Kay 'Rex' K125 c 1953 Electric Solid Body | SOLD | (v2107) The 1953 Kay K125 electric guitar was among the earliest of non-lap style, solid-body electric guitars offered to the public. It was built from solid maple, with neck-through construction and its tone caught on quickly with preeminent slide man Elmore James who appeared to make the model a favorite of his. This example is branded 'Rex', which was a brand of the Kay company. A quick search of the web will tell you not a lot of these are out there, and this one is in particularly nice, original condition including its original Geib soft case.
The body is made from three pieces of solid maple; the through-neck and two 'wing' pieces. The finger board and bridge are rosewood. There is one volume and one tone control knob, and a rhythm on/off switch, which when 'on' sets the tone as if it were at zero. Both the pickup and controls are surrounded by an attractive orange/yellow backing plate. The tail piece is stamped steel, typical of the era. Note that the amp cord is hard-wired into the guitar electronics and can't simply be unplugged as one would expect.
The overall length of the guitar is 37" with a 26" scale length, so it's a small guitar with a generous scale length. The width of the so-called 'peanut' body is 10 1/2" and 1 11/16" deep. The neck width is 1 5/8" across at the nut and string spacing is 2 3/16" at the saddle. There is not truss rod, and the finger board has a slight radius to it. The tuners are Kluson enclosed 'no-line'. The top and back of the body and the back of the neck are finished in an attractive tiger-stripe red/black burst. The name 'REX' is on the head stock in gold, set off by a gloss-black background.
The guitar is in excellent, original condition and all electronics function correctly. We recently leveled and dressed the frets, and re-soldered the wiring inside the original amp input jack. The original tuner buttons were gassed-off and crumbled to the touch, and were replaced with new buttons. The strap clips are an accessory from back in the day, and were added by a prior owner. Some of the metal parts show patina.
The guitar plays easily, and really puts out some nice tone! We made a quick audio to demonstrate.
Comes with its original Geib soft case in decent shape (hinges are weakened and supported by tape).
Check out the sound clip!
The body is made from three pieces of solid maple; the through-neck and two 'wing' pieces. The finger board and bridge are rosewood. There is one volume and one tone control knob, and a rhythm on/off switch, which when 'on' sets the tone as if it were at zero. Both the pickup and controls are surrounded by an attractive orange/yellow backing plate. The tail piece is stamped steel, typical of the era. Note that the amp cord is hard-wired into the guitar electronics and can't simply be unplugged as one would expect.
The overall length of the guitar is 37" with a 26" scale length, so it's a small guitar with a generous scale length. The width of the so-called 'peanut' body is 10 1/2" and 1 11/16" deep. The neck width is 1 5/8" across at the nut and string spacing is 2 3/16" at the saddle. There is not truss rod, and the finger board has a slight radius to it. The tuners are Kluson enclosed 'no-line'. The top and back of the body and the back of the neck are finished in an attractive tiger-stripe red/black burst. The name 'REX' is on the head stock in gold, set off by a gloss-black background.
The guitar is in excellent, original condition and all electronics function correctly. We recently leveled and dressed the frets, and re-soldered the wiring inside the original amp input jack. The original tuner buttons were gassed-off and crumbled to the touch, and were replaced with new buttons. The strap clips are an accessory from back in the day, and were added by a prior owner. Some of the metal parts show patina.
The guitar plays easily, and really puts out some nice tone! We made a quick audio to demonstrate.
Comes with its original Geib soft case in decent shape (hinges are weakened and supported by tape).
Check out the sound clip!