke_h]

The endgraft is definitely larger than the hole, but not significantly.

[Shaneh]

I am not aware of any Yairi with an adjustable bridge or that pin pattern. Might be specific to the CBS line

[edcmat-l1]

Originally Posted by Shaneh

I am not aware of any Yairi with an adjustable bridge or that pin pattern. Might be specific to the CBS line

It's NOT similar to a Yairi, it's similar to an Alvarez. The bridge and saddle are typical of certain Alvarez models.

Again, the tuners alone place it among the mid level Alvarez guitars. They look like semi enclosed and someone at some point left the caps off them. The shape and screw placement are the same.

[hermithollow]

Originally Posted by mcduffnw

The back and sides are Indian Rosewood not Brazilian and the inlays on the fingerboard are Mother of Plastic, not Mother of Pearl.

It is not an upper line Yairi model...middle of the pack...a decent guitar.


duff
Be A Player...Not A Polisher

I'm somewhat surprised the inlays are plastic, the M appears to be made up of three separate pieces, as does the W. I agree the rosewood does appear to be Indian, but it can be difficult to identify wood from a photograph.
One slightly invasive way to tell MOP from plastic is to use a heated needle and press it into an inconspicuous spot. If it sinks into the material it is plastic.
Ultimately a guitars value should be judged on it's sound and playability, but they are never evaluated that way.

[mcduffnw]

Originally Posted by edcmat-l1

It's NOT similar to a Yairi, it's similar to an Alvarez. The bridge and saddle are typical of certain Alvarez models.

Again, the tuners alone place it among the mid level Alvarez guitars. They look like semi enclosed and someone at some point left the caps off them. The shape and screw placement are the same.

Yes This^^^....kinda sorta

edcmat=l1 is correct, this IS an Alvarez based model....NOT really a Yairi based model. Within the Alvarez line at the time this guitar was made, this guitar WAS an upper end model...BUT...at that point in time, an upper end model Alvarez was not in the same caliber and league as a Yairi, or K. Yairi guitar.

So "On Paper" as the saying goes, this is a mid to upper level Alvarez, not up to the overall quality level of the higher end Yairi/K. Yairi line of guitars...BUT...it could still be a terrific guitar in it's own right. One would have to play it to know for sure.


duff
Be A Player...Not A Polisher

[mcduffnw]

Originally Posted by hermithollow

I'm somewhat surprised the inlays are plastic, the M appears to be made up of three separate pieces, as does the W. I agree the rosewood does appear to be Indian, but it can be difficult to identify wood from a photograph.
One slightly invasive way to tell MOP from plastic is to use a heated needle and press it into an inconspicuous spot. If it sinks into the material it is plastic.
Ultimately a guitars value should be judged on it's sound and playability, but they are never evaluated that way.

The back and sides are CLEARLY EIR, and the fingerboard inlays are CLEARLY "Mother of Toilet Seat" as they used to say back in the day when this guitar was made. As far as the headstock inlays, and the rosette and top purfling inlays, it is hard to tell...BUT...this guitar is based out of the Alvarez line, not the higher end Yairi lines of guitars, so it would be extremely rare for them to have used real MOP inlays. They could be, but it would be unusual for the model.


duff
Be A Player...Not A Polisher