Sunburst Semi Hollow Labeled Grassi with Grover Machines it

[Overbiter]

[wietse]

need pictures to help you.

[Overbiter]

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd21 ... 1195163286

[VintAxe]

Hi Overbiter,

I haven't had time to actually research your guitar yet but my immediate reaction to you pictures is that it is either Kay inspired or perhaps even built by Kay.

The tailpiece and bridge look like the set up on my Kay Speed Demon. The pickguard also has a Kayish quality.

I don't recognize the pups. You say it has Grovers on it now, any indication the original pegs may have been Kluson? Look for a square shadow.

I don't have pictures of my Speed Demon, but here's a link to a model similar to mine:


I'll get back to you when I get time to investigate further. sb

[Overbiter]

I did not notice an square "shadows" but I have had this guitar for a long time in a closet and just brought it out a few years ago. So I doubt there would have been any fading from having different machines.

[wietse]

looks european to me, those stripe fretmarkers are common on german guitars, never seen them on a not european guitar though.
the tuners have a ekoish look somehow.
a nice full frontal and back picture would help just like a frontal close up of the body, not these mercy shots, looks nice but not realy good to identify a guitar with.

my guess is german, maybe italian.

[Overbiter]

Actually I had once heard that it was Italian.

[mrblanche]

It could be, but you never know. Alvarez and Ibanez, for example, both Spanish names, are Japanese companies.

[VintAxe]

Hey Fellas,

All good observations concerning the mystery guitar but I am going to stick with my Kay attribution. I think it is basically a Kay Swingmaster with a different tailpiece than the models distributed in the US.

wietse, your observation about the fret markers is accurate, but check out the fret markers on this Swingmaster, they almost go completely across the fretboard. I think we have a match on the headstock, knobs and pups as well.

The tailpiece and the binding are two componets that don't match, but the tailpiece on the Grassi is certainly styled after a Kay tailpiece. I think Grassi was only a distributor so it seems reasonable they may have imported Kay's. They may have also been able to get Kay to built guitars with their choice of hardware. I think it is also possible the tailpiece is not original but I don't have a catalog from every year of this era. It may be just a different model year than my picture.

If it isn't a Kay, it is certainly a "Lawsuit" guitar. If I were Kay I'd sue whoever built it.

[Overbiter]

Hey thanks that is very helpful if nothing else. This can at least help me to finding the true origins although your explanation is definitely great. I would like to thank you. Although I would like to know if you could give me a general idea of the year this was produced. I am assuming 60's sometime.

[wietse]

it's a kay, just now there is an identical one (with the same tailpiece and tuners) for sale on the dutch auction site http://www.marktplaats.nl
search on kay and you will find him.