Vintage Japanese dreadnought, sweet natural dark stain and old-style plastic tuning pegs
When I got my hands on this one, it had a set of electric guitar strings on it and was a little dirty. I cleaned her up and put a new set of D'Addario acoustic XLs on last night. The tone isn't as nice as the TA500, but I think if I put a bone saddle, this one will come closer to that sound.
It's a little beat up, with some small nicks along the body, but it's structurally sound. The neck and bridge don't show any signs of giving anytime soon, so at around 40 years old, this one looks like it still has lots of life left.
Thanks for looking, more high-resolution photos here.
I own a Taka model No.W800S. I bought about 35 years ago from a british friend in Bogota Colombia and he had bought it in Japan while his father was a diplomat there. The sound of this guitar is amazingly loud and clear. I did put the bone saddle and the luthier that did the job said the wood on the back and sides is Palo Santo form Madagascar. It still my favorite guitar from many I own. I guess they dont make them anymore. It has alittle crack on the front side from all the miles this guitar has put with me. It has followed me around in many countries I have lived and still is the first thing i Pack whem I´m hitting the road. Long live the Takas man. Guillermo Gutierrez
ReplyDeleteThanks for checking out the site, Guillermo. If you have any photos of that W800S to share, I'd love to see them.
ReplyDeleteHow much is this guitar worth? I have one and want to sell it but I don't know how much I should list it for
ReplyDeleteHi there, you won't see many listings for the Taka brand, but these old off-brand, lower-level Japanese and Korean guitars are usually listed between $100-200 on craigslist and ebay.
ReplyDeleteThis is the TAKA TG-310 I bought in Southern California as a kid in 1976./Users/seanmarshall/Pictures/Photo Booth Library/Pictures/Photo on 2-18-18 at 11.16 AM.jpg
ReplyDelete/Users/seanmarshall/Pictures/Photo Booth Library/Pictures/Photo on 2-18-18 at 11.20 AM.jpg
Old post, not sure if it will ever be seen but... I have the same exact TAKA as photographed in OP. Mine was a HS graduation present in 1984, and purchased by my folks at Heck Music in Ventura Ca. Incidentally enough, I decided to look up the TAW501 after pulling this one out of the garage as a TLC makeover; this one is dinged up a bit, and I'm actually amazed as to the amount of fingerboard grime left on it over the years (it would do Mike Cambell proud). I took a peek to see if the truss rod needed any tweaking, and funny enough, it doesn't. I seem to remember this one sounding best with some D'A p-bronzes,and thankfully I have a set. Cheers.
ReplyDeleteI lost my Taka 800s in the fire in Paradise,Ca on 11/8/2018. So heartbroken. I had owned it since 1991 and it was a beautiful little guitar, fit me perfectly and rang like a little bell when played. Sweetest sound I had ever found. If anyone ever has one to sell, please contact me.
ReplyDeleteAllihansen@aol.com
Can anyone tell me about my TAKA-TA501?
ReplyDeleteQuite an old post but I found a TAKA W400 - (the serial number is faded after that) at a dump market in great condition. I haven't seen any post about this guitar. Any info would be amazing. It seems to be solid wood, with a bone bridge, and engraved metal for the tuning knobs. I don't want to sell it, I just want more info.
ReplyDeletedaknight101@gmail.com