Tokai Goldstar Sound model

[Ringorango]

Hi , excuse my very bad English , I am from Spain , I have a Goldstar Sound guitar , with sn 1018440 , but I don't know the Model , I send some photos about my guitar.

I need to know the exactly model , many Thanks for your help

 

[Ringorango]

 

[Anonymous]

Now that's a bit of a mystery. I have never seen a see-through red finish on a Goldstar before. Do you have any pics of the back of the headstock so we can see the tuners?

I'm guessing it's a later ST40, but I don't recall seeing body routing like that on a Goldstar before - the humbucker rout is not a usual feature. It has ceramic pickups (which makes me think ST40) and a cheap plastic switch, which I think is something Tokai may have used later in the 1980s - but it's hard to get reliable information about how Goldstars changed after the 1984/85 period.

Is there anything stamped on the bridge saddles?

Mike

 

[Ringorango]

Hello Mike many thankas for your Help.

I have a pic of the back of the headstock. The colour is more or less "cherry sumburst". Is colour original of the body . perhaps the pickups originals are modified by the previous owner. The pickup of the bridge is dimarzio. Te bridge is not stamped (see pic) .

In The switch (metalic and bakelita) is written YS 50. Is posible to know the year of manufacturing about the S/ number 1018440 ??

 

[Anonymous]

OK, well the tuners tell me that neck (at least) is from an ST40. What I'm not sure about is the body. I recently bought a Metallic Pink Goldstar which has unstamped saddles, & there was some discussion about whether the saddles had been changed, or whether Tokai started using unstamped saddles in (perhaps) the late 80s/early 90s. I don't think we ever reached a definite conclusion about mine.

The pickups had been changed on mine so it's hard to say if the switch had been changed as well. But the body on mine had the sort of routs that we usually see from Tokai, & it also had the usual Tokai codes stamped in the control cavity.

It doesn't seem that yours has these codes stamped in the body? If not, I wonder if it might be a Goldstar ST40 neck with a non-Tokai body? The colour also makes me think it may not be a Tokai body, though it does look like a decent bit of wood on yours.

Tokai Strat serial numbers don't give any indication of date of manufacture after about 1981 or '82, so that's no help.

Where & when did you get it?

 

[settebello]

The only red see through Tokai strat coulor i know is OF.

This one have a slab board too. :roll:

Volker

 

[Ringorango]

Hello friends , more news about my guitar .

The body and other parts hasn't any script , only in the switch "YM 50"

In the neck low part " 1-9"

And in the neck holder this japanese sign (the photo is not of my guitar but the sign is the same)

Today I received an Email from the previous (and first) owner of the guitar. He say , "he buy the Tokai guitar NEW in 1994 in a Shop from Valencia -Spain" , "He think , the guitar was manufactured in 1984 (!)" "he only change the pickup of the bridge x dimarzio DP116-HS2 pickup" all parts and colour is original Tokai , but he don't know the model.

 

[Ringorango]

Also , is not possible to know the model and the year of manufacture of my guitar??

Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

Also , is not possible to know the model and the year of manufacture of my guitar??

Thanks

In a word, no.

It's not possible to date Goldstars from this era, all anyone can tell you (from the decal on the headstock) is that it's from 1984 onwards. The serial numbers do not give a manufacture date.

As for the model, lots of bits seem to be from an ST40. I have my doubts about whether the body is an original Tokai body. IF the body is an original Tokai, it's an ST40. But it might be the neck & electronics from an ST40 with a non-Tokai body.

 

[jacco]

The way the humbucker cavity is cut out doesn't look like Tokai.
Don't know how to say this in English here's a try; the space where the legs of the humbucker rest is cut out in an oval way, just like a Burny. The shape of a Tokai is more square. You know what I mean?

 

[AlanN]

Absolutely, Jacco. My gut feeling is the same as the others - that the body isn't from a Tokai, though the neck definitely is.

 

[JVsearch]

Looking at the neck pocket I can see what look like little countersunk circular areas around where the neck screws come up through the body. It's a very nice little touch that helps the neck to be as flat against the neck pocket as possible should there be the slightest little bit of the wood lifting up on the underneath of the neck from being removed and then screwed in many times over the life of the guitar (just my theory).

AFAIK, I have only seen this on Tokai neck pockets.

As for the humbucker routing about the oval thing for the mounting tabs of the bucker, are you saying it should be more square because that's what it looks like in the LPs? Or have you seen bucker routed Strat bodies with the square routing?

 

[Anonymous]

Looking at the neck pocket I can see what look like little countersunk circular areas around where the neck screws come up through the body. It's a very nice little touch that helps the neck to be as flat against the neck pocket as possible should there be the slightest little bit of the wood lifting up on the underneath of the neck from being removed and then screwed in many times over the life of the guitar (just my theory).

