new user, need tokai love rock suggestions

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pewing33ny

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hi, i've been lurking for a few weeks and need suggestions on a tokai love rock.

I have a superstrat (kind of like EVH) right now and i never really got into les pauls because the only one i ever owned was an agile which sucked and i sold it a week or so after i got it. i recently have been playing gibson lp classics which are really nice but then again their $1600 new and around $1000 used.

I really love ebony fingerboards but i've been more open to rosewood after playing some gibsons (they have higher quality rosewood then strats, acoustics and other rosewood fingerboard guitars i've played)

anyway i've done some research and i want to get something better then the korean Love rocks but not as expensive as the ls200 and ls320

i found a nice one http://www.splawnguitars.com/images/toklvrkivory.gif but i like the sun, honey and other reddish bursts instead of this one, it's just too classy for me.

what would be a good model that is similar to the gibson lp classic or the lp standard that has a nice honey, cherry or reddish burst and preferably under $800?
 
Check E-bay. There's a frequent seller there named Ken. He has a lot of MIJ Tokai Love Rocks, in addition to SGs and ES copies. For something equivalent to a Gibson go with a LS-70 or 80. The flame tops are thin veneers over solid maple caps, but this is strictly cosmetic and you won't notice a difference in sound quality. These run around $600-700(?) I think, plus $110 for shipping. I got my LS-200 from Ken and got it in less than a week shipped from Japan!
 
Are you after a new guitar, or an old one? I'm on record here saying "I'd never buy another new guitar", hard to explain why - combination of vintage vibe, collector appeal, older woods, plus I play 50's 60's blues/R&B etc. etc. Anyway, I think the neck on my 1982 LS60 is a little slimmer than most Tokai LP?s - that's a lovely guitar if you want a really brutal vintage Les Paul tone. They appear all the time on eBay (approx $600 maybe?), solid sunburst top (not flamed), various burst colours (mine's Honeyburst). I'd recommend that, if that's the tone & the look you?re after :-? . Just my 2-cents.

Ian.

Ps:- re eBay sellers:- ?Mijsixstringkatana? (a guy called Nas Tak) and particularly ?Japanoldguitar? (Hiro) are reliable in my experience.
 
But note that LS50 from ?mijsixstringkatana? (eBay #3703658537) has misleading description - that top is three-piece. Also serial No. begins 010xxxx, but maybe should begin 00xxx?? :eek: (although double ring tuners etc. all looks right for 1980 guitar).

Ian.
 
Good advice guys

my love rock custom ( u all remember the tax evader guitar as it's now affectionately known ) was bought from Mijsixstringkatana seller on ebay.

i had great communication and pics from him and geetar was exactly as promised. Even has fret binding and nice attention to detail.. I heared that they may have done little extras on their axes if they didn't have a maple cap..anyone know if that was true?

also quick question........as far as inlays go...how can you tell if they are mother of pearl??? or just some copy ????....do love rocks have mother of pearl???

Also is anyone else disappointed with Tokai bridges???...i wanna fit a tonepros...any advice?

Shaun
 
Shaun - the LR Customs are replicas of the original gibson customs which were all mahogany and tokai has kept that detail intact. No maple there.

The tonepros system is good, but it won't make a massive difference to tone or sustain (though they do make a small improvement). The main benefit is the stability they provide. I used to have to tweak my intonation after every 2 or 3 string changes and if I took off all the strings everything would go to pot. Now it's solid and I haven't had to make adjustements for months. IMO they're an expensive luxury, but at the same time they're an idea long overdue for TOM bridges.

When I installed mine I bought the ABR1 version & locking studs. The ABR1 spacing matched perfectly but the original posts were a little too wide so I had to replace them with the ones that came with the tonepro. Remeber Tokais use metric threads so you'll need metric studs.
 

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