Tama TG 160

I got this guitar in 1979. It is a very simple solid top guitar, with beautiful woodwork, flawless workmanship, great tuners, no electronics. Dreadnought shape. Came with a hard case. By modern standards not having electronics is an issue, but back then I think only Ovation came ready to plug and play. However I have rated the guitar a 9 because of no electronics.

Reading other reviews, they mention the type of wood, what other guitars it is like, etc. I'll defer to their superior knowledge. Personally I have *never* played another guitar remotely as nice as this one.

If Spinal Tap's amps go to 11, then the sound of this guitar goes to about 15 or 16. Beautiful rich even tone, and projection like you wouldn't believe. I am a heavy player, and this guitar copes with everything I dish out.

Action is good, but not blistering - however I am a hard player and I like it that way. I have never put this guitar in for any sort of service and it still plays beautifully. The only flaws it has now are some love-marks from usage - and this guitar has been *used* not treated with kid gloves....stages, camping trips, singalongs with my kids scouting groups....

26 years of hard labour with no failures or flaws. This is the only instrument I have ever owned that I can say this of.

Never had to deal with it

I just hope I never lose this guitar, because I could not replace it. 26 years of wood maturing, and me and it are old friends now. If the house were on fire, and it comes to a choice between saving my guitar or my wife and children..........hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...........I can make more children........ :-)

If i had to replace it I would look at high end Martins. They have nice tone and feel, but they don't project the sound like my Tama does. I wish they had never stopped making them.

I guess this was built in 1977 - I ordered it then, but it took till 1978 to arrive in the US. 20 frets, made in Japan. All solid woods, including the bindings and inlays. 13 strip back inlay (I think mahogany and some other lighter wood - maybe holly?), 9 strip corner bindings. The only fingerboard inlays are small pearl dots (no fancy snowflakes) and in the headstock a very classy "T" in abalone. The top is the usual solid spruce (englemann?) with linear, even grain ... a subtle hint of bear-claw in it. Of course, the color is a well-aged 26+ year old rich vintage. The body is solid Jacaranda - a dark brown like black walnut with density like rosewood and patterns reminiscent of koa. The neck is one-piece mahogany, with a small diamond-like extrusion where the headstock begins. Someone told me it's like a Martin D-35 in that feature. The finish is full gloss. Fingerboard is not bound - but exceedingly dark heavy ebony, as is the bridge. The bridgepins are also, I believe, ebony, with small inset pearl buttons in them, as is the endpin for a strap. The original tuners were high-quality "Tama" tuners in chrome. I still have them, but replaced them with gold grovers for looks. They do add a lot. The headstock also has a veneer over the mahogany that I think is also jacaranda. The inside of the sides have the small fabric strips someone else mentioned in another TW model -- like Martin. The Neck is probably pretty darn close to a Martin D-35 .. thin, smooth. The body is the classic Dreadnaught, no cutaways. The scale is 25.5" and the frets are relatively thin ... but have held up well enough over the past 26 years. There are no electronics, of course. It came with a Tama hardshell case ... although there were no markings to show that it was a propietary case.

The sound is smooth and well balanced, with both a solid bass-end and (with good strings) well-defined treble/overtones. I sometimes finger pick, and sometimes just strum ala Mac Powell in third day. The only thing I've not really liked about it was there seems to be a body resonance just about the low "G." Nobody else has ever said anything about it, and everytime I've tried other guitars to find "the perfect one," I've never felt any were better than mine. Including the High-end Martins with abalone all over the fingerboard and soundhole.

I can't remember how the action was when I got it. I'm a tinkerer - having changed the nut and saddle many times. At present I have a micarta comensated nut and a maple compensated saddle (stained black). I do know that the workmanship was absolutely meticulous ... bookmatched front, back ... the only thing that has not been perfect is that over the years some of the bracing has pulled loose ... maybe because I've never humidified it. However, being a tinkerer, (and not worthy of the guitar) I just applied a little cyano-acrylate glue (super glue) and let it capillary into the gap ... maybe sprayed a little zip-kicker on it to speed the action ... and it's been fine. I know that with a "lifetime warranty" I should have tried to get it seen by a luthier. But I didn't.

Ok ... you've read about the glue letting loose ... and after about 20 years the bridge began to pull up, but I super-glued that and it is tight as a button again. Other than that, the thing has been totally solid and top-rate. The only back-up needed is extra strings ... since I often play mine longer than I should.

Never tried. Tama only makes drums anymore, so far as I know. I fact, until I read about the other Tamas in this database, I had never seen or heard of any other Tama guitar in all the stores I've visited. I usually blow the sales person away when I tell them I have a Tama guitar ... they only know of the drums.

I started music in grade school orchestra, playing an upright String Bass. I bought my first guitar - a used Ovation Balladeer with deep body - in about 1972. I've loved ebony fingerboards ever since. If this guitar were stolen, I guess I'd look for a high-end Martin to replace it, as there is no way to ever replace it, really. I've also installed triple piezo pick-ups and a small condenser mic for using through amps. All do-it-yourself. And I bought it sight-unseen, from a catalog. I had ordered a Tama "tree-of-life" inlay, but they had changed their philosophy from "fancy" to "purist"and the tree of life inlay was no longer available. So, I got a virtual Martin instead. Turned out to be just what I like - unique. Why I'm looking at a getting an OM sized Tacoma-Olympa these days, with the pickup built in. That's the one thing I've not been totally happy with yet ... trying to get a perfect pickup for that acoustic sound.