Fujigen also used solid woods for the bodies, and worked closely with Matsumoku factory in the city of Matsumoto. This is just one example, but it requires a bit of reading and studying about the nuances of that hardware to positively identify the Fujigens for what they are.ДЇujigen was the largest exporter of guitars to the USA, with Kawai coming in a close second.

For example, Fujigen embossed 'mic 1' and 'mic 2' into their metal control plates, while Teisco did not.

The Fujigen hardware is the easiest way to tell these guitars apart from Teiscos. But FujigenвЂ™s work in the вЂ60s is our focus. ZenвЂ“On also used plywood on almost all of its guitar bodies, though its top of the line and MoralesвЂ“branded guitars sometimes featured twoвЂ“piece sandwich style construction.ДЇujigen went on to achieve lasting fame as the manufacturer of Greco guitars in the вЂ70s and Fender Japan in the вЂ80s and early вЂ90s. The ZenвЂ“On brand name is relatively unknown outside of Japan, but it produced a large number of OEM guitars for overseas brands.ДЄs mentioned earlier, many of its guitars included a gold foil pickup that looks deceptively like the original TeiscoвЂ™s. 2 on the list of guitars most often mistaken for Teiscos. Occasionally, Kawai has periodically produced reissues of the most famous Teisco guitars: the K-series shark fins and the Spectrum 5. Kawai continued to produce TeiscoвЂ“branded guitars, amps, and even synthesizers in dwindling numbers up through the midвЂ“вЂ70s. Kawai used this feature on a majority of its solid bodies, while original Teisco guitars never used string bars and instead favoured pitched headstocks. There is one good way to distinguish a Kawai (or a KawaiвЂ“era Teisco) from an original Teisco: look for a string bar on the headstock. But with Zen-OnвЂ™s (or several other manufacturersвЂ™) gold foil pickups, these setвЂ“screw pole pieces run through the middle. On a true Teisco gold foil pickup, these six screws are on top of the pickup. How can you tell these gold foils apart? Look for the fake setвЂ“screw pole pieces. But beware, many Japanese manufacturers made gold foil pickups that share some characteristics with TeiscoвЂ™s, yet are not the same. Original Teisco factory guitars from before the Kawai sale can be some great players, and many of them feature highly sought after gold foil pickups made famous by Ry Cooder. Using Gold Foil Pickups to Identify Teiscos and other Vintage Japanese Guitars TeiscoвЂ™s subsidiary manufacturing plant Teisco Gen Gakki (Japanese for вЂњTesico Stringed InstrumentsвЂќ) was not included in the sale, as Kawai decided to transfer manufacturing to its own plant in Hamamatsu. The company enjoyed increasing success right through the big Japanese guitar boom in 1965, but a 1967 downturn in fortunes resulted in the company and brand being sold to Kawai. Teisco started making lap steels in the late 1940s, and by the вЂ50s were making solid bodies and archtops.

If weвЂ™re talking about guitars that are often mistaken for Teiscos, we need to start out talking about Teisco, which has a bit of a confusing history. This guide looks at all of the different guitar manufacturers working in Japan in the 1960s so that you can begin to differentiate between their products and get a better idea of what you're buying. The Norma brand has guitars that were made by Teisco Gen Gakki, Sakkai, and Tombo, as well as several other manufacturers. Often, these guitar brands would source guitars from multiple manufacturers to fit different price points in their catalogs. This means that a company (for example, Strum and Drum of Wheeling, Illinois) could approach a Japanese manufacturer (in this case, Sakkai) and ask it to produce a guitar branded for that contracting companyвЂ™s inвЂ“house brand name (Norma). Like Kleenex for tissues or Dumpster for large garbage containers, the brand Teisco has become a kind of shorthand for вЂњstrange looking Japanese guitar from the 1960s.вЂќ When someone posts a picture on a forum of a vintage Japanese guitar that heвЂ™s trying to identify, five people will immediately shout out вЂњTeisco!вЂќ Occasionally, theyвЂ™re even right.Д«ut the reality of the matter is that while Teisco did produce over a million guitars during the course of its history, there are also a few million more JapaneseвЂ“made guitars that are decidedly not Teiscos.Д«efore we jump in, itвЂ™s important to note that all of these companies weвЂ™re about to discuss were Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) producers for a variety of brands both in Japan and abroad.

Teisco guitar models