The Morris Guitar company has been building quality handcrafted instruments in Nagano, Japan since 1967. Mr Toshio Moradaira , the founder, was the first distributor in Japan to carry both Fender and Gibson lines. In 1964 due to his working relationship with Gibson, Mr Moradaira was invited to visit the Gibson Factory in Kalamazoo, Michigan. An employee at Gibson nicknamed him "Mori" at the time.
In 1967 he founded the Morris guitar company he named it Morris, taken from the nickname given to him by the Gibson employee. Morris guitars have enjoyed an outstanding reputation in Japan and other countries for making high quality guitars and emphasizing quality woods and construction.
Here we have the Morris W-35 Model dreadnought. The very familiar block headstock and X-bracing is definitely more than a nod to Martin. The back and sides are ply plate construction also known as semi-solid. Instead of 3 ply sheets laminated in opposing directions, this uses two plates press glued in the same direction. The result is far superior tonal quality over three ply construction, much simpler construction, and eminently durable. The top is ply spruce and the bridge looks to be ebony. From the front it looks like a stunning D41, the back sports a D28 style marquetry center binding. This is fairly common among Japanese luthiers from this time as they made small changes to Martin blueprints and construction techniques.
Chords ring loud and clear with a mid forward, boomy sound. A real player with plenty of room at the saddle. One of the best sounding all ply guitars we have had through here in a while.
We ship everything via UPS, safely packed and fully insured. To make alternative shipping arrangements or to receive an overseas shipping quote, please message us before purchasing.
Freshly polished frets, working truss rod, set up with medium action at 3 mm on the low E, 2.5 mm on the high E.
