Kay Hollow Body Bass

As an addendum to my review of 8/15/05, here's another tip for all you Kay-niacs: looking for a great hardshell case to protect your baby bass? I went down to my local acoustic guitar emporium (the fabulous Podium in Dinkytown, Minneapolis, USA)and found a parlor guitar case that fits the dimensions of my Kay bass, with one exception, to a tee. The case is, of course, a little too deep for the thin-bodied Kay, so I simply cut a piece of foam to insert in the body section of the case - takes up the slack perfectly, and my little bass is as snug as a bug in a rug.

Yes, here's another one of those crazy l'il Kay's. A buddy of mine has one that's very similar to those described here, and after playing his I swore I'd own one someday. My chance came about a month ago when a real looker appeared on ebay. I won the auction, and when the bass arrived I was amazed to find that the neck is even shorter than my friend's (bass neck, that is.) This is perhap's the world's smallest (non-Ashbory) bass!

The pickup cover on mine is simpler - no raised ridge, and the binding is solid white as opposed to B&W. What's really cool is the pick guard - metal, rhomboidal in shape, and covered with an engraved diamond pattern.

This really is a great sounding bass. The extremely short scale of the neck and light gauge of my strings (here's a tip for all you Kay fanatics - string your little guy with La Bella Danelectro flatwounds, available from juststrings.com. A little pricey, but they are THE REAL DEAL for tiny basses of this vintage) a very light touch is required when playing up on the neck, lest the bass go out of tune. The silver lining to this: I can bend notes like nobody's business, and even play vibrato! (I guess I'm actually talking about "Action" here, The tone of these little Kays is surprisingly huge - this is why I fell in love with my friend's, and mine delivers the same full-scale wollop.

Action - fast,fast,fast.
Fit - oh so small.
Finish - mine's got a really handsome tobacco burst.

Let's just say that mine was born the same year I was (1960), and it's in at least as good shape as I am. Really, this thing has held up remarkably well, and you can tell by the scuffing on the pick guard that it's seen a lot of use.

Oh, come on!

Like no other bass in the whole world. Play one and believe me!

A little update on my 1st review, from a couple of
years back, which drew a few other kay owners out
of the woodwork.

Since writing that review / description, I've come
across the exact model twice, with good pictures.

The first was in Vintage Guitar magazine, which featured
this bass (badged as a Western Auto) in its Bass Space
column. The example they photographed had been part of
John Entwistle's extensive collection. (This was sometime
in '03 or '04 -- I can't find my copy of the issue...)

The second is in the Bass section of the latest Gruhn
price guide. It's listed there as a Kay K165 bass.
There's a good picture of the exact type I describe
below, with the Kay logo clearly visible on the pickguard
The headstock logo's hard to make out, however, as
the picture is fairly small. And oddly, though the
photo is in the margin, there's no price given for that
specific model...

Anyway, that's it -- just in case anyone's interested.
If you recognize it, then please post something.

Made: Early '60's, USA. A.k.a. Kay "Les Paul" bass (I wonder why). I bought this bass in late 1973, and it looked worn then! It is exactly the model described by "aw". I have seen this model of bass on a web site showing vintage guitars for sale (they wanted $600!) and their's looked like it was original and in excellent condition. They described it as "out of the 1962 Sears Catalog" which, evidently sold a myriad of Kay instruments back then (under the Silvertone name as well). My guitar, however is a different matter. It has undergone some rebuilding over the years and looks somewhat different. Two of the tuner pegs got badly bent over the years; by chance I found a set of large chrome tuners in a music store bargain bin. Their heavier weight changed the guitar's balance noticeably, but not detrimentally. Next to be replaced was the pick guard. The original plate bore the entire force of the input jack, and the whole assembly broke one fateful "play". I replaced the pickguard with a jigged piece of black-white-black plastic laminate like that used for engraved door nameplates. It was cut to the original shape, beveled, and is much more durable. Another accident had broken the headstock horizontally, but glue and screws saved the day. The nut was replaced when the original broke in two. I think the guitar looks better now than the original -- some of the "toy-like" looks are gone.

