Yamaki 250 12-String Dreadnought

This guitar has a solid top, but I'm not certain whether it's cedar or spruce. It's quite dark, yet not as dark as the cedar top on my 6 string. The sides and back are rosewood. It has a three piece back, and the center piece might possibly be laminate, but the other pieces and sides appear to be solid (grain pattern same inside and out). Seams are covered with a mosaic inlay. The neck is mahogany, with rosewood fretboard; headstock is open, with rosewood face, and abalone "Yamaki" letters. The stock and fretboard are bound with ivory colored trim. Large six-sided abalone inlays mark the frets. It has 20 frets. The shape is dreadnought. Tuners are gold colored, open, and hold their tuning. The body is bound with some ivory colored material with black lines. It came with a hard-shell case, brown vinyl alligator cover. This must be a Yamaki case, as I've seen the same description in other Yamaki reviews.

The sound is wonderful. It is big, full, a powerhouse. The thing comes to life when it's being played. I play mostly without amplification, though I had a Baggs pickup installed probably 15 years ago. I use it when needed, but this guitar sounds like several.

My 12 string Yamaki is easier to play than my 6 string (not a Yamaki). The action is, and has always been, perfect. I find no fault in this guitar. I've never noticed anything about it that bugs me.

I've owned this guitar since around '78. It's been everywhere with me. Everything has held up perfectly except the headstock. It's open style, and has broken off twice when the case has gotten tipped over. My luthier is good. I've learned to be very careful about how/where I set it. Apart from that break, it has no problems. The finish is glossy. There are no cracks anywhere on the body or neck. Nothing is loose. Nothing is shifting. Nothing rattles or buzzes. There is no apparent bowing. I had a few worn frets redone around 10 years ago. There are some light wear spots on the fretboard. I use light gauge strings, keep it tuned down one step, and capo to bring it to standard pitch.

Yamaki has been out of business for years.

I've been playing since '69. Bought the Yamaki, new, probably in '78. It's my favorite guitar (own two others). It's so easy on my fingers, sounds so big and lovely, and is such a pretty thing, that I just gravitate to it, plus love to show it off. Sadly, though, most folks just seem to write it off as foreign junk. I was quite ignorant back when I bought it, and chose it on the recommendation of others, and because of the price. Not until a local luthier saw it and pronounced it the most perfect guitar he'd ever seen did I begin to realize I had a treasure. Many years have passed, but the guitar still looks new, and the sound just keeps getting better. If anyone can tell me more about this model, its specs, whether it's low, medium, or high grade, its current value, anything, I'd love to know. I won't sell it, though. If it got stolen, I don't know if it would be possible to replace it, but I'd try to find another.