It's not that so much as I'm a bit of a nerd when it comes to how things are made and their specs. I like knowing these details as they oftentimes come in handy later on. It's also a bit of a hobby for me to 'dissect' things and figure out their inner workings. And in this case, by dissect I mean when I get to upgrading strings I will be using a magnifying glass and flashlight/mini mirror to look through the f-holes and such to see the woodgrain inside, label a bit more clearly, and varnish.

To me instruments take on a bit of a life of their own; it would be sad to forget where they came from or who made them. I really hope there's some marking on the inside with who ever produced this piece, aside from the production company itself. Because to me it seems like they went to a lot of trouble to make sure everything fit together.

When you're stuck in military barracks you tend to develop strange hobbies

Thanks, thats more than I was able to locate!

Even the shop keeper here can only tell me about their korean roots.

I found the catalog for Shimro at the music shop yesterday and the outside proudly proclaimed something about 30 years of music. That was about all the readable english I found in the book. However their selection seems very nice, and if their other instruments are as well put together I would be half tempted to see what they offer in a higher end model. I fully believe in supporting companies if they make quality pieces.