AFAIK, I have only seen this on Tokai neck pockets.

As for the humbucker routing about the oval thing for the mounting tabs of the bucker, are you saying it should be more square because that's what it looks like in the LPs? Or have you seen bucker routed Strat bodies with the square routing?

It seems that the neck pocket above isn't from the guitar we're discussing, which makes the discussion a bit pointless.

And in the neck holder this japanese sign (the photo is not of my guitar but the sign is the same)


As for the humbucker routing, Goldstars don't have that. Or if they do, I haven't seen any that do.

 

[jacco]

As for the humbucker routing about the oval thing for the mounting tabs of the bucker, are you saying it should be more square because that's what it looks like in the LPs? Or have you seen bucker routed Strat bodies with the square routing?

I am saying this because of the LPs, I do know little of strats :wink:

 

[japaxes]

body colour, cut and routing .look very close to that of a fernandes.
they did a lot of strat wih pick up vairiations (humbuckers) /bridge /twin

 

[jacco]

body colour, cut and routing .look very close to that of a fernandes.
they did a lot of strat wih pick up vairiations (humbuckers) /bridge /twin

that supports my thoughts of the likeness with Burny humbucker routing

 

[JVsearch]

Looking at the neck pocket I can see what look like little countersunk circular areas around where the neck screws come up through the body. It's a very nice little touch that helps the neck to be as flat against the neck pocket as possible should there be the slightest little bit of the wood lifting up on the underneath of the neck from being removed and then screwed in many times over the life of the guitar (just my theory).

AFAIK, I have only seen this on Tokai neck pockets.

As for the humbucker routing about the oval thing for the mounting tabs of the bucker, are you saying it should be more square because that's what it looks like in the LPs? Or have you seen bucker routed Strat bodies with the square routing?

It seems that the neck pocket above isn't from the guitar we're discussing, which makes the discussion a bit pointless.

And in the neck holder this japanese sign (the photo is not of my guitar but the sign is the same)


As for the humbucker routing, Goldstars don't have that. Or if they do, I haven't seen any that do.

Um, what's this then:

 

[Anonymous]

Looking at the neck pocket I can see what look like little countersunk circular areas around where the neck screws come up through the body. It's a very nice little touch that helps the neck to be as flat against the neck pocket as possible should there be the slightest little bit of the wood lifting up on the underneath of the neck from being removed and then screwed in many times over the life of the guitar (just my theory).

AFAIK, I have only seen this on Tokai neck pockets.

Ah, I had missed that pic pf the OP's guitar. Now I see what you mean. I've checked through various pics of my guitars, & you're absolutely right - I've never noticed that before.

Fenders don't have it, my Bacchus doesn't have it, but Tokais do all seem to have that countersunk circle around the screw hole. Well well! I've learnt something new today.

Mind you, I don't have any other MIJ Strats or Teles to check, so maybe it was common Japanese practice? Does anyone have a Fernandes or Greco, or something similar that they could check? But maybe it is a Tokai body after all. Which is still confusing with the unusual routs.

:-?

 

[JVsearch]

Looking at the neck pocket I can see what look like little countersunk circular areas around where the neck screws come up through the body. It's a very nice little touch that helps the neck to be as flat against the neck pocket as possible should there be the slightest little bit of the wood lifting up on the underneath of the neck from being removed and then screwed in many times over the life of the guitar (just my theory).

AFAIK, I have only seen this on Tokai neck pockets.

Ah, I had missed that pic pf the OP's guitar. Now I see what you mean. I've checked through various pics of my guitars, & you're absolutely right - I've never noticed that before.

Fenders don't have it, my Bacchus doesn't have it, but Tokais do all seem to have that countersunk circle around the screw hole. Well well! I've learnt something new today.

Mind you, I don't have any other MIJ Strats or Teles to check, so maybe it was common Japanese practice? Does anyone have a Fernandes or Greco, or something similar that they could check? But maybe it is a Tokai body after all. Which is still confusing with the unusual routs.

:-?

Yep we need to have a look at some Grecos, but you know if it is a Tokai body then it could still have been made by Greco in a similar situation to the Tokai LS-50s that have the dowel tenon joint, or that LP that Jacco has with Tokai routing for the pickups, tokai tenon, but a 2 piece neck and a (I think it was) Burny logo?

The Japanese have a different culture of business - they share more among each other (used to anyway) which could explain why there are some Greco looking features on a Tokai guitar?

 

[muccax]

hi
i got 5 greco from 79 to 81 strats models ,,,,, and the dont dont look the same as tokai in the neck pocket ......
all the best
otto