SG copy (looks somewhat like Gibson Kalamazoo KG2)

[kallsund]

Hello.
Ive joined this forum for the purpose that someone might know anything about my dear old guitar. I bought it a while ago for my son to have as a first guitar. The body is made of thick plywood and is SG-shaped but the neck is of fender type. It has one large single coil. The neck strikes me to be of pretty good quality, really nice and straight and the action is set pretty low without any buzzing. The sound is very clean and "detailed", allmost like my strat but with a little fuller sound. All in all, I think its a very nice guitar. I found that Gibson made some "SG:s with fender necks" called Kalamazoo KG2, but it doesnt really fit what ive seen of those. Im thinking that maybe this is a copy.

Could anyone please help me identify my guitar?
Thanks in advance and best regards
Kallsund

[jedistar]

You are right that it is similar to the Kalamazoo but the Vibrato is too close to the edge compared to this one...in 1966 catalog..

http://www.vintageguitars.org.uk/kalamazoo66p2.php

I am sure some of the sharper eyes on this forum will id it for you but ut sure would help me if you'd post some larger pictures esp of headstock and body.

[jedistar]

Update found this description only for sale "Japanese copy of a Kalamazoo SG -- very cool. Tunamatic Schaller humbucker. $150 " at
http://www.fatdawg.com/kookie.html

A long shot - cannot find pictures....

"... a prototype for a new Gibson guitar with double cutaways, pointed horns, and a bolt-on neck. Gibson, never a bolt-neck kind of company, didn't know how to produce the guitar. DeMarr used the basic shape of the prototype to sketch out a new design for Westheimer with more rounded horns. Jack took this design to Kawai whose Hanshu plant proceeded to produce the Kingston A2 or S2 (two pickups) and A1 or S1 (one pickup) guitars and the AB1 shortscale bass which were introduced in 1960. These were produced in both a three-and-three or a six-in-line headstock versions. They had mahogany bodies and a metal pickguard that held the pickups under the strings. Pickups were the chunky chrome-covered single-coil kind with angled corners. There was an adjustable bridge (not compensated) and a covered stop-tailpiece. ....

from
http://www.vintageguitar.com/features/b ... p?AID=1139

[kallsund]

Hello.
Thanks for your reply.
For some reason the pictures turn out really small when uploading via image shack. I think im doing something wrong.

In the pictures I have replaced the bridge (I have kept the old one in case I want to switch back). The knobs were also missing so those are new.

[Bassassin]

Looking a lot like this Aria A330 to me:

http://www.matsumoku.org/models/aria/ca ... 1.jpg.html

The same, or similar guitar would have been sold under loads of different names, though.

Jon.

[kallsund]

Fantastic!! It looks exactly like mine. It definitly must be the same guitar, dont you think? The only difference I can see is that mine had the bridge that is mounted on the two-pickup version, and that my pickup is black.

Many many thanks both of you. Its allways so much more fun to know something about the guitar. Adds something to it somehow.



Best regards.

Kalle

[Riccalljim]

Yes I have the Bass version of this, it was badged as a Zenta by the nail holes in teh headstock, same style pickups, same shaped pickguard and tailpeice with a teisco adjustable roller bridge, mine has two pickups but is obviously related to this from the pics, i shall dig out a photo of it and upload it .

[kallsund]

Does your bridge look like this? I readjusted mine to fit my old Hofner bass. The bridge on the hofner was broken so I was gonna sell the bass for spare parts when I realised I could use this roller bridge. Now it suddenly is quite good again. Well, terrible shape but playable at least.


Hey, now the pictures are



Best regards
Karl

[cheepaxes]

Looking at that Aria catalog made me realize - I think I have a pickguard for the pictured Aria A-200 bass with the pickups still in it.

Years ago I was cleaning my mom's attic and came across a box of guitar parts my brother left there. That pickguard and those pickups look suspiciously like ones I found in the box. It's in my attic now. Thanks to Bassassasin for inadvertently showing me what I have. :)

-Scott

[Riccalljim]

Hi Karl,
Yes, that's the same bridge exactly. - for interest I also have a Jedson Telecaster Bass with the same bridge so i reckon these were all the "parts bin bridges of the day" - My Zenta Tele has a similar one but with 6 rollers ( obviously) but on closer inspection they look identical except with the addition of two rollers.
There's probably a whole heap of spare rollers lying around Japan somewhere as they probably took two rollers off to make bass bridges??
Jim