I have played blues, rock and country styles with this bass, and it works fine. It gets noisy at higher volumes, and the body tended to buzz; therefore I stuffed it with glass wool to deaden the hollow sound. The frets are a little cupped now, but not a serious problem. They are also cut a little raw on the ends; but not bad for an inexpensive instrument. The candy bar pickup gives good sound from full & deep to a little bright -- I use flatwound strings on my bass, so full brightness isn't a requirement. I use this bass with a Carvin RL6815 Cyclops combo amp that has lots of power and sound shaping, so this bass can offer some tonal variety. I use it solely on stage, and it gets the looks, too.

Again, this is an inexpensive instrument. Fine for the beginner in the '60's, or even today. The action was and is good -- not too fast, but the 30" scale and ultra thin neck allows for some quick moves. Over time (40 years?) the tailpiece has corroded somewhat, but the electronics and body remain durable, even after many dings and the headstock breakage. Even with the heavier replacement hardware, this is a really light bass!

This bass can do the job, although I would carry another to a gig. The neck finish is half gone but that only adds to the mystique, right? Strap buttons? Well, I had to install one at the base of the neck. As for the tailpiece button? It was one of those plastic pegs (like an overgrown acoustic string peg)stuck in the hole. Needless to say, it broke or fell out and was lost years ago, so I replaced it with the best thing I had -- a 2" zinc-plated hex bolt -- works great(LOL)! All in all, I've had this bass for almost 30 years now, so why sell it? It's a relic -- I've loaned it to friends and their kids, and it has performed dutifully. I'ts no Fender Precision, but it has a special place in my life...

Yes, i have a hollow/electric Kay bass just like the one you describe. I think my knobs are original; black plastic, knurled. The only othere difference is that my truss-rod cover is plain white plastic.

i agree completely with (aw)'s review, the sound is quirky but quite usable in many tonal contexts. I've used it in garage bands, punk rock, C & W and most recently on a short film score for a retro, semi folk-rock sound.

This bass is aparently indestructable.

year it was made dont know you are the first one I have heard of that has a Kay Bass that sounds like mine. if you remove the single coil pick up under it you will find a number I have call around to different shops and cant find much infomation on mine at all. but I received mine at the age of 13 for 10.00 from my aunt which found a good deal for me. that was 1962 I it was old then. so here we are with basses that sound great look like hank williams played it in his band but the bass is really cool and really cant find one I like better. It is light the strings close and has a great sound. Played mine through the 60's playing rock and roll then latter played country mucic and now am picking it up again wont ever get rid of it. but still cant help on the year wish I could see ya. chuck pearl
mesa az.

This one's for the historical record. I have never seen
another of these, so I'm curious to find out if anybody
else has. If so, then post a review.

I cannot find a date code on any of the components. I
believe that the instrument was manufactured in
Chaicago, probably between 1955 and 1963. It may also
be an import. Vintage Guitar's "Different Strummer" column
might have more info...

The bass I have is a hollowbody, with a very thin, very
deep, rounded neck. The actual dimensions are:
Fretboard width tapering from 1.90" at 12th fret to
only 1.50" (!) at nut. Neck depth is about 1.15", making
it nearly semicircular in profile. There are 20 low profile
frets which have a brass or bronze-like coloration (or
discoloration?) From the nut to the bridge measures
approximately 30.5". There are no factory position
markers, though somebody added very convincing-looking
dot markers to the fingerboard top and sides using some
sort of fill at some point in the past.

Rosewood neck, 2+2 headstock. Tuners are white plastic
buttoned, el cheapo, with open gears (guitar tuners, by all
indications.) The Kay logo is in chrome script at the top
of the headstock, with an elongated, rounded, white plastic
truss rod cover. This bears the KAY logo in Arial-type black
block letters. They word KAY is part of the Kay "music
stand" logo -- the "Kay" is the place where the book would
be, and there is a tripod leg projecting downward.

