50's (?) Gretsch New Yorker



This nice sounding Gretch New Yorker archtop acoustic is my kind of guitar. While finding a mint-condition instrument is certainly exciting, I personally like to see an instrument that looks as if it has really been played. This was obtained it from a fellow who rescued the instrument in pieces from a pawn shop. It was reassembled, the neck was reset, and with the addition of a pickup, was his main gigging instrument in a rockabilly band. I received it in trade for another instrument, and am only parting with it to make room for more gear:) Playing wise, it has a nice warm sound with a comfortable neck. Upon closer inspection, the overall condition of the instrument shows plenty of wear. As is visible in the photos,The original finish appears weathered, worn in many places and obviously checked and scratched, most noticeably on the back and the neck. Larger blemishes from where the pickup used to be are hidden beneath the pickguard (the previous owner removed the pickup prior to my obtaining it). A piece of felt is glued to the body where an earlier pickup apparently rested. The pickguard was repaired around the screw area nearest to the neck. Two pieces of binding are missing: one small piece behind the heel of the neck, and a larger piece on the back, along the inner curve. Also along the back curve, the binding has pulled away from the body. One of the tuners is bent, but still operable. While the bridge(which has been glued down)and tuners appear to be original, the tail-piece is not. There is noticeable fret and fingerboard wear in first position. A metal grommet is missing from the high-E tuner. There are two main repair issues: one of the side pieces on the headstock needs to be re-glued. And while the instrument plays ok as is, the neck should really be re-set to get the action feeling more "Electric". So, there you have it. Again, not a collector piece, and it does need work but this will make a great instrument.
60's Kay Solidbody Guitar



This very cool Kay guitar is ready to go. The finish is original and as you can see, worn off around the lower edge. The action is comfortable in first position, and still playable up the neck despite a convex twist on the treble side (Hey, what do you expect - its a Kay!). The original bridge and cover were missing, so a metal piece from an old pickup was improvised.
60's Norma Short scale Bass



This Norma short scale bass (or as I like to call it the "ab-Norma") still has its original finish despite the typical scratches including a large one on the back. The bass actually plays and sounds quite nice. Each pickup has its own volume control, and the original tone switch has been replaced with a master tone pot (note the slightly different knob). A pickguard on the upper bout was missing, and a replacement was fashioned from some leftover material. There are some places around the replaced bridge where the finish is missing due to the absent bridge cover.