The 1970's marked an explosion in the guitar industry following the birth of Rock & Roll and Beatlemania. Guitars were being produced under many names in Japan, one of which being Kawaii - a company that in retrospect produced pretty solid instruments, mostly copies of coveted and expensive instruments.
Here we have a cool and unique guitar which appears to be a copy of the Gibson Electric Spanish 175. A full hollow guitar, outfitted with two pickups and a Florentine cutaway, these guitars were popularized amongst jazz guitarists, but rock players like Steve Howe of Yes and even Ted Nugent appreciated big box guitars like these. This example, similar to the 175, has two slightly oversized Jaguar-y looking single coil pickups which sound quite good, with a nice jangle and impressive response. The original burst finish over the laminate build is very Gibson, and looks very retro and cool with its faux tortoise control plates (a nice feature for a full hollow). Chrome hardware is all in great shape and works just as it should, with its Bigsby that one could call a Figsby. Aside from some surface level cracks in its finish, likely from age, this guitar is in great cosmetic condition.
This guitar is not only a great clean example of one of these hip Kawaii's, it plays really great, and is destined to impress more serious players. It is designed with a "longer than Gibson" 25.5" scale length, and a bolt on neck. It's neck is thin and Fender-y with a nut width that measures 1 5/8". The fingerboard is bound, and plays great with no significant wear in its frets - it also is outfitted with the always nice "0" fret.
A great guitar on a budget for any studio player or adventurous guitarist looking for something new and interesting!