Hey, the Tokai LC 55(53) is made in China and about the same quality of a normal Epi Custom.
The LC95 is made in Japan.
The LC85 is the same as the LC95. Yeah it's a bit confusing.
One thing you need to know about Japanese guitars is that the model number always refers to the MSRP in Yen. Meaning the LC95 sells for around 95000 Yen (ca. $950). Everytime Tokai increases their prices the model number goes up but the guitar doesn't change. My Wine Red Tokai is a '09 LC95. In '08 the same guitar was sold as a LC85. Tokai increased their prices somewhere around the beginning of '09. Now it gets even more confusing because some people (f.e. richtonemusic.co.uk) still sell the Tokais under last year's model numbers. I bought my Tokais from
here. He keeps the model numbers up to date with Tokais changes, so you can see an overview of the current Tokai models there.
There's also a site to contact him if you want to ask him about prices.
Please note that he's located in Germany but the other option you have is to buy directly from Japan, so you 'd have to pay for shipping and possible customs and taxes in both cases.
I've never played an Epi Elitist but from what I've read, the Elitist Custom and the Tokai LC95 should be on the same level, with the difference that the Tokais are still beeing produced.
I think it's needless to say that they both blow a Gibby Studio out of the water.