1970s Yamaha FG-160

The Yamaha FG-160 is a 1970s Green Label, Made in Japan dreadnought, from one of the classic periods of Yamaha’s early Japanese acoustic production. These vintage Japanese Yamahas have developed a loyal following for their robust build quality, powerful projection and warm, mature tone.

This particular FG-160 has clearly been played and enjoyed extensively over the decades — and it has the sound and character to show for it.

Most importantly, this guitar sounds fantastic. It has a big, powerful and exceptionally loud voice, with excellent projection, a warm woody low end and an open, mature character. It responds particularly well to strumming, with plenty of volume and presence while retaining that unmistakable seasoned vintage acoustic sound.

Visually, the guitar wears its history proudly. The top shows numerous scratches, marks and genuine playing wear, giving it a wonderfully authentic naturally relic’d vintage appearance. Today, many guitars are deliberately aged to recreate this kind of aesthetic — here, every mark has developed naturally through decades of genuine use.

Rather than a pristine collector’s piece, this is a proper vintage player’s guitar with bags of personality. Despite the extensive cosmetic wear, the guitar remains structurally sound and fully playable, with no major structural issues noted.

The guitar has been fully cleaned, serviced and set up, with action measuring approximately 3.0mm (Low E) and 2.5mm (High E) at the 12th fret.

It has also been upgraded with a set of bone bridge pins (approx. £35 value). The bridge pin slots have been ramped/deepened to improve the string break angle over the saddle, helping the strings seat correctly and maintain good contact with the saddle.

The original machine heads have been replaced with high-quality, smooth-operating tuners, providing precise and reliable tuning. The original truss rod cover has also been replaced with a custom-made rosewood cover, which complements the guitar’s vintage appearance beautifully.

🪵 Features

• Era: 1970s

• Green Label

• Model: Yamaha FG-160

• Made in Japan

• Body: Dreadnought

• Top: Spruce

• Back & Sides: Mahogany

• Neck: Mahogany

• Fingerboard: Rosewood

• Bridge: Rosewood

• Upgraded Bone Bridge Pins (approx. £35 value)

• Upgraded high-quality machine heads – smooth and precise

• Custom-made Rosewood truss rod cover

• Action: 3.0mm (Low E) / 2.5mm (High E) @ 12th fret

✅ Condition Notes

• Good vintage / player-grade condition

• Extensive scratches, marks and genuine playing wear across the body

• Particularly noticeable playing wear and scratches on the top

• Beautiful naturally relic’d appearance with genuine vintage character

• All wear shown clearly in the photos

• Cosmetic wear is consistent with a well-played vintage instrument

• Structurally sound with no major structural issues noted

• Stable neck with functional truss rod

• Fully cleaned, serviced and set up

• Upgraded bone bridge pins

• Replacement high-quality machine heads operate smoothly and precisely

• Custom-made rosewood truss rod cover

• Fully functional and ready to play

🎼 Why buy this guitar?

Because sometimes the best vintage guitars are the ones that have actually been played.

This 1970s Green Label FG-160 has the scratches, marks and honest wear to prove that it has lived a life. Today, guitar makers and players often go to great lengths to recreate the appearance of a naturally aged instrument through artificial relic finishes — this guitar earned its character the old-fashioned way.

And underneath all that vintage patina is a seriously good-sounding Japanese Yamaha.

It has a big, loud and open voice, with strong projection and the mature, woody character that makes older Yamaha acoustics so enjoyable. This is a guitar that feels alive when you play it and has considerably more personality than its cosmetic condition might suggest.

With its bone bridge pin upgrade, improved string break angle, smooth high-quality replacement tuners, custom rosewood truss rod cover and fresh setup, it has also received several thoughtful upgrades aimed at making it a reliable and enjoyable everyday player.

This is not a pristine collector’s guitar — it is something arguably more interesting: an honest, characterful 1970s Japanese player’s guitar, full of natural ageing, history and personality, with a voice to match its looks.

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