2018 Tokai LC220S Les Paul Custom Black Beauty Premium Series - Black - With Original Hard Case - Made In Japan MIJ

Used 2018 Tokai LC220S Premium Series Les Paul Custom in Black Lacquer Finish - All Original with original brown Tokai "Cali Girl" hard case - Made in the famous Tokai factory in Japan - MIJ

• Serial Number: 1839290
• Body: 2 piece centre-seam maple top on a 1 piece mahogany back
• Neck: 1 Piece mahogany
• Fretboard: Ebony
• Fretboard Radius: 12"
• Fret Edge Binding: Yes
• Inlays: Real Mother Of Pearl block inlays
• Frets: 22 x Medium Jumbo (1.0mm tall x 2.7mm wide)
• Nut Width: 43.5mm
• Width at 1st Fret: 44.5mm
• Width at 12th Fret: 52.5mm
• Thickness at 1st Fret: 23.1mm
• Thickness at 12th Fret: 24.7mm
• Nut: Bone
• Tuners: Original gold Gotoh tuners
• Bridge & Tailpiece: Original gold Japanese made Gotoh GE104B bridge with brass saddles, and Gotoh GE101A aluminum tailpiece
• Pickups: 2 x original nickel covered Tokai PAF-Vintage MK2 humbuckers
• Neck Pickup Resistance: 7.85K ohm
• Bridge Pickup Resistance: 8.67K ohm
• Pots: Original CTS 500K pots with Sprague Orange Drop capacitors
• Strings: Ernie Ball Regular Slinky 2221 10-46 - E Standard tuning
• Weight: 10.22bs
• Non Original Parts: Dunlop Straplok buttons installed (original Gotoh buttons are in the case)
• Case: Original Tokai Love Rock "Cali Girl" brown hard case with pink interior
• Truss Rod: works as expected, with room in both directions

This is a rarely seen Japanese made 2018 Tokai LC220S Premium Series Les Paul Custom Black Beauty, which is their best attempt on the early 1968 style Gibson Les Paul Custom.

The Tokai Premium series appears for the first time in the 2006 Tokai Catalog - although it wasn't called the Premium Series until the 2008 Catalog. Tokai had 2 Les Paul Custom's in their Premium Series: a version with a wine red (WR) finish and mahogany body & top, and the Black Beauty (BB) version (like this one) with a 2 piece centre seam maple top. They also used different tuner keys between them.

This model launched in the Premium Series as the LC180S in 2006, but was quickly renamed to LC195S, LC210S, and then LC220S (like this one) in 2016, and then finally became the the LC230S in 2018 - corresponding to price increases along the way. This one was built in 2018, so the model name change in 2018 must have come after this one was built.

Tokai had been making Les Pauls' Customs since the late 1970's and early 1980's, but this model differs from their previous versions in the following ways:

• 1 piece mahogany back
• 2 piece maple top
• Ebony Fretboard
• Fret edge binding
• Real Mother of Pearl block inlays
• Amber tinted headstock logo and inlay
• Pickups are PAF-Vintage MK2
• Lacquer finish
• Higher quality Gotoh bridge & tailpiece with brass saddles and aluminum tailpiece
• Higher quality electronics, including CTS pots, Sprague Orange Drop capacitors, and Swithcraft jack & switch
• Included Tokai "Cali Girl" hard case

These features improved an already incredible guitar, and really brings the quality of this model to the top of the heap when it comes to Japanese made Les Paul Custom models, or any Les Paul for that matter.

These models are more like the vintage Tokai LC-100 and LC-110 models from the early 1980's in that they have real ebony fretboard, real mother of pearl inlays, fret edge binding, 1 piece mahogany backs and 1 piece mahogany necks.

I have had many Japanese made Les Paul Customs, and this is at the top of the heap for me in terms of build quality, playability, and sound. This is a superlative custom shop level guitar in all senses.

The finish on this is of course classic ebony Black lacquer finish. I suspect that the lacquer might have been amber tinted, since the headstock logo and inlay along with the binding are more yellow than the standard model. Who doesn't love a Black Beauty Les Paul Custom? They look good from every angle, and they can hang with any genre from blues, to country, to metal.

