To all of you who have the f-349. They are not solid wood. They are not even solid top. They are all laminate construction. All and I repeat all takamine guitars from that era that had solid tops have an s after the model number. If it doesn’t it is an all laminate guitar. Do the research and you can see this is true. Takamine did not start making solid wood guitars till the late 90,s. The lawsuit guitars aren’t great guitars but none of them are solid wood.

There was only one lawsuit, and it was filed in 1977 — Gibson vs. Ibanez/Hoshino Corp.

https://flypaper.soundfly.com/discover/truth-lawsuit-era-guitars/

Definitely laminated. Mine is a 1992 F 349. If you take off the plastic strap pin you can clearly see the mahogany, white wood, mahogany sandwich used for the sides. I have to admit that it sounds surprisingly nice and loud for a plywood guitar.

I own a Takamine F-349 Serial Number 80060905
How do I figure what year it was made?

My Takamine guitar is a F349 Serial #80060905Q

like new. It is solid mahogany. curious the value???

Bought a Takamine guitar at a pawn shop for $140, the dealer said it was an f340. Was a 1992 f349. He misread the number. So are they solid top, back, and sides? Also I saw a few on eBay for around $500 is that an accurate value? It is a great guitar, very full tone and great projection, it’s a keeper for sure.

Hi I have a family guitar that we’ve had its whole life. I’m interested in saling it. I’m from Northern California. Email me if anyone is interested

hey all, i’m in melbourne australia and have a f-389 12 string sounds amazing, does anyone know how much i could get for it as i have too many guitars and unfortunately
have to part with a few.
Cheers

I just bought use Takamine F – 349 1962 est ,is this mean it’s make 1962 or is when the company start?
The company not make this model any more…why??
When is the last time they make this model?

I ve bought a Takamine . Mod nr is f 349 ss. and serial number is 86050246. I have the new type headstock. Its a very good sound in it. i love it.
What is a good fair price for that gitar?

here are the model number conventions for the Takamine F series lawsuit guitars

– only F + 3 digit (XXX) model number (eg, 360) = non-solid top and non-solid sides and back
– add letter E before the F and model number (eg, EF XXX) = built-in onboard electronics at factory
– add letter m after the number (eg, XXXm) = maple wood sides and back
– add letter k after the number (eg, XXXk) = koa wood sides and back
– add 1 letter s after the number (eg, XXXs) = solid top and non-solid sides and back
– add 2 letter s after the number (eg, XXXss) = solid top and solid sides and back (quite rare to find)

it is possible to combine the letters (F 370sk, EF 375ss)

Jeff

: I have recently purchased a 1979 Takamine F-349 guitar. The seller said that the top, sides, and back were made of solid mahogany. Does anyone know if that is correct or is the top only solid? Thanks. I just recently bought a 1979 Takamine F349 on ebay & noticed that it has an ornamental strip of darb binding covering the inner perimeter of the soundhole, so to discover if the top is solid or not would be difficult, if not impossible, without removing this strip of binding. I assume all the 349s have this strip in the soundhole, it definitely is original to the instrument. It is bit hard to see this strip as it blends it so well with the mahogany color of the top. The tone of the guitar is nice, not a lot of bass, but very clear & balanced with good sustain. I would not say it is a an exceptional instrument, but it’s a good sounding guitar; I have an Alvarez 5059 with a solid spruce top that sounds similar with more bass response than the Tak. Comparing it to my other acoustics (I have 7) my particular 349 stood up pretty well, I have 2 Ibanez J-200 copys, a Takamine F360S, the Alvarez 5059, A Mountain D-42 copy & a Ventura V231S. The 349 while it could not compare with the big sound of the Jumbos, my Jumbos having more volume & a deeper warm bass response, it does hold up well compared to the F360S & the Mountain, which is a solid wood guitar. I would say the tone of this 349 is very well balanced, the notes very clear & bright, less warm than I thought a mahogany bodied guitar would be, & not muddy at all, with less bass response than a rosewood guitar. It’s a fairly loud guitar, very cutting. I am pretty pleased with the instrument overall, though I wish it had a bit more bass in the lower strings. The action is very good, it is extremely easy to play; the action is actually a tad too low as the lower E buzzes slightly when strummed hard, but this is easily remedied. A nice guitar though & very pleasing to the eye.

I would be doubtful that a takamine would be all solid wood constructed, but I’m no authority. If you will look at the edges of the wood around the soundhole, you will be able to see if the grain runs all the way through the thickness of the wood or whether the top is a laminate. It’s quite likely a solid top. To check up on the back and sides is more difficult. You’ll have to study the grain of each piece from the inside of the guitar, to find unusual grain patterns and markings. If they match what is on the outside of the guitar then you’ve got solid woods. But remember that the outside of the guitar is stained and finished, so don’t expect to see exactly the same thing.
I’m curious about the "lawsuit model" that you mentioned.
Sincerely, Silky John

Hi. I bought one at a swap meet about 6 months ago. It needed new strings and a brace re-glued. I put a similar notice to yours on before and so far there has been no follow-up. I’m curious about the lawsuit model. What was that about? Pat.