Unknown Knockoffs

[Shannon]

I have a Hyostar SJ972. What's that you say? i don't know... and apparently no one else does either. On the world wide web where you can find a million results for anything you can think of, you won't find anything about these guitars except for about five other forum posts like this one asking if anyone has any info on them. I was just wondering if any of you guys have ever heard of it. It's a copy of the Gibson Dove. One guy says that they were produced in Japan in 1972. My father bought mine in a pawn shop in South Florida in the early eighties. It's a surprisingly nice knock off mine has had a hard life and the body and finish have held up really well. The sound is so great, it's very well balanced, deep, warm rich and the high strings ring so brightly. I've got earthwoods on mine and it just sings. The bad thing is that the neck is warped. it takes a lot of strength to fret, i wish the action were better. I live in a town with no real luthiers and the guys that i have taken it to said that because they never heard of it its just a cheap guitar and it wouldn't be worth it to try to correct the neck. Which pissed me off cause its obviously worth it to me or I wouldn't be there asking them, but I know nothing about fixing guitars... I barely know how to play them. It's a mystery guitar that's not worth anything but sounds amazing. Here's a picture of it.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v252/nightbird2647/Family/Copy_of_10008.jpg

[The Big G]

http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/product/Hyostar/SJ972/10/1

This link has a couple of reviews of your model.

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-HYOSTAR-acoustic-guitar-brazilian-Japan-mij_W0QQitemZ220015734619QQcmdZViewItem

this is a similar model for sale on E-bay (laminated top unlike your which is solid top i believe.

 

http://www.guitarsite.com/hotlicks/about766.html&highlight=

This one is a discussion site about guitars and the Hyostar 971,972 and 978

If you do further searches I am sure there will be lots more info around, people have heard of them so somebody knows whats what with this make.

get it fixed if you enjoy it and to hell with anybody who says anything else.

take care

G

[A String]

Hey Shannon! How are you? How is married life treating you?

 

Sorry I can't help you out with that guitar, but it is great to see you around again!

[Guitarzan]

hello agin Shannon, how have you been?

sorry i know nothing that will help you.

[Guitar Geezer]

Same here, good to see you again sweetheart.

 

That "Dove" has served you well, I bet you can find someone to fix it! If you were closer to San Antonio, I wuld have the perfect person for you.

[Trucks]

If you love it its worth fixing.... What I would be inclined to do is get a quote then check out whats available in the guitar stores for that much money and weigh up if it still stands out above those.

[Tedster]

Yeah, I'd take it to a luthier type dude and find out if you can get it fixed.

 

Weird guitars can be way cool...

 

And yeah, welcome back, girl!

[fantasticsound]

Hi Shannon! Welcome back. Like A-string I'm wondering how married life is treating you.

 

Are you in north or south Alabama? I might be able to hook you up with a luthier if you're in the north, but I don't know anyone down south. (Based on where you came from in FL I assume you're still on the redneck riviera, but I don't know. )

[picker]

What will have to happen is that the fretboard will have to be removed and reglued after the neck has been straightened out. They will heat the neck so that the glue holding the fretboard melts enough to get the fingerboard off of the neck. It isn't cheap, and it takes a while. And the heat will make the frets expand and that will make them rise up out of their slots, usually unevenly. So you will likely need a fret leveling job too. Also, the fretboard may shrink and/or expand somewhat in places because of the heat, so it might not be as perfect a fit as it is now. Altogether, it might cost more than a new guitar, and very likely the guitar will be a bit different when you get it back. But if that is THE GUITAR, there isn't anything else for it.

[Shannon]

Hey Guys!

It's been a while, i'm surprised that you remember me. It's good to talk to you all again. Married life is great. We're both managers at a great local coffee bar/restaurant/bakery, which is about to start franchising and we're right there with the owner doing everything. A lot has happened in the past year, the sun hasn't shined every day but we are happy and hopeful. I've been working a lot and really fell out of playing for a while, but i'm trying to get back into it. i need to knuckle down because I could play at the restaurant, I just can't play in front of my own husband right now, I'm so out of shape. Oh and yes I am at the redneck riviera fantasticsound, Im in Dothan, the very Southeastern corner of 'ol Alabami. Not a single luthier in sight... heck its so sad here, Gibson is a dirty word in a music store here, they can't even afford to carry anything over a grand. When I was shopping for my Les Paul, they all looked at me like aliens were crawling about of my butt. Well thanks for the description picker, I didn't realize all of that would go into it. I'll have to wait till I can go out of town and take it someone who really knows what their doing. If anybody ever hears anything about where this guitar came from please let me know.

[caprae]

Don't feel bad about not being able to find anything on an obscure guitar. I've tried to find info on Ibanez Acoustics - Artwood series - and have come up short, even on the Ibanez sites.

 

$400 used - either they got ripped off or that is not a cheap guitar.

[Guitar Geezer]

Originally posted by Shannon:

. i need to knuckle down because I could play at the restaurant,

Just don't do a Phoebe (FRIENDS) and play SMelly Cat...

