Proud new owner of a Kay 1982S Style Leader!

[Michael Ambrose]

Hi all! Been a while, eh? Life has been CRAZY... and my rigs (and workbench contents) have effectively remained the same for I don't know how long... until last night!

Pics forthcoming, I swear!

My band Les Trois Chaud was tracking over the weekend... well, we STARTED tracking back in December... which was when I first eyed up this poor little fella sitting in a dank corner of the studio... rusting away, covered in dust, coated in sweat and grime and nicotine... Six months laster, nearing the completion of our record, the studio owner sold her to me!

I'd never had much interest in these before, too mundane for me... I was always more into Kay's more "colorful" models... the 1413L, the demons and the kessels... but I just couldn't pass this little guy up.

At first I figured it was just a Value Leader... first cousin to the Stratotone... the secondary brass-colored pickguard didn't even register in my mind until I started the tear-down and took a moment to identify some parts!

It could very well be a placebo effect, or the fact that I haven't handled a low-end Chicago piece in a good while... But I've got to say, the Style Leader, for a few dollars more, is a markedly better guitar than a Value Leader or a Stratotone. The finish is clearly heavier, the construction seemingly more solid, two pickups each of different height and impedance...

Here's the odd thing... no date stamps on the pups! First time I've ever come across this... but then again, first time I've ever torn down a Style Leader. Regardless, if I go by the catalogs, the Style Leader was introduced in 1960 but did not appear in the 1962 catalog and beyond... so I think I've got a close enough idea of its age.

Also... The tuners were cheap-o MIJ three-on-a-strip pieces... But with no extra holes or repair/replace marks? Was Kay using crappy MIJ tuners as early as '60/'61? Do the holes line up THAT closely?

BTW, the tuners are totally wasted... contemplating replacements... may just go Bezdez chrome 3+3s.

The teardown went quite smoothly... ran some degreaser and such over the top and back, scrubbed the hell out of it and did some light buffing... man oh man, it literally changed color with all of the grime removed. My fresh white shop cloth was definitely a dark brown afterward hahaha!

Anyhoo... I'm just super excited, and even without pictures I had to post haha... she's already torn down, pots are soaking in de-ox, I was just too excited to remember to take "before" pics... such a bad habit of mine... but I'll post some "work in progress" pics shortly...

Good to be back, fellas!

-Mike

[Spud1950]

Welcome back. It has been a long time! I've always thought the Style Leader was a cool looking guitar. Matter of fact, I recently bookmarked this example of a fine blond beauty to add to my vintage Kay picture folder on my computer.

[VintAxe]

It's finally time Michael

Like your mother, I get worried when you don't check in. Good to hear from you and I hope all is well. I look forward to pics of your latest project.

[Michael Ambrose]

Hahaha, thanks fellas... its been a maddening few months.

Anyhoo... Unfortunately, I didn't snap any before pics... just got too excited with the build.

I soaked the original pots and rotary switch in de-ox for a good while... routed the headstock for new Grovers... (because, well, I love Klusons, but I want this to be a SOLID player.)

LOTS of buffing and polishing... could still use some more... every time I do some sort of cleaning, rubbing, grinding, or drilling on this piece, no matter what part, that old aroma of nicotine wafts up. Its seriously uncanny... This guit was definitely owned by a chain-smoker! haha...

Sadly, the pickguards have some rust that just won't come up... but eh, I'll chalk it up to soul!





And the headstock... definitely going to root around for some cooler buttons for the Grovers... ugh, so big and bulky... so clunky looking...

[Michael Ambrose]

I also just noticed that mine had a chickenhead knob instead of the "pointer"... its a Dakaware knob, but still, I like the pointer better. Definitely have to root around in my parts drawer for one of those... know I have one somewhere...

[Spud1950]

Nice. Looks good to me. Nothing wrong with a little funky wear on it.

[Michael Ambrose]

[johnnyb]

very cool guitfiddle. i picked up a few of the aftermarket dakaware selector switches a while back. they were hard to find and i think $10 a pop too. ill check my box of reciepts and let you know. does yours have the brass frets?

john

[Michael Ambrose]