The neck is anchored by 3 Phillips bolts, arranged with
one on the cutaway side, 2 on the non-cutaway side.

The body is hollow, and resembles a Les Paul (or, more
exactly, a Gretsch single-cutaway.) It's finished in
a brown tobacco 2 color burst, with black back and
sides. Back and sides have alternating black/white binding.

The white pickguard covers most of one side of the guitar's
top. It houses one volume and one tone pot, with a non-
angled jack at the bottom. The Kay logo appears just above
the volume control, in a 3rd design -- a stylised K on a
triangle, with 5 lines on each side of the bottom of the
triangle. The style of the original volume and tone knobs
is unknown, as a past owner replaced them with
silver and black "volcano" shaped knobs, possibly from a
Teisco or similar cheap guitar.

The tailpiece is a trapeze-style, in chrome. The bridge
is rosewood, with thumbwheel height adjusting screws. The
saddle position is fixed, and is not staggered for intonation.

The pickup is a chrome-covered single coil. A raised rib
runs crosswise from left to right. Its size is 2.91 wide by
1.265 tall. It is secured by (2) flathead screws -- one through
the pickguard, the other through the wooden top.

Two things about this bass are noteworthy:

The pickup, when pushed, does not compress when you hit
the strings harder. No matter how hard you pick, the sound just
keeps getting louder, without mushing out. It has a quite
unique sound, and should be experienced.

The other is the binding. This is a nice touch on what
was probably a fairly inexpensive instrument.

I have personally played 2 other guitars (both Silvertones,
both manufactured by Kay) with the same combination of
pickup type and binding style. They are quite fine rockabilly /
Chicago blues guitars. They have an almost acoustic feel,
with a good deal of hollowbody resonance, which the unusual
pickups tend to accentuate (in a good way.) The guitars feel
very organic, for lack of a better word. You get out of
them exactly what you put in.

You may view one of the two guitars I've alluded to on the site "guitarrepair.com" under either the "for sale"
or "consignments" subheadings (I forget which.) I have
no personal interest in the guitar's sale, and as I understand
it the business affiliated with that web site is no longer
viable anyway. But the last time I checked the site was still
up, and you can at least view a guitar which bears a passing
resemblance to my bass, cosameti

That unusual pickup is mounted midway between the end of the
fretboard and the bridge.

I have flatwound strings (they seemed appropriate) and
the sound is clacky and well-defined. There is no "moosh"
at all. The pickup defies you to overdrive it. For real
vintage garage music or raw Chicago blues, this baby is
the ticket. I have even mic'd it -- it has just enough
resonance when played acoustically to make it useful as
a replacement for the often too-boomy sound of a true
acoustic bass guitar.

A niche sound, which you wouldn't use every day, but
nonetheless a sound all its own. I like it.

It's a cheapo, but it's very playable. Even with the
low profile frets, there's no obnoxious buzzing. The
flatwound strings help here. Intonation is surprisingly
accurate if you angle the bridge to slightly shorten
the treble side.
The binding is classy, if not truly artistic.
All in all, a very decent inexpensive 45-year old bass.

I've owned it since 1979. God knows how many other
hackers owned it before I got my hands on it. It's
still in one perfectly functional piece. What does that
say?

I think Kay vanished from the radar in the 1970's,
so don't try calling. Their later stuff was real
junk, but they enjoyed a decent reputation in the
earlier decades, particularly for their archtops.
You'll have to fix it yourself if it breaks....

I have more stuff than I should admit. I'm a player, not
a collector, but I do have a couple of unusual pieces
like this one. I love oddballs, especially free ones.

I like my Kay a lot, as a niche-filler. It's not like anything
else. If you're looking for a modern equivalent, then
I'd guess that a hollow Danelectro strung with flatwounds
would get you in the same general ballpark (if Danelectro
basses are in fact hollow?) But this one's wood, not
formica or whatever, so who knows? I can't think of anything
else even remotely resembling the Kay, so the Dano would
be the logical bet as a place to start (assuming that my
description of the Kay's sound is of interest to you.)

If you have anything similar, then by all means post it!