K.Yairi F130, natural gloss, made in Japan circa 1969. We love the guitars of Kazuo Yairi around here, and this one is a particularly unusual and charming example. Yairi guitars are made entirely by hand in the Nagano Japan by a small team of luthiers trained under one master, using timber milled and air dried on-site over decades. This one was made so early in the story that digging up any info on the model is tricky. Early Yairi guitars were stamped with an 'emperor year' date code on the bracing, so the '44' at the front of the serial pertains to a 1969 build... just about as early as you can get for the company. It seems to be modelled on a Martin 000-15, which was a popular pre-war model with a small body made with mahogany top, back and sides. The body size and timber choice makes for a warm, gooey tone with a complex midrange that lends itself very favourably to fingerstyle playing. This has a delicate and nuanced voice, it's really quite lovely and rewards a soft touch, although you can get a satisfying snappy growl out of it with a generous attack from the right hand. The neck is straight and stable with tidy frets, shaped to a typical vintage style soft-V shape and blessed with enough playing hours on the clock to feel very slick. I don't much like your chances of finding another example of this model for sale anytime soon, so if you're a Yairi fan, snap up this little piece of history while it's briefly available.

Model: K.Yairi F130 
Made: Japan, 1969 (serial 44 451)
Finish: natural, gloss poly
Body: solid mahogany top (not verified, may be laminate), laminate mahogany back and sides, 000 style body
Neck: mahogany one-piece inc headstock, rosewood fingerboard, 25.5" scale, 15" radius, 43mm nut, soft-V shape, 14th fret join
Weight: 1.770kg
Pickup: none
Mods: none
Case: basic vintage hard case

Cosmetic condition notes: minor finish wear. The headstock has some marks on the end and edges, as well as some dimples on the back in the middle and the front around the edges. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands, minor dimples on the back only. The back has widespread light scuffs around the whole body but no major marks. The sides have rub wear and minor dimples around the whole body but no major marks. The front has a few dimples on the top horn, behind the bridge and in the elbow area, as well as some standard play wear on the guard and horns. You can see through the soundhole what appears to be one layer of the mahogany laminate back has slight separation along a join, running around 2/3rds of the length of the body approximately an inch below the centre brace. Overall: very good condition (7.5/10).

Playing condition notes: action is moderately low, neck is straight, intonation is good but a little limited by the bridge design, truss rod works. The frets are in pretty tidy condition given the age of the guitar, but there is some normal wear there, 7/10 for fret life left. Wearing fresh 11/52 John Pearse strings.