Yamaha FG-450 SA

Vintage Yamaha FG450SA with Solid Spruce Top & Hardshell Case

An impeccably well-preserved vintage (almost 30 years old) acoustic that sounds and looks great, this guitar is the second edition (the “A” edition) of one of Yamaha’s “Golden Age” (1971-1989) guitars, and is beautifully preserved in its original condition. (The lighting and reflections in the very amateur pictures I have posted here do not do it justice.) The FG450SA is the less-ornate version of the renowned 400 series (FG450S, FG460S, FG470S & FG480S), of which the FG460S is the most common. The FG450S and FG460S were so successful that Yamaha re-released these designs as second edition “A” models. This one has delicate mother-of-pearl “snowflake” fret markers like the ones Yamaha uses on their handmade L-series custom-shop guitars. If you do a little research, you will find that many Yamaha guitars from this era have held their value, if not appreciated, which is very uncommon for inexpensive guitars from ANY maker.

This particular instrument has that nice golden aged patina on her top that you associate with higher-end vintage guitars, and has been very well cared for. There are no cracks, splits or major dings of any kind. It has only the smallest of surface finish imperfections that you will have to search for to find. Headstock and fretboard are bound, something seldom found on inexpensive guitars. Yamaha used closed-back Grover-clone tuners that hold tune perfectly. And this guitar has a solid spruce top with rosewood back & sides, a solid mahogany neck, an ebonized rosewood bridge, and a rosewood fretboard.

This video is not mine. The singing is distracting to say the least, but the sound helps to give you an idea what you're getting here: