|
|
I received an e-mail from Larry Weissenborn, from La Honda CA, on March 11,
2014. Here is his story:
Hi,
I was pecking around the web looking for information on the Yamaha FG 360 guitar
and found your interesting website. I have a Yamaha FG360 that looks
exactly like the guitar pictured on your webpage. Here's a
description of my guitar:
Label: beige/tan; Yamaha FG 360 Nippon Gakki, Co., Ltd.
"NK" stamped on center vertical strip 1/4" below the label
Serial number stamped on brace above sound hole appears to be 40320
the "40" numerals (and possibly the "3" seem to be slightly
larger than the "20" numerals
the "40" is not stamped evenly and almost looks like "AU"
neck is one piece (mahogany?) with binding and dots
fingerboard is very dark and appears to be ebony
fingerboard has some ruts which are also dark, so I don't think this is a dyed
fingerboard
back and sides look similar to Brazilian rosewood (Jacaranda rosewood?)
can't tell if the top is laminate or solid - I suspect it's laminated but can't
say for certain
Based on the info you've published, it looks like this was either a US or Japan
market FG 360 made presumably in March of 1974.
I bought this guitar second hand about 20 years ago from a used gear music store
in the SF Bay area. I got it because the guitar played well (didn't need a
reset), sounded good, and the price was right. I thought I'd use it as a
beach guitar but soon realized it deserved better. The guitar is in good
to very good condition and I expect to keep this a long time.
I once had this at a bluegrass festival and took it to the on-site luthier to
have it adjusted/setup (I think the nut needed to be re-glued). The
luthier was smitten by this guitar and declared with some surprise, that the
back and sides were Brazilian rosewood laminate. I'm pretty sure the back
and sides are not Brazilian RW, but they do have a similar visual character in
terms of grain and color. Anyway, it's a cool guitar and while guitar is
not my main instrument, it serves me well when I do need an acoustic six string.
If you have a chance to reply, I'd be curious to hear if you think this is
indeed from March '74 and any other pertinent info. Also, do you think the
back/sides are Jacaranda rosewood, and is the spruce top laminated? Thanks
again.
Regards,
-Larry Weissenborn
La Honda, CA
Our thanks to Larry for sharing his story with us.
|
