Christmas in Japan = Gear Hunt! Advice needed
Posted: Sat Nov 16, 2013 10:50 pm
Not quite Christmas, but we do land on Boxing Day and will be there for two weeks. We’ll mostly be in Tokyo but will be heading towards Nagano for some time in the snow in-between.
We’ve been to Japan plenty of times before (I even think our kids were conceived there), including once with the kids, so we know how to get around, but I’d still like some advice for maximum gear-hunting efficiency.
Holiday closing times
From what I remember, lots of Japanese stores close for the New Year period, maybe January 1 to January 3. Is that right? Or is there a chance they’ll be closed for a longer period?
iPad Data Sim
We’ll be taking an iPad with us and I was planning on getting a prepaid Visitor Sim: http://www.bmobile.ne.jp/english/index.html
Problem is, I’m not 100% certain it will work with iOS 7 (it’s an iPad 3 and it should work, but details are sketchy). Anyone had any experience with these or alternative data cards?
Where to go and what to look for?
I’ll mainly be looking for old pedals. I have a recurring dream where I walk into a Tokyo store that sells nothing but NOS Shin-Ei and Guyatone fuzz boxes, but I’m pretty sure it ain’t gonna come true. I know the big stores in Shibuya like Ishibashi and Ikebe will have some secondhand stuff, as will the stores around Ochanomizu, but is there anywhere else I should be looking? Anyone got any favourite stores they'd recommend?
I really want to try my luck in some of the Hard-Off (yes, Hard-Off) secondhand stores but I’m not 100% sure where the bigger stores are. I know there’s a big complex in Hachioji, but is it worth dragging the family out there for a pedal hunt?
I might also be on the lookout for a guitar. If I see a nice lawsuit-era Tokai Breezysound or a Greco Les Paul or a Yamaha SG2 or SG3 (really love those things), I’ll do my best to bring it home. But again I’m guessing they’re not going to be as cheap or plentiful as I'd like them to be.
New stuff?
I’m keen to try a couple of the Maxon Fuzz Elements pedals and the MASF Lavender Head also looks very cool, but are there other Japanese pedals worth scoping out?
We’ve been to Japan plenty of times before (I even think our kids were conceived there), including once with the kids, so we know how to get around, but I’d still like some advice for maximum gear-hunting efficiency.
Holiday closing times
From what I remember, lots of Japanese stores close for the New Year period, maybe January 1 to January 3. Is that right? Or is there a chance they’ll be closed for a longer period?
iPad Data Sim
We’ll be taking an iPad with us and I was planning on getting a prepaid Visitor Sim: http://www.bmobile.ne.jp/english/index.html
Problem is, I’m not 100% certain it will work with iOS 7 (it’s an iPad 3 and it should work, but details are sketchy). Anyone had any experience with these or alternative data cards?
Where to go and what to look for?
I’ll mainly be looking for old pedals. I have a recurring dream where I walk into a Tokyo store that sells nothing but NOS Shin-Ei and Guyatone fuzz boxes, but I’m pretty sure it ain’t gonna come true. I know the big stores in Shibuya like Ishibashi and Ikebe will have some secondhand stuff, as will the stores around Ochanomizu, but is there anywhere else I should be looking? Anyone got any favourite stores they'd recommend?
I really want to try my luck in some of the Hard-Off (yes, Hard-Off) secondhand stores but I’m not 100% sure where the bigger stores are. I know there’s a big complex in Hachioji, but is it worth dragging the family out there for a pedal hunt?
I might also be on the lookout for a guitar. If I see a nice lawsuit-era Tokai Breezysound or a Greco Les Paul or a Yamaha SG2 or SG3 (really love those things), I’ll do my best to bring it home. But again I’m guessing they’re not going to be as cheap or plentiful as I'd like them to be.
New stuff?
I’m keen to try a couple of the Maxon Fuzz Elements pedals and the MASF Lavender Head also looks very cool, but are there other Japanese pedals worth scoping out?
