A great lap steel from a small company out of Japan!
Based on the 'frying pan' design, first released by Rickenbacher in the early 1930s, this particular reissue was originally manufactured by a company named Sho-Bud in collaboration with the famous pedal steel player, Jerry Byrd. These were made sometime during the '70s and '80s until the company went out of business in the mid-'80s. Sho-Bud also made some at that time that were not authorised by Jerry Byrd. Beginning in 1986, Japanese company Fuzzy/Excel begin manufacturing of this particular model.
Serial information doesn't provide a lot of clues, so we suspect this could have been manufactured sometime from the late '80s to the '00s, but more than likely the 1990s. A really great sounding lap steel, with this example being the long neck 8-string version.
The pickup sounds excellent on this one, and the build quality is quite good! Cosmetically, it's in great condition throughout. Hardware is fully functional, and includes a case.
