Kay K-150 Circa late 1940s - Tobacco

So, here’s the history.

This guitar belonged to a baptist minister in Georgia the 40s. He purchased this to play for his local congregation and when the revivals of the 50s began, he hit the road—with this guitar. I’ve been told it has played all over the country.

Then, another baptist minister bought it and it sat in the closet for the next 50 years.

You can’t beat these old arch tops but time has taken a toll on most of them and the majority of surviving examples have a variety of structural issues that render most of them unfixable.

I saw that the guts to this one was here and I knew it could be brought back. I’ve dealt with all the issues so that all you have to do is enjoy it.

I had Jason Ingrodi of Ingrodi Custom Instruments bring this guitar back. His work included a fresh neck reset, fresh frets, a new bridge, a new nut, and he checked out the electronics for me. The guitar is set up perfectly with low even action and clear brilliant tone all over the board.

There are dings here and there but everything structural has been addressed. There is a superficial crack in finish by the neck—my luthier confirmed this. This is not an old repair, it is not a repair at all—it is a finish crack.

Scale length is 25 and 1/2 and nut measures 1 and 11/16. Lower bout is 15 and 1/2 inches.

This baby really sings. When plugged in, it has a bright clear tone—clean channel is PURE ROCKABILLY. You could really whip up a good rockin’ boogie with this guitar. Even played acoustically the tone is there—shimmering highs and deep lows—even for an arch top. Volume and bark is definitely there—it’s everything it should be and you will not be disappointed. In the video remember, I'm playing through a Kustom Sienna 30 amp. the EQ is all in the middle, with a little reverb added.

The neck is a full D-shape. It’s a big’n. I’ve got medium to small hands and it is fine. This, with the reinforcing rod, fresh neck reset and fret work, make for a sturdy neck that will give you no problems. The fingerboard is slightly radiused and there is no wear on the fretboard at all.

Although the neck is big it is not at all uncomfortable. Anybody who has played a vintage Kay arch top knows what I mean. Although the size is relatively big, the radius of the neck and its overall feel is very, very comfortable and I don’t think the new owner will disagree.

One thing is for sure—this thing is magic. It’s got a great history and is one of those guitars that PULLS tunes out of you.

As to the electronics—you can see in the video that they work fine with no nose besides the 60 cycle hum you get with old pickups. No static, etc. I AM NOT an electric guy so feel free to ask any questions you’d like. The pickup is indeed a hot one considering it’s age.

When I received the guitar, the chord was shoved up inside the body. Jason remedied this and said the pickup works sounds great (60 cycle hum considered) but that both knobs function as volume for some reason. The pickup mount is on the lower side of the guitar.

Other than the tone and volume nobs and work completed, it’s all original including the padded soft shell case. The pick guard and mounting hardware is missing, as well as a small piece of binding. It has its scratches, bumps, and bruises and is just full of that vintage mojo that I love.