In the case of Gibson clones, this is the case when the guitar has the 'open book' headstock (which Gibson considers a trademark). As a generic term, 'lawsuit' tends to describe any Japanese-made guitar that looks like either a Gibson or a Fender model. It was sued in 1977 by Norlin (maker of Gibson guitars) over its use of Gibson-style, “open book” headstocks, not over its Fender designs, and ultimately, it did not lose, but settled, the lawsuit.(3) Unfortunately, the words 'lawsuit guitar' have achieved even more 'generic' status as meaning 'made in Japan' than the word 'Ibanez'.
Subsidiary, “Elger”) was the only company actually sued by an American guitar maker over its designs. Don't believe sellers who tell you 'the logo was removed,' or 'I have an expert who tells me this is an Ibanez guitar.' Trust your eyes: No logo = No Ibanez.And don't take my word on this, take it from Hoshino, who put this into one of their guitar ads back in the 1970s: A Quick Note About 'Lawsuit' Guitars:Since this isn't a post about Japanese guitars labeled as 'lawsuit' I'll try to be brief: Hoshino (and more accurately, its U.S. The bottom line is that if a guitar does not have the brand name 'Ibanez' on its headstock (or in the cavity of the body if it is a hollow-body guitar) then it is NOT an Ibanez. An Ibanez Catalogue that shows Cimar By Ibanez guitars on pCimar Catalogue Pictures of Cimar. Cimar guitars appear in Hoshino Gakki catalogues. Designs of Cimar guitars are sometimes very similar to Hoshino Gakki's Ibanez guitar brand.
Old models, dating guitars by serial numbers, and generally watching the vintage guitar marketplace to understand how interest in Ibanez guitars is evolving. Ibanez is a brand name owned by the Hoshino Gakki Guitar company, headquartered in Japan.(1) I won't go into the history here, since you can go to the original reference sources footnoted below.(2) The thing to remember is that 'Ibanez' is a brand name for guitars made by a SINGLE company, Hoshino Gakki.ĭuring the 1970's and most of the 1980's, Ibanez guitars were made almost exclusively in Japan, and the majority of electric models were made at the Fujigen Gakki. First Things FirstThe first thing to be said about the use of the word 'Ibanez' is that it is not a generic term meaning 'made in Japan'. I'm sure that much of the time, the sellers simply don't understand there is no connection between their guitar and Ibanez-branded guitars, but in other instances, the sellers simply don't care and throw in the 'Ibanez' keyword to spam the listing and attract more viewers. Ibanez Does Not Make Every Japanese Electric Guitar I'm writing this guide because I'm a collector of Ibanez guitars (mostly vintage electric models) and I'm sick and tired of coming across guitars that are obviously made by other Japanese sellers (because they are branded) or no-brand guitars that the sellers attribute to being 'Ibanez' guitars.