1950s Kay K-27 Fancy X-Braced Jumbo Guitar


This big, beautiful, busted old dream is a late '40s or early '50s Kay K-27. I worked on this last back in 2010 and it's been run ragged and raw from plenty of use since then. An advert was pasted on the lower bout, the bridge I put on fell off and we had it setup for tailpiece load for its owner for a while, it had a soundhole pickup in and out a few times, and then it say still for ages.

It came back in-shop in a vague trade-sense around December and my friend Rob fell in love with it. The funny thing is that I was completely aware of how excellent this guitar could be but he had no idea how it would turn-out. I remembered that it was one of the best-sounding jumbos I've ever played and I've played a lot of great jumbos. Most Kay jumbos are ladder-braced and sound lackluster, but the K-27 is x-braced in a sort-of Gibson-like fashion and that, mixed with its huge size and super-long 25 7/8" scale length, means it sounds authoritative. It makes you break-out into a grin the moment you play it.

This turned-out to be a perfect project for my young deck hand Ancel to do the major lifting on and he and I spent a good amount of time getting it back up to snuff by way of a fresh neck reset and joint repair, new ebony bridge and bone saddle, fret level/dress work, minor seam repairs, tons of cleaning, and setup work. It's now a perfect player to suit its run-ragged, friendly looks.

Past repairs (not done-over again) included a refinish to black on the top (it had been sanded/poorly refinished when I first got it) that has now been worn-in to suit its age. I'm surprised that all the bracing has held-up so well -- I've never had to reglue a single piece of it as far as I can recall.

Yes, this is a big old 17" jumbo body.

















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Nick R said…
An X-braced Kay super-jumbo is a revelation to behold- the sound is that good! I was taken aback when I collected mine- as its sound immediately blew me away. Maybe it is time to make a Kay style pickguard- but I assume the screw holes in the top were filled back in 2010 when you worked on this old girl, the first time?
February 23, 2023 at 5:06 AM
Rob Gardner said…
I was the transport carrying this guitar as a favor from previous owner Rick to Jake’s guitar hospital as part of a big trade, and I could see the x-braces through the sound hole and I recognized it for what it was, even though at that point it really looked like dumpster material. This is a huge guitar and they are sometimes advertised as having an Adirondack top, but who knows? It looked as if it had been in a war. But Jake and his surgical crew brought the old girl back and now it is in a new home. It has a wonderful big and clear voice and plays great. And it still looks pretty much like it has been in a war, but in a good way…
February 23, 2023 at 11:38 AM
Nick R said…
Interestingly, this guitar has K27 and 8127 stamps inside. Usually, Kay stamps are completely mystifying- or even meaningless, while this guitar has the earlier code and the later code Kay used stamped in- is this just happenstance? There is one of these guitars for sale on Reverb for a fairly considerable sum and it is being sold as an 8127 and is dated as 1961. The 1953 catalogue shows one of these as a Kay 27. I imagine that 1961 date may be too new but it is odd that Jake's guitar sports both the correct codes while the 1959 Kay catalogue shows the guitar as an 8127, so who knows? Kay seemed to like to do mysterious things. Those that want to see the guitar on Reverb can Google this: Reverb Circa 1961 Kay K8127 Jumbo Acoustic Guitar DeArmond Pickup w/Gig Bag.
February 23, 2023 at 12:08 PM
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