K&F Lap Steel Guitar, Early Leo Fender History, Refinished & Restored

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This K&F Lap Steel Guitar in grey is in excellent condition, but there are changes from original. 

The body has been refinished and restored,. It weighs 3 lbs 13.5 oz and measures 28-1/2" overall, with a 22-1/2" scale length, a 5-13/16" lower bout and a body depth of 1-13/16". The nut is metal and 2" wide, and the string spacing at the bridge is 2-3/16".

The tuners are new generic 3-on-a-side units, so they're not original, and the headstock wasn't changed for them. The single pickup is Leo built, a string-through single coil with a chrome/nickel cover. It reads 4.95k, it's original, and it's in very good condition. It has been rewound, which is necessary for every K&F I've found.  The two brown knobs are original, but the Centralab pots are likely not (they are likely from the 1950s), and the solders and wiring are not original either. The output jack is original. There's no case.

K&F stood for Leo Fender and Clayton Orr "Doc" Kauffman, who formed K&F Manufacturing to build electric instruments and amplifiers. Doc had been a Rickenbacker electric guitar designer in the 1930s and was a pioneer of the first patented guitar vibrato system. Their first instrument was a Hawaiian lap steel with a patented pickup and a matching amp, and production began in 1945. Leo and Doc parted ways in 1946, and the business became the Fender Electric Instrument Company. They stayed friends for the rest of Doc's life. The bridge pickup on the Telecaster was based on a modified version of the Champion lap steel pickup, so these early steels are where the Fender story starts.

SPECIFICATIONS

• Weight: 3 lbs 13.5 oz
• Color: grey
• Body Material: typically constructed from solid hardwoods such as ash, mahogany, or pine
• Body Condition: excellent
• Body Repairs: Refinished & Restored
• Lower Bout: 5-13/16"
• Body Depth/Thickness: 1-13/16"
• Overall Length: 28-1/2"
• Scale Length: 22-1/2"
• Fretboard Condition: excellent, restored
• Nut Material: metal
• Nut Width: 2"
• String Spacing At Bridge: 2-3/16"
• Bridge Condition: excellent
• Tuner Brand And Model: Generic 3 on a side
• Tuners Original?: no
• Changes To Headstock For Tuners?: no
• Tuner Condition: new
• Documentation: none
• Case Brand: no case
• Pickup Brand: Leo built, string through single coil
• Pickup Count: 1
• Pickup Reading: 4.95k
• Pickup Original?: yes, rewound
• Pickup Condition: excellent
• Pickup Screws Original?: yes
• Pickup Cover Color: chrome/nickel
• Knob Color: brown
• Knob Count: 2
• Knobs Original?: yes
• Knob Condition: excellent
• Potentiometer Count: 2
• Potentiometer Manufacturer: Centralab
• Potentiometer Original: no, most likley 1950s
• Solders Original?: no
• Wiring Original?: no
• Output Jack Original?: yes
• Documentation: none
• Smells?: none
• Accessories Included: none

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