This LC220S appears to be all original, and in very good player grade condition. Since it's a gloss black lacquer finish, it shows every small scratch, swirling, and dents, and there are some, but nothing major or anything that affects the playability. It's not a case queen, and it has been played, but definitely not abused.

The gold hardware is all in great shape, with only minor signs of has very light corrosion and tarnish, but overall has lots of shine left.

The 1 piece mahogany neck is a joy to play on with a medium to thick C shaped wide neck. This is by no means a thin neck - I've had some thicker necks than this, but this one is on the thicker side, and fills the hand nicely. It is incredibly solid feeling, and it has a jet black ebony fretboard, with expertly executed real Mother of Pearl block inlays, and custom shop style fret edge binding (rounded over on the top).

The 22 medium jumbo frets have virtually no play wear, and overall there is nearly the full life left in these frets, and the guitar plays extremely well up and down the entire neck.

The original gold covered Tokai PAF-Vintage MK2 humbuckers sound fantastic. Bright, bitey, and edgy, with a big and firm low end, present mids, and rounded top end, and insane amounts of sustain. They have a good amount of grit on an overdriven amp, but sounds great when cleaned up too. They are fantastic pickups, that have their own thing going on. You won't want to stop playing this Les Paul!

All the guitars I sell, I test, thoroughly clean, and setup completely before I list them. Anything that is missing, damaged, or non original is mentioned in the listing.

I setup all my Gibson style guitars to Gibson factory specs - including neck relief, action, pickup height, intonation, and tailpiece height. So this guitar will be ready to play out of the box (after you tune it up - I ship my guitars with the strings loosened).

Comes with the original brown Tokai Love Rock "Cali Girl" Les Paul case with pink interior. The case is also in very good condition, with the plastic covering still on the handle. Also comes with the original Tokai Warranty card, truss rod wrench, the original strap buttons, and the protective film that was on the pickguard originally with the "Tokai Lacquer Finish" sticker.

Overall, this is hard to find and professional grade guitar made by one of the best guitar factories in the world.

If you're looking for a superlative Japanese made Les Paul Custom, grab this one today!

CONDITION ------------

Overall it's in very good player grade shape.

I've tried to capture all of the flaws in the photos and in the description.

Across the entire body, top, back side, neck, and headstock, there are some minor dings, dents, scratches, and swirling in the finish, but nothing major.

There is some minor scratches around the knobs.

All of the gold hardware, including the bridge, tailpiece, pickup covers and pole pieces, tuners, and screws are all in great shape with lots of shine left, with only minor if any tarnish, pitting, corrosion and/or rust, but there is a consistent patina on the hardware. Everything works as expected, including the tuners and bridge saddles.

The black plastics are in tact with typical scratches and pick marks. The truss rod cover and control panel cover still have their protective film on them (from the factory).

The neck pickup ring has been cracked in the middle on the lower side, but has been glued back together.

All of the original Gotoh tuners are solid and work properly.

Around the strap buttons there's some minor strap marks/swirling.

The 22 medium jumbo frets have barely been played, and overall there's nearly the full life left in these frets, and the guitar plays exceptionally well up and down the entire neck.

There's no signs of a headstock, heel or any other repairs.

The truss rod works as expected, with room in both directions.

SHIPPING ------------  

Every shipment is expertly packed with great care and includes tracking, signature required on delivery, and full insurance coverage for both the purchase price and shipping.

Every guitar is fully wrapped in bubble wrap, in a cardboard box meant for guitars, with proper support inside. To reduce environmental impact, the packing material (paper, newsprint, gift wrap, bubble wrap, air packets, foam, carboard boxes and/or tube supports, etc...) used may be recycled.

Package dimensions are 118cm x 47cm x 17cm

Note: if you want an exact shipping quote, just send me a note with your postal/zip code, and I'll get a proper quote for your address. 

Note: If you're buying from outside of Canada, you as the Buyer may be required to pay import duties, tariffs, taxes and/or VAT upon delivery, depending on your location and the purchase price.

QUESTIONS ------------

Any questions? Want more photos or detailed shots? Measurements? Shoot me a message, and I'll be happy to answer them, or send more pics, or take any measurements you want/need.

Thanks for looking!