 

Chorus)

Smelly cat, smelly cat

What are they feeding you?

Smelly cat, smelly cat

It's not your fault

 

They won't take you to the vet

You're obviously not their favourite pet

You may not be a bed of roses

And you're no friend to those with noses

 

(Repeat Chorus)

[fantasticsound]

Originally posted by Shannon:

Hey Guys!

It's been a while, i'm surprised that you remember me. It's good to talk to you all again. Married life is great.

 

Forget you, Shannon?!? Aside from being an interesting contributor here for a little while, this place is about 95% guys. (If not more! ) We don't forget many former posters but we certainly don't forget female guitar players!

 

...Oh and yes I am at the redneck riviera fantasticsound, Im in Dothan, the very Southeastern corner of 'ol Alabami. Not a single luthier in sight... heck its so sad here, Gibson is a dirty word in a music store here, they can't even afford to carry anything over a grand. When I was shopping for my Les Paul, they all looked at me like aliens were crawling about of my butt...

I have friends that love that area. They probably drive by you on their way to Panama City. The closest I've been to that area was a show I mixed in Auburn last year. Looks like you far enough inland to be relatively safe from storms.

 

I'm afraid I don't know anyone who can help you with the guitar, in your area. Picker's probably right about the repair, but see if you can find a local luthier anyway. The neck managed to bend without removing the fretboard. Depending on how far it's warped you may still be able to combine moderate steam to bend it back without removing the fretboard.

[Shannon]

lol geezer, we actually joked about doing a theme night cause our place is similar to the central perk, we even have a barista that looks like gunther.

 

Our next store is going to be in Auburn, you'll have to come down and play for us neil.

[baronedo]

I've attached some guitar adjustments you can try. With respect to your comment on the neck being warped, I would check the neck curvature and try a truss rod adjustment as needed per the instructions below. The truss rod regulates the amount of curvature or bow in the neck. Too much bowing in either direction results in an action which is really hard to play. The truss rod adjustment bolt should be located at either the top of the headstock (either an open hole or some guitars have a cover plate which you have to remove first), or at the bottom of the neck where the neck joins the guitar body. Most use an allen type wrench but make sure you use the correct size wrench.

 

Good Luck,

 

Guitar Adjustments

 

1. Check the neck curvature and adjust it as follows. Tune the guitar and then put a capo on the first fret, depress the highest fret of the Low E string and with a .010 inch feeler gauge, check the clearance between the top of the 8th fret (i.e. 8th fret is about half way down the neck) and the bottom of the low E string. If the gap is less than .010 inch, the truss rod is too tight, which causes the neck to bow up toward the strings. Correct this by gently turning the truss rod screw counter-clockwise, no more than 1/8 turn at a time. If the gap is more than .010 inch, the truss rod is too loose, which causes the neck to bow away from the strings. Correct this by gently turning the truss rod screw clockwise, no more than 1/8 turn at a time. Retune, recheck and adjust to get a .010 inch gap, which will allow the neck to be set up for a low action, but still with enough bow to prevent fret buzzing. Note, if the truss rod is hard to adjust, dont force it. Rather, loosen your strings to alleviate pressure on the rod, then try to adjust it, then retune and check. When you have completed this adjustment, remove the capo.

 

2. Next, if your guitar has a trem, tune the guitar and check the amount of tilt on the trem bridge plate. If you have changed string gauges, the new strings may have moved the amount of tilt on this bridge plate, which can inhibit up tremming or down tremming. I set up my trems as recommended by Fender by measuring the gap between the bottom rear of the trem bridge plate and the top face of the guitar body. I try to get this gap to about 1/8 inch, which allows adequate tremming in both directions. To increase the gap, loosen the tension on the trem springs by removing the rear cover plate and turning the trem string bracket screws counterclockwise, then retune the guitar and re-measure. To decrease the gap, tighten these screws, retune and re-measure.

 

3. Next, with a straight measuring edge, check the string height gap from the top of the highest fret of each string to bottom of the string. Adjust the string saddles to get proper clearances. For my taste, I set the gap of my unwound strings (i.e. Hi E, B, and G) a little over 1/16 inch and the wound strings (D, A, Low E) about 3/32 inch (the wound strings need more clearance as their vibration path is wider). I use the above gaps as a guideline but I am striving to get a clean acoustic tone with no buzzing over the entire neck at the lowest possible string heights, so let you ears guide you. It is amazing how much easier and cleaner a guitar plays and sounds after a more uniform string height adjustment.

 

4. Lastly, check the string length/intonation of each string with an electronic tuner. Do his by playing the 12th fret harmonic note and then comparing it to the 12th fret octave note when played. If the note plays sharp compared to the harmonic, the string is too short so lengthen it by turning that string length bridge saddle adjustment screw clockwise. If the note plays flat compared to the harmonic, the string is too long so shorten it by turning that string length bridge saddle adjustment screw counter-clockwise. Retune and check until the intonation of each string is on.

 

5. After you set the intonation, it can change your string heights so go back to steps 3 and then 4 to recheck and readjust string heights and lengths if needed.