NICE looking Kay, but confusing!

[EdHanrahan]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150377162654&_trksid=p2759.l1259

Nice wood, nice binding, but confusing! Anyone familiar with Michael Moyer, or Moyer Mandolins, in Springfield, MO?

Here are the questions I asked the seller:
__________

Couple of confusing points:
- It seems to be strung backward, as for a lefty, w/ bass strings where the trebles go & vice versa. Do the nut & saddle slots fit the string width?
- What does the Moyer Mandolin card mean? Did he do the setup? Or original sale? Maybe build a Kay copy?? Because...
- The wood & binding look WAY nicer than any Kay I've seen! But no sane luthier would counterfeit a lowly Kay.
- On the minus side: The shortened frets don't cover the binding on the fretboard, generally a sign of, well, a Kay or other low-end axe. (It needlessly sacrifices fret width and/or add'l string spacing, either one of which could be good for someone's playability).

Comment? Thanks!

[Canuck]

Maybe Moyer did the conversion to lefty. Nut and bridge slots look fine to me but note it has a "0" fret. The nut is only holding the strings in position. This looks like a plywood import to me. There are solid wood Kays around that sound very good. FWIW.

[allenhopkins]

Compare it to the one in this current thread. (http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=55345) I would agree that the zero-fret one is probably an import; the current Kay MAND10 shown here (http://www.instrumentalley.com/Kay-MAND10-Teardrop-Maple-Mandolin-p/mand10.htm) similarly has all-laminated-maple construction (including the top, which is rare; tops are usually spruce or cedar), and a zero fret. Leads me to think it's of recent Asian manufacture, as all currently-sold Kay instruments are imported from Asia, I believe.

Later: here's (http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?p=658978) a recent thread on Moyer -- some additional information, not too much.

[Jim Nollman]

I played a much older Kay ff hole, 2 point for many years. The body was so deep, that a standard armrest clamp wouldn't fit it. I bought it on Ebay way back when, for $240. It had great potential and that stylish reverse curve to the top. It hadn't been played for years. So I put a lot of time into upgrading it with a skilled luthier. Among other things, he flattened the fingerboard, re-fretted it, completely redid the neck joint, rebound the fingerboard. This work was totally worth it to me.I play mostly jazzand traditional music. This Kay was often used in the recording studio.

My Kay was completely laminated. And know this. The top plate lamination was almost impossible to see without a magnifying glass. When I pried off a tiny piece of binding off the back, the lamination became obvious.

In my innocence, I have never fully understood why these instruments — especially the 1930's era 2 points — are still so cheap, and not regarded by anybody as collector instruments. If you are seriously looking at Kays, you might want to consider an older 2 point. They cost about the same.

Three years ago, I finally succumbed to the usual MAS, which prompted me to buy and sell a few different quasi-worthy instruments. I finally felt cured when I bought a handmade oval hole, which I now use for the same musical styles for which I bought that Kay. Because the Kay would never have sold for anything close to the money I put into it, I gave it to my daughter who is now playing mandolin.

[EdHanrahan]

Allen - Thanks for the info!

Jim - Yes, it IS the early 2-points that have me looking. But this just looked too pretty to not comment! (I do have a "Kay-predecessor" Stromberg-Voisinet from the '20s. In generally nice condition and sounds great. It only needs the cloud tailpiece re-centered, where someone stripped the screw holes & moved it over).

Anyway, the eBay seller responded over the weekend, with apparent openness:

"honestly we are a pawn shop and unfortunatley we have no prior knowledge of an item. we pretty much do a little research and then try our best to sell it. sorry for the lack of info

p.s i took a second look and it appears that the nut and sattle slots wear the treble should be is notched out, so its definatley a righty strung backwards. after looking it appears that's the only modification he made. as for the card im not sure what it is. i pretty much just took a pic of it as well it was found in the case, it may just be the vendor or store front."

[MikeEdgerton]

That is indeed an import and is probably plywood.

[Jim MacDaniel]

That really looks neat in that all-blond finish, including maple fretboard and peghead overlay. Made me think of this all-blonde Shippey (NFI).

[nvanlaar]

I have an almost identical model (same tail piece, same pickguard, same peghead), except it's brown. Dark brown. It is indeed ply/laminate, but sounds and plays ok. The body is slightly deeper than most mandolins. I got mine for $100. I was told it's from the 70's, but I have my doubts. It looks way to new and is way to good of shape imo.

[MikeEdgerton]

It's could be late 70's into the 80's, maybe early 90's. That's a wide spread but it's hard to nail them down.

[nvanlaar]

If I had to guess (that's all I am really qualified for) I would guestimate mid-80's to 90's. Like Mike said "...hard to nail down."