Product: Kay 36 Archtop
Price Paid: US $75.00
Submitted
01/04/2004
at
03:37pm
by
Greg
Email: g_narbey at sympatico<dot>ca
Features
:
6
Kay guitar. Made in 1955, 1956. 19 frets. Maple ply top. Finger board is Walnut. Small brass frets. Sunburst finish, in pretty good shape. F hole arch top. Straight neck. Needed to have the tuners replaced. Adjustable bridge. Action is good. Trapeze tail piece. This guitar was in good shape but was dirty and needed to have the tuners replaced. I cleaned it up, replaced the tuners and took off the pick guard and it turned into a real looker. Not bad sounding either.
Sound
:
7
I bought this guitar to use for slide playing. Does great for that, and it's not a bad guitar at all for fingerstyle playing. In fact, the more I play it the more I like it. It does not produce the booming bass of a dreadnought, but it does produce a balanced and warm tone.
Action, Fit, & Finish
:
7
The action was a bit high so I lowered it (it has an adjustable bridge). It has a few dings, and belt buckle scratches on the back. Bracing is solid. Finish is in good shape considering its age.
Reliability/Durability
:
7
It's made of plywood, so you could paddle a canoe with it. It's held up with a straight neck for 50 years, so I expect it'll probablbly hang in for another 50 with some care.
Customer Support
:
No Opinion
Overall Rating
:
7
Been playing for about 25 years. Have a couple of Les pauls, a tele, an ovation, etc. I got a good book on Kay guitars after I'd bought this. I had been looking for one with a solid spruce top. This isn't it. That said, it sounds goo for the price. I can leave it in my office and if it gets stolen it's no big deal. Really like it. Will probably acquire one or two more.
