1984 Tokai TLS-150 — The “Spalted” Oddity

According to the 1984 Tokai catalog, laminated “flame veneer” tops had already crept down to the TLS-100 class,
and only the TLS-150 and above still featured genuine figured maple tops.

In the early 1980s, even the LS-80 class had nickel hardware and brass bridges,
but by 1984 those specifications were reserved exclusively for the TLS-200.
The fittings on this TLS-150 appear identical to those once used on the LS-60,
suggesting some cost realignment within the lineup.

The pickups are DiMarzio PAFs, consistent with catalog specs of the time:
the TLS-100 and TLS-150 were fitted with DiMarzio PAFs,
while the TLS-200 received Seymour Duncan Vintage ’59s.
Interestingly, the catalog from this period no longer described the TLS-150 or TLS-200 as custom order models,
implying that both had entered Tokai’s regular production line by then.

The most striking feature of this particular guitar is its unusual top wood.
A band-like discoloration runs across part of the maple top —
a fungal pattern known as spalting.
When the figure spreads in a web-like pattern, the material is called spalted maple,
a tonewood prized for its aesthetic rarity.
In Japanese, the pattern is poetically referred to as “sumi-nagashi,” or “ink flow.”

That said, I personally find spalted figuring ill-suited to a cherry sunburst Les Paul.
Why Tokai chose to use such wood for this model remains a mystery to me.

Weight: 4.03 kg (including strings)
(Updated August 26, 2016)