Why this site is here
These pages are under development to help identify and chronicle
the Ventura branded guitars that were imported to the United States from
Japan by C. Bruno and Company during the period of late 1960's until early
1980's. Most of the guitars were copies of popular models from the major American
manufacturers of the day. They ranged in quality from good to excellent.
It is common knowledge among guitar gear junkies such as myself that the
60's and 70's were rife with Japanese copy guitars that filled a need to
supply economical instruments to many aspiring young musicians, myself included
Accuracy of information
Every effort will be made to verify the information presented on
these pages, so that they may be relied upon for identifying the different
models and options available under the Ventura brand name. However, there
is no guarantee that every factiod is absolutely accurate, as I am only an
amateur enthusiast and not a qualified guitar historian. If anyone has well
documented proof, (company catalogs / brochures), of any errors, I welcome
your participation in helping to keep this site as error free as possible.
I also would welcome access to good quality pictures, scans, catalogs or
brochures that would be invaluable in the quest to compile an accurate resource
for everyone to enjoy.
At some point you may be subject to my opinions, conjecture, or
assumptions, as I make no claim to being an authority on any subject. However,
I will try to give warning if I make an assumption or have not verified the
accuracy of any statements.
My personal observation and experience tell me that Ventura guitars
were sometimes feature by feature the same as the 60's to 70's Aria, Univox,
Conrad, and many other "house brand" guitars that were reputedly made in
the Japanese Aria and Matsumoku factories. They often share identical hardware
and design, with the biggest difference being the name on the headstock.
I surmise that most, if not all, Ventura models were manufactured
by the Aria / Matsumoku factories, who were also responsible for making
other imported guitars such as: Aria, Aria Pro II, Diamond, Maxitone,
Univox, Lyle, Conrad, Electra, Epiphone-Japan, Westone, Westbury, and many
others.
Japanese Guitar Quality & Various Factories
Since this page is devoted to Ventura branded guitars, which were
mostly made in the 1970's, the comments below apply to that era, but
may also apply to earlier or later Japanese guitars. The plain truth is that;
most Japanese guitar manufacturers were "contract houses" that made guitars
to the specifications of the "trading companies" (Japanese middlemen) that
took orders from the American companies that were importing them (such as
C. Burno). This resulted in a wide variety of qualities in guitars shipped
by most of the "contract houses". What this means is that; Ibanez (Fuji
Gen-Gakki), as well as Aria (Matsumoku), and to a lesser extent Tokai (Kasuga),
made both very high quality, and very low budget guitars, and various qualities
between, depending on what was ordered by the trading company for the importer
they represented. I've even seen respectable quality guitars that came
from Teisco (Kawai), though most of their product was at the
lower end of the scale.
Further complicating identification of origin; many of the
parts Japanese guitars were built from, (pickups, tailpieces, bridges, etc...)
were sub-contracted to smaller "contract houses" that specialized in making
one part. Often, the companies bought their parts from the same contractors,
so... you may see similar or identical parts on guitars built in different
factories.
Something Different about Ventura Guitars
A label inside the soundhole of some Ventura acoustic guitars states:
"Designed in America - Crafted in Japan". I have never seen similar stickers
in other Aria / Matsumoko manufactured guitars. (Or any other Japanese made
guitars for that matter).
Misinformation - Intentional or Otherwise
Time and again I see Ventura/Bruno guitars for sale (even at vintage
dealers that should know better) or at auction on eBay, claiming that a
Ventura guitar was made in the "Ibanez" factory. In my many years of interest
in Japanese guitars (I got my first in 1968) I have found no solid evidence
that any Ventura branded guitar was ever made by Ibanez/Hoshino/Fuji Gen-Gakki.
If anyone has proof to the contrary, I welcome you to share it. It is my
contention that sales/auctions making such claims, are done either out of
ignorance, or are intentional deception, attempting to cash in on the misguided
concept that Hoshino/Ibanez/
Fuji Gen-Gakki manufactured guitars are inherently superior to guitars
made in other Japanese factories. This is not necessarily the case.
How you can help
I will welcome any readers assistance in filling what I see as
a shortfall in specific details of model identification and business dealings
that resulted in the manufacture and import of some of my favorite pawnshop
prizes. If you have nice pictures or reasonably verifiable information,
please share it with me to further the cause! The most useful information
would be catalogs, brochures, or slicks. Good quality, high-resolution pictures
would be welcomed and appreciated also.
Thanks!
