tokai springy sound - dumb name, great strat

You see this, and the first thing that probably comes to mind is, "Why would I bother getting an early 1980s Japan made Strat when I could just get a new Squier Classic Vibe 50s Stratocaster?"

That's a fair question. I can assure you that this Tokai is several levels better than the Squier in all the right ways.

There are two things to know up front before diving into the Tokai Springy Sound:

First, you'll see it's not exactly cheap, but you'll understand why as you go through this.

Second, there is dopey text on this guitar besides the model name. It's all on the headstock. Fortunately, the text is tiny and the rest of the guitar more than makes up for it.

Let's talk about that text now by looking at the headstock.

Under the Tokai logo is the text, "THIS IS THE EXACT REPLICA OF THE GOOD OLD STRAT". At the end of the headstock is the "Oldies BUT Goldies" decal.

Yes, that's dopey. No denying that.

However, Tokai wasn't kidding when they said it was an exact replica.

On the body, the grain lines EVERYWHERE on this guitar are straight and gorgeous:

Look at this, a quartersawn neck:

(If that's not quartersawn, then it's one of the luckiest picks from a pile of lumber I've ever seen for a Strat guitar neck.)

How far do these straight grain lines go? All the way to the butt end of the neck:

It doesn't get any better than that.

How does she look under the guard? All sorts of pretty:

This isn't just for show. The sound is there.

The best part is that this is not an impossible-to-find guitar. Tokai Springy Sound guitar listings of the early '80s vintage do come up semi-regularly. Just pick the color you like best when you see it.

For ones you do see for sale, yes they command a higher price, but consider what you're getting. Premium straight grain wood, quartersawn neck, butt-adjusted neck, and everything Fender vintage '50s in a guitar from the early '80s.

You may be wondering if this is a "lawsuit era" guitar. Um, yeah, obviously. Later Tokai guitars changed the headstock shape, but for early-'80s models, it's absolutely the Fender headstock design through and through.

And now for The Big Question: How come these don't sell for more?

There's two answers. It's not officially Fender, and the dopey text on the headstock.

But still, what a guitar. Or to be more specific, what a Strat. And it's cheaper than a Fender. Have you seen the price for a Fender American Vintage II 1957 Stratocaster these days?

The Tokai even with import costs to the US is still way less and all the '50s Fender goodness is there. It might be worth your while to get one.

Generally speaking, most Tokai Springy Sound guitars are in very nice condition. Many of them were only lightly played.

Oh, and if interested in a Telecaster version, Tokai did that too, called the Breezy Sound. Slightly less dopey name than Springy Sound, but still dopey.

Published 2025 Jun 5