1930s Oahu (Kay) Nylon-Strung Birch Parlor Guitar

Overview: This is a very spare, simply-built, Kay-made, Oahu-branded parlor guitar that apes the look of a mahogany guitar but is actually made from solid, stained-brown birch instead. It lived its life setup as a Hawaiian guitar (raised strings for slide playing in the lap) for as long as it's been around.

I took it in trade in recent memory and decided, when it arrived, that its very-light bracing and build would better-suit a nylon-strung profile and life as a "folk guitar." I'm glad I made that choice as it's quickly become a favorite around the shop. Jose and Ancel keep picking it up to pluck on in the afternoons when they're needing a getaway. It's very friendly and the top no longer wants to curl-up in front of the bridge like it was doing when strung with steel.

Repairs included: I reset the neck and bolted it internally for stability's sake, shaved the bridge a little bit and fit a fret saddle, leveled and dressed the frets, fit side dots, cleaned it up, repaired a few loose seams, repaired a few hairline cracks on the back, and set it up. It's playing bang-on and is ready to go.

• Weight: 3 lbs 0 oz
• Scale length: 24 3/8"
• Nut width: 1 23/32"
• Neck shape: medium-big V
• Board radius: flat
• Depth at first fret: 0.98"
• Depth at seventh fret: 1.12"
• Body width: 13 1/8"
• Body depth: 3 3/4"
• Top wood: solid birch
• Back & sides wood: solid birch
• Bracing type: ladder
• Bridge: ebonized maple
• Fretboard: ebonized maple
• Neck wood: poplar
• Action height at 12th fret: 3/32” overall (fast, spot-on)
• String gauges: D'Addario normal tension nylon Pro-Arte
• Neck relief: straight
• Fret style: narrower/lower

Condition notes: There are repaired hairline cracks on the back. The nylon stringing/configuration is not original but I've fit the saddle and set it all up with the intention for it to live that way from now on (ie, it will not be happy with steel on it intonation or action-wise, so use a different guitar for that). There's general light wear (scuffs, scratches) here and there throughout but overall it looks great.

It comes with: Sorry, no case.

Consignor tag: JW