Post by CTGull on Oct 3, 2021 15:01:21 GMT -5
HIS STORY: The strings are so dead that it almost sounds like a nylon-string guitar. When I put my sound hole pick up in it, there's some magic in there somewhere. To me, it seems like the action is not only high, but that the frets are pretty much worn down. That said, I've never played a guitar that has seen the mileage that I suspect that this one has.
THE EBAY SELLERS STORY: 1973 Yamaha FG 1500. This model of Yamaha guitar has very good reviews that you can find online. This guitar does have a few dings etc. They’re not easily seen in the pictures so they’re not major issues. Has all 6 strings on it, and a gig bag included.
It has a 4 digit serial number.
My Dad had this guitar. He recently died. He used to play in small towns in northern Idaho. He had this guitar since the 70's. It never had a case or gig bag. It’s been hanging on the wall for some time. The money is more important right now however. So selling it is important.
There is a blemish I took a picture of that’s almost like a crack near the edge on the top right front of the guitar. It could be a crack. I don’t think it fully cracked through the wood layer. It may also be a more noticeable scratch, and not a crack. There are picture of the front of the guitar where it has dents, dings, and or scratches.
MY NOTES: This is one of the “Holy Grail” of vintage Yamaha’s, the early hand built models made between 1971 and 1974. The Folk size FG-1500, Dread FG-2000, and Dread 12 string FG-2500.
Some dings on the top but overall in pretty good shape. Lots of "grunge" on the fretboard. The G string broke when he was detuning before shipping. The strings are 80/20, so I found an 80/20 G string in my bin of used strings. The tuners are very smooth, the slotted shaft type. Double bound fretboard!! The very thin pickguard looks to be fully attached to the top. The bridge has a fine crack between all the pin holes.
Tuned to "D". The nut action is perfect! And, oddly, the nut string spacing is 1.43", not the normal FG standard of 1.38". For now, I'd suggest keeping it. AND the saddle string spacing is 2.08" vs. the normal Yamaha 1.97". These wider string spacing’s make a BIG difference in playability for me. My biggest problem with vintage Yamaha's is the narrow string spacing. The nut I can change. Changing the saddle string spacing is a bit more involved. The usable width of this neck is the same as a standard FG (to the edge of the frets, not the edge of the binding), but they opened the string spacing at both ends.
The neck relief is good. The neck projects .06" below the bridge, my normal limit before needing a neck reset. BUT, the straight edge hits on the 1st & 16th frets with a .06" gap in the middle! So the actual neck projection is a bit lower. The neck relief is good 1st to 14th. The frets go up after the 14th, the straight edge nearly touches the 15th, and does touch the 16th thru 18th. That doesn't cause any problems now, but lowering the action will probably cause some buzzing or dead notes. BUT, tipping the neck back during the neck reset will tip the fretboard extension down, probably neutralizing this. I normally level the 13th & up frets anyway. The action is 7/64" low E & 3/32" high E. The bridge is .27" thick with .14"/.12" saddle sticking out. The strings are .40"/.38" above the top.
The frets aren't too bad, maybe all they need is a little leveling. I'll check the heights later. The fretboard is double bound. New frets would have to be cut to precise lengths, the tangs notched under the ends (to go over the inner binding) and the ends prerounded because the frets end before the outer binding. At first inspection, I'd say leave them in, as long as the fret level is OK after the neck has been removed. If they are "wavy" it may take a lot of leveling to flatten them and reduce the height too much. We shall see. It would be a lot of work to replace them. The fretboard is definitely grungy, but not the worst I've seen. It'll clean up one way or the other.
The weight is 4.32 lbs. A bit heavy for a Folk size, but rosewood is heavier than mahogany. It's said to have solid Jacaranda back & sides, which many people think is Brazilian rosewood, and it's possible Japan used the name synonymously. But Jacaranda isn't even in the rosewood family. Jacaranda is an orangey color, Brazilian rosewood is a chocolate color. This guitar has a definite chocolate color. I might be able to do some tests on the sides in the area under the neck heel. Should be interesting. I started writing an article about Jacaranda vs. Brazilian Rosewood, I should be able to get some data for that from this guitar.
