The year 2022 will mark the 45th anniversary of Headway, which began its history in 1977. Throughout these years Headway has been involved in the use of various woods and designs, and there are countless unique models created by the Headway team. The design of these models is based on Headway’s stance of always moving forward, much like the “Raichou” (Japanese Rock Ptarmigan) weathering the extreme cold of the stormy peaks on Nagano prefecture, where our factory is located, and we wanted to convey this image to as many people as possible through the guitar.
With all of these facts in mind, Headway created this guitar to commemorate this important occasion. Please take a enjoy this feature page!
The year 2022 will mark the 45th anniversary of Headway, which began its history in 1977. Throughout these years has been involved in the use of various woods and designs, Headway and there are countless unique models created by the Headway team. The design of these models is based on Headway’s stance of always moving forward, much like the “Raichou” (Japanese Rock Ptarmigan) weathering the extreme cold of the stormy peaks on Nagano prefecture, where our factory is located, and we wanted to convey this image to as many people as possible through the guitar.
With all of these facts in mind, Headway created this guitar to commemorate this important occasion.
EXTERIOR DESIGN
Capturing the rare moment of a Raichou flapping its wings into the sky
The design captures a moment in time when the Raichou, known for walking around most of the time, flaps its precious wings. The design is connected from the Raichou flying away to the fluttering wings on the fingerboard, giving a sense of flow.
Design featuring the Raichou’s distinctive two-pronged wings
On the fretboard, the design is connected to the head inlay to create a fluttering feather design.
While expressing the soft Raichou feathers swaying in the wind, the 12th fret is decorated with one of the characteristics of Raichou’s feathers, a feather that is split in two. This is a characteristic feather that contains air between the wings to keep warm in the cold winter.
Featuring the Raichou’s distinguishing red eye mask
The most eye-catching feature of this model is the Raichou on the pickguard.
By using an artistic stylization, we achieved a delightful design and made it suitable for combining with Japanese materials, like an ink painting drawn with a brush.
In addition, the red mask-like feature, which is a characteristic of the grouse, was chosen as a supplementary color, and only this part of the head was made of white shell and colored red to create a glittering red effect.
The winter scenery of the Alps where Raichous live is expressed using Tochi wood in the center of the three-piece back.
The blue of the winter sky and the wind blowing through the Alps are expressed with paint and inlay on the white horse chestnut wood, and the snow fluttering in the air is expressed with “holographic paint”.
The way it appears and disappears depending on the angle is just like the snowflakes themselves.
The lower part of the figure is decorated with a Raichou clad in pure white winter feathers, and the figure, which blends into the snow and is difficult to find, is expressed by adding white material to the white Tochi wood.
The motif of the soundhole cover is the “Raichousawa” (Raichou’s Stream) in the Northern Alps, which is named after the Raichou. The white stream is made of Tochi wood and the green mountain is made of Hoonoki wood (Japanese Magnolia tree), which are delicately colored to convey a majestic image fitting for the occasion.
Special soundhole label with Headway 45th anniversary logo
The soundhole label is made by pouring liquid into the hole. Each label is individually colored with the characteristic red of Raichou mask.
A special logo is used to commemorate the 45th anniversary of Headway. The logo features the “45th” in a circle-shaped like a soundhole, and the word “ANNIVERSARY” along the shape of the bridge, adding a playful touch that shows Headway’s style of challenging different woods and designs.
The top is made of Adirondack spruce, one of the finest woods available for acoustic soundboards. Adirondack spruce is native to North America and has been used for acoustic guitars for a very long time, making it a very rare material. Adirondack spruce is one of the best woods for guitars, and it has a beautiful look with a tight grain and a clear, rich sound from low to high notes. It is one of the most valuable woods for guitars.
A combination of Jindai Ash, a wood that has been around for thousands of years, and Tochi wood, from the Japanese Tochi tree
For the body side back, we use “Jindai Tamo” or “Jindai Ash”, which has the name of “Jindai” because it was buried in the earth and sand for literally thousands of years and has reappeared in the modern age without decomposing.
In the center of the back of the body is a 3-piece structure made of Tochi wood, which has beautiful white color. By adding the soft Tochi wood to the relatively hard sound of the Jindai Ash, which has a powerful bass and brilliant treble, the hardness is removed and a bright tone is produced throughout.
The extra slim V-neck symbolizes the evolution of Headway
While most of the models in the 500 series have a U-neck, this model has a V-neck, combining Headway’s tradition and innovation.
Compared to the conventional narrow V-neck, it is 1mm thinner at the first fret, making it easier to grip.
This neck is not only thinner and easier to play, but it is also easier to grip, because we want our customers to be able to play their Headways for a long time. In order to make the neck strong enough to hold up to Momose’s beliefs, carbon support bars were introduced into the neck.
With the carbon bars support, the rigidity of the neck is dramatically increased, which leads to a better response that produces a pristine sound immediately upon playing.
’34 semi-forward bracing arrived at in search of the best sound
Headway’s founder and master builder, Yasuo Momose has taken the vintage ’34 bracing and further improved it into a new bracing pattern that he continues to explore in recent years, the 34 Semi-Forward Shift Bracing.
This bracing pattern has a rich bass sound and a subtlety that responds to even the lightest touch, creating a sound that sublimates the basic sound of an acoustic guitar to the extreme.
