Reggaebass Posted December 31, 2021 Share Posted December 31, 2021 Tort 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted December 31, 2021 Author Share Posted December 31, 2021 Do you know I considered that, but it means buying a sheet of tort. I've got black and bronze pearl. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 Bronze pearl. And that lacquer's looking fabulous! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc S Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 Looking really great 😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted January 2, 2022 Author Share Posted January 2, 2022 (edited) Sorted the frets today. Surprisingly they were all pretty level with only three or four needing a tiny bit taken off to level them. A few have got string marks but to completely remove those I'd need to file the whole lot down and then re crown, far too tedious for this old bass. I've just levelled and polished them all. Scraped the board with a razor to clean it up a bit, it still needs an oiling and a buff but I think it'll look alright after that. It looks darker in real life than this picture. Also glued the nut back on. Also made the rear cavity cover, and I've glued the pickup casings. The pickups are resin filled so all I can do is run superglue in the cracks and flat and polish them up. Edited January 2, 2022 by Maude 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 That control cover looks pukka! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stub Mandrel Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 Great restoration. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 1 hour ago, Maude said: Oh, F**k yeah! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted January 2, 2022 Author Share Posted January 2, 2022 21 minutes ago, Pea Turgh said: Oh, F**k yeah! I'll take that. 😉👍 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard R Posted January 4, 2022 Share Posted January 4, 2022 Not sure how I missed the start of this, but it looks Fabulous! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stub Mandrel Posted January 11, 2022 Share Posted January 11, 2022 (edited) I must be insane... I saw this on eBay, it didn't sell at £150 + £25p&p, but I offered the seller £100 all in and he accepted. Probably over the odds but hey... My understanding is it's actually Teisco not Kay. Unfortunately the pickguard has lost a few chips and that thumb rest looks odd, but it seems to be generally original and complete. Hope it survives the post... Edited January 11, 2022 by Stub Mandrel 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pea Turgh Posted January 11, 2022 Share Posted January 11, 2022 (edited) 1 hour ago, Stub Mandrel said: I must be insane... I saw this on eBay, it didn't sell at £150 + £25p&p, but I offered the seller £100 all in and he accepted. Probably over the odds but hey... My understanding is it's actually Teisco not Kay. Unfortunately the pickguard has lost a few chips and that thumb rest looks odd, but it seems to be generally original and complete. Hope it survives the post... To be fair, it looks kinda cool. And the video shows it can look quite nice all cleaned up. My first bass was a ridiculously heavy Kay, and I’d previously written the whole brand off, but these threads have certainly made me think twice (esp. with the paint jobs @Maudehas been giving them!) Edited January 11, 2022 by Pea Turgh 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted January 11, 2022 Share Posted January 11, 2022 2 hours ago, Stub Mandrel said: My understanding is it's actually Teisco not Kay. It might sort of be both, in a sense. Teisco Shoji acquired a factory in Taiwan in the mid 60s, as far as I can work out that's the factory which produced Taiwanese Kays going into the 70s, many of which are the same, or slight variations, on the old Teisco designs. I'm not really that knowledgeable about 60s MIJ stuff but I don't think I've seen a Kay with the correct Tulip body, which this has. If you're lucky it'll have a silver sticker below the neckplate which will give the model number & country of origin. If it turns out to be an MIJ Teisco, then £100 is a bit of a steal. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted January 11, 2022 Author Share Posted January 11, 2022 4 hours ago, Stub Mandrel said: I must be insane... I saw this on eBay, it didn't sell at £150 + £25p&p, but I offered the seller £100 all in and he accepted. Probably over the odds but hey... My understanding is it's actually Teisco not Kay. Unfortunately the pickguard has lost a few chips and that thumb rest looks odd, but it seems to be generally original and complete. Hope it survives the post... That could quite possibly be a Teisco, it seems to have a nicer fretboard wood (and similar to the Teisco in your vid) than most Kays seem to have. My other Kay, Les Paul shape but the same pickup, bridge etc as your Tulip, has some cheap wood that is stained black for a fretboard. Maybe different factories/makers used different woods. Cool purchase either way. 😎👍 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stub Mandrel Posted January 11, 2022 Share Posted January 11, 2022 (edited) My Kay guitar has a stained fingerboard. Looking at the thumb rest, it's the original tug bar but has been moved (screw holes in pickguard) I can move it back. Perhaps fill the old holes with amber beeswax. Neck doesn't look laminated like the one in the video. Edited January 11, 2022 by Stub Mandrel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted February 20, 2022 Author Share Posted February 20, 2022 I've got a bit more done to this today. I had to redrill for the Wilkinson replacement bridge. I had one with brass saddles which I wanted to use to complement the other brass bits. A quick measure to get in the right place, and it can't go in the right place. Ideally you want the G string saddle on its maximum adjustment (well nearly maximum just in case of poor measuring) towards the neck, and measure that at 34" (or whatever your scale length is). The others will always need longer string runs to intonate properly. Or that's what I remember. Anyway I didn't bother filling the bridge screw holes as they'll be covered, and possibly used depending on which bridge I used, right? Well with the bridge sat where the old one was, the G saddle is on about half adjustment when the scale length is 34", not the ideal maximum adjustment, or minimum depending on how you look at it. I've fitted it in the same place as the old one and hopefully they'll be enough room to intonate properly. I've refitted the old loom for now as although the original pots looked terrible, the mankiness on them seems to be some sort or yellow wax. Underneath this they are clean so I've left them as they are, I'll see if they worked properly before making a decision on replacing them. If it ain't broke and all that. I got some brass volume and tone knobs from AliExpress. They are a close match to the kind you see on Westone Thunders and again, I thought they'd go with the brass theme. I've never liked the black speed knobs that I think they're meant to have. They are taller than I'd like but have a cool oversized look, which I quite like given that this is just a bit of fun. I was going to take a few mil off the bottom but I don't think they'll sit any lower on the shaft (pack it in children). All this, plus the shape, is beginning to remind me of one of those gaudy Alembics, shudder. 😄 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted February 20, 2022 Share Posted February 20, 2022 That’s looking so good, nice work ☝️ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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