It looks better in person!
The grunge.
The double bound fretboard.
The fine crack in the bridge.
THE EBAY SELLERS STORY: 1973 Yamaha FG 1500. This model of Yamaha guitar has very good reviews that you can find online. This guitar does have a few dings etc. They’re not easily seen in the pictures so they’re not major issues. Has all 6 strings on it, and a gig bag included.
It has a 4 digit serial number.
My Dad had this guitar. He recently died. He used to play in small towns in northern Idaho. He had this guitar since the 70's. It never had a case or gig bag. It’s been hanging on the wall for some time. The money is more important right now however. So selling it is important.
There is a blemish I took a picture of that’s almost like a crack near the edge on the top right front of the guitar. It could be a crack. I don’t think it fully cracked through the wood layer. It may also be a more noticeable scratch, and not a crack. There are picture of the front of the guitar where it has dents, dings, and or scratches.
MY NOTES: This is one of the “Holy Grail” of vintage Yamaha’s, the early hand built models made between 1971 and 1974. The Folk size FG-1500, Dread FG-2000, and Dread 12 string FG-2500.
Some dings on the top but overall in pretty good shape. Lots of "grunge" on the fretboard. The G string broke when he was detuning before shipping. The strings are 80/20, so I found an 80/20 G string in my bin of used strings. The tuners are very smooth, the slotted shaft type. Double bound fretboard!! The very thin pickguard looks to be fully attached to the top. The bridge has a fine crack between all the pin holes.
Tuned to "D". The nut action is perfect! And, oddly, the nut string spacing is 1.43", not the normal FG standard of 1.38". For now, I'd suggest keeping it. AND the saddle string spacing is 2.08" vs. the normal Yamaha 1.97". These wider string spacing’s make a BIG difference in playability for me. My biggest problem with vintage Yamaha's is the narrow string spacing. The nut I can change. Changing the saddle string spacing is a bit more involved. The usable width of this neck is the same as a standard FG (to the edge of the frets, not the edge of the binding), but they opened the string spacing at both ends.
The neck relief is good. The neck projects .06" below the bridge, my normal limit before needing a neck reset. BUT, the straight edge hits on the 1st & 16th frets with a .06" gap in the middle! So the actual neck projection is a bit lower. The neck relief is good 1st to 14th. The frets go up after the 14th, the straight edge nearly touches the 15th, and does touch the 16th thru 18th. That doesn't cause any problems now, but lowering the action will probably cause some buzzing or dead notes. BUT, tipping the neck back during the neck reset will tip the fretboard extension down, probably neutralizing this. I normally level the 13th & up frets anyway. The action is 7/64" low E & 3/32" high E. The bridge is .27" thick with .14"/.12" saddle sticking out. The strings are .40"/.38" above the top.
The frets aren't too bad, maybe all they need is a little leveling. I'll check the heights later. The fretboard is double bound. New frets would have to be cut to precise lengths, the tangs notched under the ends (to go over the inner binding) and the ends prerounded because the frets end before the outer binding. At first inspection, I'd say leave them in, as long as the fret level is OK after the neck has been removed. If they are "wavy" it may take a lot of leveling to flatten them and reduce the height too much. We shall see. It would be a lot of work to replace them. The fretboard is definitely grungy, but not the worst I've seen. It'll clean up one way or the other.
The weight is 4.32 lbs. A bit heavy for a Folk size, but rosewood is heavier than mahogany. It's said to have solid Jacaranda back & sides, which many people think is Brazilian rosewood, and it's possible Japan used the name synonymously. But Jacaranda isn't even in the rosewood family. Jacaranda is an orangey color, Brazilian rosewood is a chocolate color. This guitar has a definite chocolate color. I might be able to do some tests on the sides in the area under the neck heel. Should be interesting. I started writing an article about Jacaranda vs. Brazilian Rosewood, I should be able to get some data for that from this guitar.
It looks better in person!
The grunge.
The double bound fretboard.
The fine crack in the bridge.
