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Tokai Guitars are known for their well-made copies of classic guitar and bass models.

The brand-new Tokai ATE-33N Thinline is part of Tokai’s more affordable Chinese-made range, and represents their version of a Thinline Tele-type guitar.

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The Tokai ATE-33N Thinline (current price in Finland 437 €) is a real looker and will delight fans of the natural look, despite its moderate price tag.

Roger Rossmeisl – known for his classic Rickenbacker designs – hit upon the concept of the Thinline Telecaster in the late 1960s when working for Fender. The original version was made with a body which featured three large pockets routed out from the back. A separate, glued-on solid piece of wood served as the body’s back.

Tokai approaches the construction of the ATE-33N Thinline the other way around: the pockets are routed into the front of the alder body, which then receives a…

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Finnish boutique amp company Bluetone is yet to become a household word. Nevertheless, Bluetone’s dynamic duo of Harry Kneckt and Matti Vauhkonen have already garnered lots of praise with their all-valve designs, and the word keeps on spreading steadily.

Custom Sounds in Helsinki have recently started to stock Bluetone-amplifiers, and they were kind enough to supply Kitarablogi with a Bluetone Princeton Reverb combo for testing.

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The Bluetone Princeton Reverb (current price in Finland approx. 1,600 €) is Bluetone’s handwired – and slightly updated – version of a 1960s Fender Princeton Reverb (in its AA1164 guise). Bluetone’s improvements over the original issue include a post phase-inverter master volume (PPIMV), a larger speaker, as well as an external bias point. The Bluetone Princeton Reverb is rated at 15 Watts.

Bluetone’s Princeton is factory-equipped with a 12-inch WGS Black Hawk Alnico speaker, but you can order yours with a different…