Bizarro 1960s Kingston 12-string solidbody electric guitar

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Here's a real oddity, a 1960s-era Kingston 12-string solidbody, of a peculiar design that I certainly have never seen before. It is a very odd shape. It may just be me, but I fancy that if it were finished in yellow rather than black it might resemeble a certain submersible that The Beatles made famous.

So, it's Japanese made by Kawai. What else do we know? Well here's what the eBay seller tells us:

Electronics - All electronics are working including both pickups, on/off selector switch for each pickup, both volume controls and universal tone control have all checked out fine. All electronics look original and vintage. I have owned 100's of vintage MIJ guitars and this setup looks legit. The Pickguard is an interesting material however as it is not plastic. It looks like those faux wood pick guards used on Domino California Rebel guitars although the wood side is reversed. See pics.

Body - Solid wood (not plywood). Finish may or may not be original. It looks like it may have been painted black although my guess is it was painted many years ago as finish has a vintage look. I believe the guitar may have been all white judging from the front of the neck headstock which looks original. There are some light areas around the edge of the headstock that have black paint. Back of neck is black finish as well and matches the body. The body pickguard holes and tremolo tailpiece dugout area look original and not modified in any way. The bridge area however looks like it was modified to be cut into the body and pickguard instead of "floating bridge" style or screwed into top of body. Tremolo tailpiece is typical of Kingston / Kawai guitars of this age and the routing area in body looks all original (I have a Kingston / Kawai S-160 listed at this time with this tremolo tailpiece if you'd like to compare these). This tailpiece is actually machined with 12 string holes (first time I've seen that on one of these tailpieces). The tremolo has been blocked off and does not include the arm stem or arm. A 12 string guitar can be problematic enough to keep in tune, never mind adding a tremolo to the mix!!! Yowza!

Neck - Neck has Gibson type "open book" lawsuit design. Tuners all match and are vintage and all work fine. Truss rod cover has KINGSTON on it. Neck needs attention as it starts straight but takes a dive where it meets the body.

The main issue with this guitar keeping it from being playable is the neck. The neck is the main problem. It starts straight all the way until 10th fret or so then dives down to body. It's not a typical forward or back bow. Also, the bridge being set down into the body (presumably to lower action?) makes the string angle wrong and the strings slip out.

Sad that the guitar has some issues and will most likely end up being a wall hanging rather than a player, but it's a fascinating pieve nonetheless.

Currently listed on eBay with a Buy It Now price of US$350.

G L Wilson

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1960s Kingston guitar with checkerboard pickguard

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I found this rather natty Kingston guitar in fine chequerboard attire on ebay. It's only let down by an amateur repair job on the headstock and that, I think, you could live with. As with many guitars we come across, it's missing its tremolo arm but, as the seller says, you can find one on ebay (very often for a finger and a toe - which is slightly less painful than an arm and a leg). And if you were that way inclined you toss its original (and admittedly pretty crappy) bridge for something less original but more playable.

This is what the seller says...

"Rare vintage 1960's kingston all original japanese made guitar with rare checkerboard pickguard. All works, low action, three pickups, one volume & one tone control, three pickup selector switches, adjustable neck, 20 frets on a rosewood fretboard with very little wear, new nut, medium action can be lowered by deepening the nut slots, new Fender .009 lite strings. Needs a final setup & the bridge is cheap & should be replaced. Does not have the tremolo bar but can be found online. Someone did a sloppy job of trying to close a glue line separation in the back of the headstock, but it solid & does not affect playability. I've had lots of Kingstons, but none like this. A great addition to any players collection."

Actually, for a BIN of just shy of $300, it's a pretty good buy. Once you add on the $94 dollars P&P and the EU/UK import duty and VAT, it does start looking a little less attractive however. But that's collecting for you, innit?

David in jolly nice Barcelona with an expected daytime temperature of 22°C in October, very nearly November, which isn't too bad.

© 2011, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 10th year!

Kingston Swinger from 1967, but what's the deal with the trem?

guitarz.blogspot.com:

You only have to take one look at this guitar and you know straightaway that it's 1960s Japanese. It's a Kingston Swinger from 1967, and is currently being offered for sale on eBay with a Buy It Now price of $499.95. I personally feel that's a tad optimistic for an old Teisco. Kingston was a brandname often applied to Teisco guitars, and the striped metal pickguard seen here is a dead giveaway as to the guitar's Teisco origins.

The seller comments that it "Has an unusual whammy/vibrato bar." Now, I'm not too well up on my old-fangled guitar hardware, so am not quite sure what the deal is here. To my eyes it looks as if there's something missing and perhaps there ought to be an arm and a spring maybe beneath that furled knob sticking out of the tailplate. Does anyone out there know what it should look like? I'd be surprised if that knob itself was the tremolo as the seller seems to be suggesting. Please forgive the gaping holes in my guitar knowledge here; as I've said before, I do not claim to be an expert and am learning all the time.

G L Wilson

© 2011, Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 10th year!