Yamaha SA700, red, made in Japan 1978. These Super Axe guitars are so lush, I'm a big fan. This particular iteration were made from 1977-82 or so, and they're pretty close to a Gibson ES-335 but with slightly pointier horns and the castle headstock. They were made totally by hand, and the love that went into the build is obvious when you're holding it: it feels a big magic. The neck is a moderately chunky '59 style profile, so there's a bit of meat to it but you can still move around pretty quickly if you like. We had our tech do a full fret dress and polish on arrival, so it's in great playing order. The body is resonant and responsive, you can really feel your chords in your chest during play. The tone on deck is rich, full and eloquent: warm and punchy low end, mile-wide midrange with heaps of complexity and nuance and a chirpy top end to keep everything defined and clear. There's a lovely liveliness to the tone, it's gooey and warm to a soft touch or creamy and angry when hit hard. The red finish has weathered the decades gracefully, so there's a a few marks nodding to songs past but it's in pretty good shape. Super by name and nature.

Model: Yamaha SA700 Super Axe
Made: Japan, 1978 (serial 002287)
Finish: persimmon red (PR), gloss poly
Body: laminate maple with centre block, thinline depth
Neck: one piece mahogany, rosewood board, 12" radius, 24.75" scale
Weight: 4.075kg
Mods: nut replaced, pickup covers removed, tuners replaced
Pickup: Yamaha PAF-style humbucker x2
Case: basic non original gig bag

Cosmetic condition notes: mild finish wear. The headstock came in with 'binding' drawn on with a paint pen, so that's been scraped off and there's a few residual scuffs and scratches from the process, as well as some scuffs on the end and front. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands, minor scuffs on the back only. The back has a little bald patch in the middle of the body and a decent scuff on the back edge on the back edge, as well as widespread dimples and scuffs around the whole body. The sides have some scuffs and dimples in the elbow area and near the knobs, nothing nasty. The front has some scuffs on the neck pickup, as well as some dimples near the knobs and elbow area and some play wear on the guard and horns.  Overall: good condition (7/10).

Playing condition notes: Neck is straight, intonation is good, action is low, truss rod works. All electronics tested and working properly. The frets are freshly levelled, dressed and polished, so they're in great order,  8/10 for fret life left. Setup with fresh 11/49 Moonshiners strings.