Why does my Love Rock have a flatter belly than a Gibson?

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Frank555

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I thought that Tokai was obsessed with copying the Gibson's body shape to the point of taking them apart to make sure they were accurate. So why is it that my LS65's carved top not as prominently curved as a Gibson?

I was told that 70's Gibson LP's had a flat belly like the Tokai is that true?

Does this mean that different model #s have different carved tops?

If anyone has seen all the Love Rocks, from the 65 to the 320, please enlighten us if the carved tops are different. (apmechling?)

Thanks
 
:D I have played a 59' Les Paul burst, a 58' Korina Explorer , a Custom shop 59' and my 2 85' TLS 80's all in one evening through a Marshall plexi...and there is something totally Magical about a 59', somehow it seemed more balanced and lighter than the Custom Shop, maybe because the nitro finish was so thin the guitar felt like it was breathing. The Tokais and the Custom shop were very close in size and demension, beautiful replicas but the 59' felt like the "Holy Grail" that it is! Jimmy Wallace owns these classics , he worked with Gibson to make the most accurate Reissues after the Guitar Trader versions came up a little off the mark. And as far as the dish top... the the most extreme dish is found on a Les Paul Classic 60' I got in 92' the Tok's were like the Custom Shop and the real 59' was the least dished. There is a picture of me hanging on the wall at Charly's Gutar Shop with the 59' in my left hand and the Explorer in my right standing in front of the Marshall Stack titled " What heaven must be like" Part of livin in Texas is that it's very close to being a Guitar Freaks Nirvanna! Later
 
Maybe Tokai have them all sent to fat camp!

All I know is after reading TG's post - "I'm goin' down to Dalleeees"
"woooooo hooo sho' gonna get me some"!

GB
 
:D Hey guys , I was at a friends apartment {flat} when I got to check out these classics! He was setting up the guitars for Jimmy Wallace who played in Bug's Hendersons Stratoblasters and as I said before , a Gibson consultant. Maybe you have seen some of the Gibson Les Paul Jimmy Wallace models, they were very popular in Japan during the 90's! I was born and raised in Miami Florida, moved to Dallas 22 years ago never knowing I was walking into Guitar Heaven! Later
 
Frank555

Get yourself a copy of "The Beauty of the Burst". This book has loads of plate pics of Gibson 58',59' and 60' Sunburst Les Pauls that you can compare your Tokai with. It's a great read and will confirm how amazing the Tokai Les Paul replica (not a copy folks) really is.

If I recall, it even has blueprint diagrams and measurements in the book too. Be sure to get an English language issue rather than the Japanese version.
 
That is an awesome book, the shots of Charly Wirz with his burst are my fav's ! That's the Charly of Charly's Guitar Shop in Dallas a great guy who snortted him self out of this world. very sad. :cry:
 
A friend of mine has a 1976 black Les Paul Artiste (P90s), I have a 2001 MIJ LS-65. The carved top on his guitar is shallower than the Tokai's - when we compared them he said the LS-65 made his guitar look like a copy...

My guitar reminds me very strongly of my old 1960's Les Paul Standard which I had to sell when I started making babies, especially after I replaced the Gotohs with SD 59ers. Now my babies are teenagers I wonder if I made the right choice :0)

I remember the Artiste as being a fantasy of mine, but it's not even in the same league as my Love Rock, although worth a few thousand ? more.
 
I owned a '59 burst in the late sixties, and judging from the old photos of it, the top carve is a little shallower than my Love Rock. Actually, the carve was all over the place on the originals, and maybe thats the case with the Tokai's too.

And, yes, even though I supremely regret getting rid of the original, my flametop ALS60 eases the pain tremendously (it actually has a nicer neck).
 

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