Matsumoku control knobs 1966-1975

Some guitars fitted with these knobs

Metal capped plastic 'bell' control knobs. Height 18mm. Lower diameter 24mm, upper diameter 14mm. To fit a 6mm potentiometer shaft. Numbered 0 - 10. These control knobs were fitted to almost all electric guitars produced at the Matsumoku guitar factory, Matsumoto Japan from the mid/late 1960s to the mid 1970s (and later in some cases). All were painted from the inside, with an (approx) 7mm clear section, and a gold metal reflector cap marked V (volume) or T (tone). It seems these knobs were solely used by Matsumoku, and are a very good indication of a Matsumoku-made guitar. Three colours exist: gold and silver (with black numbering) and black (with white numbering). Although some guitars always had the same knobs (Epiphone solid body guitars were pretty much always fitted with the silver variant, and the various Les Paul copies with gold hardware were fitted with gold knobs), others could be shipped with any of the colours, seemingly at random.

The Matsumoku facility produced guitars for export around the world, and these knobs appeared on guitars branded: Angelica, Arai, Aria, Aria Diamond, Commodore, Conqueror, Conrad, Dorado, Domino, Electra, Epiphone, Eros, Jedson, Kimbara, Kasuga, Luxor, Lyle, Lyra, Madeira, Maxitone, Orlando, Pan, Raven, Shaftesbury, Stewart, Tempo, Toledo, Univox, Ventura - and most likely many, many more.