Made in Japan
A shorthand people use for Japanese-made guitars. It tells you where an instrument was made, not automatically what it is worth.
MIJ NETWORKVOL. 01 / CULTURE
JAPANESE GUITAR CULTURE / OPEN TO ALL
MIJ
NETWORK.
A public notebook for Japanese guitar culture.
縁がつなぐ
CONNECTED BY GUITARS
CONNECTED BY GUITARS
MN—001
///COLLECTORS✳PLAYERS✳BUILDERS✳THE CURIOUS//////COLLECTORS✳PLAYERS✳BUILDERS✳THE CURIOUS///
NO. 01
ABOUT THE NETWORK
ABOUT THE NETWORK
A place to
follow the thread.
MIJ Network is a public notebook for Japanese guitar culture: the makers, catalogues, factories, players, repairs, shops and odd little details that rarely fit in one place.
Bring a question, a photograph or a lead. The point is to compare notes and leave the next person with something useful.
SEE WHAT PEOPLE ARE ASKING ↘ 02 / THE RABBIT HOLES
EVERY
THREAD.
Pick a door.
See where it takes you.
01BRANDS
CATALOGUES
ERAS
BUILDERS
PLAYERS
COLLECTING
SHOPS
PARTS
MUSIC
REGIONS
THE
BRANDS
& MAKERS
The names on the headstock, the factories behind them and the people who built the things.
ASK ABOUT IT ↗ 02CATALOGUES
& ADS
Old adverts, price lists, weird translations and the page that finally gives it away.
COMPARE NOTES ↗ 03ERAS
& ORIGINS
Vintage, lawsuit, refined, custom and the years nobody can agree on.
SORT IT OUT ↗ 04BUILDERS
& REPAIR
Setups, refrets, pickups, parts and the stuff you only notice after you open it up.
SHOW YOUR WORK ↗ 05PLAYERS
& TONE
The records, rigs, hands and sounds that make one guitar feel different from another.
TALK TONE ↗ 06COLLECTING
& PROVENANCE
Buying, selling, identifying, valuing and figuring out what the last owner changed.
COMPARE NOTES ↗ 07SHOPS
& THE HUNT
Used shops, local leads, online listings and the moments when a good guitar turns up.
FIND THE LEAD ↗ 08PARTS
& PICKUPS
Hardware, electronics, upgrades and the small changes that can alter the whole instrument.
OPEN THE CAVITY ↗ 09MUSIC
& INFLUENCE
The players, records and sounds that put Japanese guitars on the map in the first place.
FOLLOW THE SOUND ↗ 10REGIONS
& EXPORT
Factory towns, export routes and the places that shaped how these guitars reached the world.
TRACE THE ROUTE ↗ 11THE
OUTER EDGE
Obscure builders, repair shops, custom work and the strange details that refuse to fit a label.
GO OFF-ROAD ↗ 03 / FIELD GUIDE
START
HERE.
The quick version.
There is always more to find.
What does MIJ mean?
MIJ is commonly used for “Made in Japan.” In this network it also points to the wider culture around Japanese guitars: the instruments, makers, catalogues, players, shops, repairs and stories.
Where should I start with Japanese guitars?
Start with the one in front of you. Photograph the logo, serial number, hardware and pickups. Write down what you know before you start guessing at the year or the price.
How do I research an unfamiliar Japanese guitar?
Do not trust one stamp on its own. Compare catalogues, adverts, factory details and photographs of other examples. The answer is usually spread across a few different clues.
Is MIJ Network only for collectors?
No. Players, builders, repairers, researchers, sellers and people who are simply curious are all part of the conversation.
What can I share here?
Questions, discoveries, catalogue scans, repair lessons, tone experiments, buying stories and the strange little details that make a guitar worth remembering.
04 / WORDS YOU’LL SEE
THE
GLOSSARY.
Short explanations.
Room for debate.
The copy era
A loose nickname for the period when Japanese makers built close versions of famous American designs. The word gets used too broadly, so check the actual guitar.
The paper trail
Old catalogues can show models, finishes, prices and changes between years. They are useful evidence, but they do not answer every question.
A small clue
A date or maker mark on a control pot can help narrow down a guitar’s timeline. It dates the part, not necessarily the whole instrument.
Under the neck
Stamps, pencil marks and route details can help identify a factory or model. Photograph them before cleaning or changing anything.
The guitar’s story
Receipts, old photos, cases, tags and a clear ownership trail can make an instrument easier to understand and easier to trust.
05 / A ROUGH TIMELINE
THE
ERAS.
The dates overlap.
The clues still matter.
Domestic experiments
Early builders, imported parts, original designs and local ideas that don’t fit the usual “lawsuit” story.
Familiar shapes, different answers
Japanese makers refined well-known designs while developing their own factories, hardware and standards.
More than a copy
Better construction, stronger finishing and increasingly confident domestic ranges changed what buyers expected.
Small runs, serious details
Hand-selected woods, shop orders, higher-spec models and builders working at a different pace.
The craft continues
Modern Japanese builders carry the ideas forward. The labels changed; the attention to the instrument did not.
These are working categories, not hard borders. Catalogues, factory changes and export markets rarely line up perfectly.
06 / THE EVIDENCE DESK
SHOW
YOUR WORK.
A source can change the story.
Keep the trail with it.
Original catalogues
Model names, prices, finishes and lineups as the manufacturer printed them.
PRIMARY SOURCEFactory and dealer documents
Order sheets, dealer literature, advertisements and paperwork tied to a date.
CONTEMPORARY RECORDMagazines and photographs
Period coverage and clear owner photographs can fill in details a catalogue missed.
CONTEXTCommunity knowledge
Forums and collector memory can point somewhere useful. Check the claim before repeating it.
FOLLOW THE CLUE 07 / COMMUNITY FREQUENCY
OPEN
CHANNEL.
Got a guitar you can’t place? Found a catalogue page? Start there.
01IDENTIFICATIONWhat detail do you check first when a guitar’s history is unclear?↗
02CATALOGUESThe catalogue page you always come back to↗
03PLAYERSWhich MIJ guitar surprised you the most?↗
NEW TO THE SCENE? YOU’RE IN THE RIGHT PLACE.STEP INSIDE THE TOPIC BOARD ↗
08 / THE OTHER ROOMS
KEEP
GOING.
More places to look
when one guitar leads to another.
01
HISTORY & CATALOGUESMIJ ARCHIVEBrowse catalogues, makers and the printed history behind the guitars.EXPLORE ↗
02
STORIES & MEDIAMIJ CONFIDENTIALLong-form stories on the history, mystery and passion of Japanese guitars.READ & WATCH ↗
03
GUITARS & GEARTSUNAMI GUITARSExplore Japanese guitars, their details and the stories that travel with them.SEE THE GUITARS ↗
HISTORY & CATALOGUESMIJ ARCHIVEBrowse catalogues, makers and the printed history behind the guitars.EXPLORE ↗
02STORIES & MEDIAMIJ CONFIDENTIALLong-form stories on the history, mystery and passion of Japanese guitars.READ & WATCH ↗
03GUITARS & GEARTSUNAMI GUITARSExplore Japanese guitars, their details and the stories that travel with them.SEE THE GUITARS ↗