Can anyone identify this bass?

[brummie]

I'd appreciate if any fellow BCer's could identify this bass.
It's a thru neck & has a brass nut and what looks like elaborate brass dot markers.
There's a sticker between the pick ups, I can't make out what it says on it but I think it's irrelevant anyway.
cheers

[wrinkleygit]

Looks like an old SD Curlee, from the 80's at a guess, mike b.

[Soloshchenko]

Could be an Aria mate. Not certain though.

Looks quite nice.

[Bassassin]

It's a Cort, made in Korea late 70s/early 80s, and sold in the UK as Kay, and a million other names around the globe. I think if you unscrew the TRC on this, it will probably have a Kay logo on the other side! There's one on the Bay right now:

[url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330415794177"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...em=330415794177[/url]

Cort did dozens of variations on this particular neckthrough template, all of which are identifiable by the rather sexy triple brass dot inlays - I've seen Alembic-shaped basses, flying V guitars, the "Cort 45" travel guitar & bass, Washburn Wing series ripoffs.

Anyway I've had the bass version the same as this, very nicely-made instrument, actually had great-sounding pups in mine - in fact the sticker on this one is telling you it has "Powersound" pickups! . The only real problem (which is common on budget through-necks) was an unadjustably high action - saddles won't go low enough & obviously you can't shim the neck. I've seen some of these where the bridge has been sunk into the body to get it low enough.

Jon.

Edited March 28, 2010 by Bassassin

[brummie]

[quote name='Bassassin' post='788495' date='Mar 28 2010, 01:43 PM']It's a Cort, made in Korea late 70s/early 80s, and sold in the UK as Kay, and a million other names around the globe. I think if you unscrew the TRC on this, it will probably have a Kay logo on the other side! There's one on the Bay right now:

[url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330415794177"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...em=330415794177[/url]

Cort did dozens of variations on this particular neckthrough template, all of which are identifiable by the rather sexy triple brass dot inlays - I've seen Alembic-shaped basses, flying V guitars, the "Cort 45" travel guitar & bass, Washburn Wing series ripoffs.

Anyway I've had the bass version the same as this, very nicely-made instrument, actually had great-sounding pups in mine - in fact the sticker on this one is telling you it has "Powersound" pickups! . The only real problem (which is common on budget through-necks) was an unadjustably high action - saddles won't go low enough & obviously you can't shim the neck. I've seen some of these where the bridge has been sunk into the body to get it low enough.

Jon.[/quote]

Nice one!
It's pretty much identical, I took the control plate off the back but there's nothing on it - otherwise it's pretty much the same, a tiny difference between the dot markers.
cheers.
If anyone has more info I'd still appreciate it.

[witterth]

A Vantage? possibly? still means a Kay Though.

[Bassassin]

[quote name='witterth' post='788518' date='Mar 28 2010, 02:13 PM']A Vantage? possibly? still means a Kay Though.[/quote]
No - not a Vantage - all the through-necks were Japanese, made by Matsumoku.

Vantage was actually a Canadian brand, some of which got exported, which is why a few turn up in the UK. No connection with the Kay brand.

J.

[brummie]

I think I've found one similar/identical here after searching the for sale section.



[url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=56009&hl=kay"]kay bass[/url]

[Bassassin]

This is my old one:

[attachment=45901:front.jpg]

J.

[Pete Academy]

If my memory serves me right, there were some basses around at the time which were branded 'Lincoln'. Mostly variations on the S.D. Curlee.

[Pete Academy]

Just brought on an attack of nostalgia. These are the names I remember from my distant youth:

Lincoln
Curlee
Kay
Columbus (I had a Jazz copy)
Vantage
Cimar
Avon (I had an EB0 copy)
Winfield
Harmony

[Bassassin]

There was a Lincoln similar to this - these were Japanese-made (Kawai, I think) and had proper "Hippy Sandwich" bodies as well as the through necks. Those turn up with a million other names too.

A few more names from Memory Lane:

Shaftesbury
CMI
Kimbara
Eros
Sakai
CSL
Satellite
Arbiter
Jedson
Grant

Bloody loads of 'em!

J.