GRECO SE430 - the earliest MADE IN JAPAN Stratocaster I've owned!

A very early GRECO (GNECO) from 1974, I believe an SE430S. A lovely sounding 50 year old guitar. The pickups are early Maxon single coils.

Video Timing:
0:00 Intro
1:22 Initial Evaluation
4:44 Work required
8:29 All cleaned up
9:01 Maxon Sounds
15:02 Some thoughts
15:50 Identify the year
18:00 Summing up

Thanks for watching, it's much appreciated.

Dunsy

In the early 1970s, Greco asked Hidesato Shiino, who was officially working for Yamaha, to develop guitar production and to become a marketing consultant.

At first, Shiino was leading most guitar makers, not just Greco. He worked as a consultant for ELK, Guyatone, Fernandes and Kasuga among others.

He contacted his old friend Shigeru Narumo (1947-2007) who was then a well-known guitarist and grandson of the founder of Bridgestone Tire in Hatoyama, Mr. Yukio. Narumo began developing and supervising the production of Greco guitars with Shiino. They both advised Greco to make guitars whose quality would be superior to that of the Gibson Les Paul for a more accessible price and with a thiner neck so that it is better adapted to the hands of the Japanese.

Shiino oversaw the manufacture of a guitar prototype for Narumo according to the specifications they had determined. The guitar was made in a few days and Narumo was very pleasantly surprised by the new EG Custom. All Narumo musicians tested a Gibson, a Fender and the new Greco and all agreed that the EG was the best!

Narumo played in his concerts with the new EG-360 Custom and his Gibson. The Japanese audience was surprised to see that a Japanese guitar was just as good, if not better, than the original.

The only thing that Narumo did not really like was that Greco was based on a photo of Paul Kossoff (of the Free rock band), provided by Narumo himself, to replicate the color of the prototype. Kossoff was playing on a No. 2 Gibson whose finish was in brown sunburst, but Greco could not check the color on the back of the guitar … They had done a sunburst finish on the back and on the neck.

Narumo’s involvement in this project and these live performances have resulted in a huge increase in Greco’s sales. The brand had therefore asked Narumo to endorse him exclusively. A little reluctant at first, Narumo saw a chance to make the guitars he dreamt of. During a visit to the Fujigen factory, Narumo suggested leaving the humbucker pickups of the bridge open and profiling the shape of the back like a Stratocaster. His suggestions gave birth to the EG-420, which proved superior to the EG-360.

Following the EG-420, Greco and Narumo embarked on a collaboration that gave rise to various model creations and enhancements. Their notable joint effort culminated in the EG-800, largely influenced by Narumo’s vision. Retaining the EG-420’s back contour, the EG-800 featured superior quality woods and open humbuckers. Unlike the semi-hollow and six-piece mahogany pancake body of the EG-420, the EG-800 boasted a two-piece maple top, an ebony fingerboard, and a set neck—a feature that later became a Greco standard.

Officially, Narumo claimed no involvement with the EG-800’s development, stating that his role concluded with the EG-700 prototype, and he only learned of the EG-800 years later. However, the EG-800’s distinct characteristics strongly imply its inspiration from Narumo’s suggestions.

During the mid-1970s, Greco significantly amplified its production of replicas. Kanda Shokai, then importing Gibson USA, urged Fujigen (producer of Greco and Ibanez) to focus on increasing replica production. This period marked the inception of the famous ‘lawsuit guitars’ as Ibanez began saturating the American market.

In 1972, Greco introduced Custom Shop guitars at the behest of Bad Company’s guitarist Mick Ralphs, who expressed a desire for a Custom Greco during a visit to a Kanda Shokai workshop. This led to the creation of the ‘MR’ model, followed by replicas of instruments like Paul McCartney’s Rickenbacker and Brian May’s guitar.