Kay Hollowbody Bass, Model K162, 1957

Kay Model K162 Hollowbody Bass 1957 full front

Comments	Today we’re looking at a wonderful Kay Hollowbody Model K162 bass from 1957, in original condition.Kay introduced the Model K162 Bass in 1952 in response to Leo Fender’s 1951 Precision Bass, making it the second electric bass produced. The K162 was the first hollowbody bass produced, years before Gibson used the basses in their recently-purchased Epiphone line to enter the electric bass (EB) market. This model became known as the “Howlin’ Wolf” bass because it was used by the Wolf’s bassist, Andrew “Blueblood” McMahon. You can hear it on early recordings and see it on some of the surviving footage of Howlin’ Wolf shows. While there is regrettably not a lot of footage of Howlin’ Wolf performances, it’s well worth looking for. On later footage, McMahon uses a solidbody Gibson EB bass. More recently, the K162 has been used by Sheryl Crow’s bassist. The K162 features a hollow, closed body with a flat top with twin longitudinal tone bars, no sound post, and an arched laminated back. It has the distinctive hollowbody resonance but with feedback resistance. This instrument is in very good condition with all original parts.
Serial Number	N/A, built in 1957.
Pricing	$1999.00 CAD with original softshell case.
Neck	Maple neck with unbound rosewood fingerboard, dot position markers on side of fingerboard. 31″ scale. Faux tortoise headplate with Kay logo in complete condition. The neck is quite thick partly because there is no truss rod.
Frets	No appreciable wear.
Body	Laminate flame maple flat top, sides and arched back; rosewood bridge. Body is 2 5/8″ deep.
Finish	Original nitrocellulose lacquer, sunburst finish. Some chipping of the finish here and there.
Hardware/electronics	All original components. Kluson Waffleback tuners,trapeze tailpiece, blade-type pickup with faux tortoise plastic pickup surrounds and control plate, original knobs and switch. Original strap in the case.
Playability/Action	Currently strung with flatwounds. The K162 has a neck reminiscent of upright basses – rather chunky with a pronounced V.
Case	Original brown softshell case included; in worn condition.