Whitstable Guitars
A selection of good quality, used guitars and specialising in imports from Japan since 2008
1977-1978 Yamaha Japan SA-700 "Persimmon Red" & original hard case
£799.00 + shipping
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JAPAN IMPORT
The Yamaha "Super Axe" range have been produced by Yamaha Japan from 1977 right up to the present day. They are essentially a 335 clone with a solid centre block. The SA-700 was made from 1977 to 1983 so this was one of the slightly later ones. She's in really good shape for a 43 year old guitar & is completely original. I was able to date the guitar to 1977-78 from the serial number & Yamaha's "not so easy to use" online serial number system PDF!
These guitars really do play well & in the range of "ES-335" copies available in the 80's they were some of the best despite being the lower spec. Yamaha also made SA-1200, SA-1800 & SA-2000 which were superb but tend to be priced at well over £1,000 . The reviews online for this model are excellent & it's very highly rated. The last one I had in Persimmon red was suffering from "clouding" on the finish which which seems to be a common thing on old Japanese Yamahas. This one has no such issues and is one of the cleanest I have seen. The neck is straight and the frets have some wear but not excessive & no indents. There is some pitting on the chrome hardwear & pickups but overall it has aged beautifully.
Looking online there are a couple of SA-700's for sale in the UK but mostly in Japan and all at a higher price.
This guitar came in with a slightly tatty, but original Yamaha hard case. It's stamped "Yamaha" and has a lovely plush green interior which I have seen with other Yamahas of the period. Although a bit tatty, all the hinges & catches work well.
Here are some specifications
Yamaha SA-700 Super Axe Specifications:
Body Bound Beech and Birch Trans poly finish. Centre block.
Neck Set Mahogany Bound Chunky C shape
Fretboard: Rosewood 13.75" radius. 22 frets
Headstock: Black Yamaha in caps and super axe in gold script black on white truss rod cover with SA 700 written on
Tuners: Yamaha branded sealed
Pickups:
Neck: Alnico 3 Humbucker. No coil split.
Bridge: Alnico 3 Humbucker. No coil split.
Controls: Gold 2 volume 2 tone 3 way switch with white tip
Nut: 1.75"
Hardware: Chrome
Bridge: T-O-M stoptail
Pickguard: Standard Black on white
Colours: Natural Yellow or Persimmon Red
Years available: 1977 to 1983
Hard Case
As said many times, all my guitars come shipped in a new black hard case which is included in the price. I find this is the safest way to avoid damage in transit. Alternatively, if you are collecting the guitar and, like some buyers have cases coming out of their ears, that's no problem, I'll adjust the price (usually around a £50 discount) and I can usually find you an old gigbag to take the guitar away in. The only hard and fast rule I have is that I won't ship a guitar in a gigbag.
If you are further interested in this guitar, you can either email me with any queries & I'll do my best to get back to you within 24 hours.
Or, you can buy quickly and safely using the PayPal "buy now" button and I will ship to most UK addresses the next working day. Highlands and Islands can be slightly dearer but I'll keep the cost as low as I can.
I can accept credit card payments by phone and will also offer a small discount to purchasers using bank transfer payments.
Overseas customers are very welcome but please email me first for shipping quotes.