Hi everyone,
I’m a long time guitarist as well as a long time dabbler at lap steel. I recently resurrected this old lap steel I’ve been meaning to get working for years. Some previous owner had tried to get this working by fabricating the Crome plate and gouging out space under the plate for the strings, but used small screws to hold it down, so the string pull tore the whole plate loose. I carefully drilled some holes to make it a string through guitar. I had to hillbilly-rig the bridge; it’s OK until I figure out a better one.
This guitar is branded ‘Aloha’. I’ve never seen another like it. I have seen some with the same body shape, but with a different PU and knobs.
The horseshoe PU sounds fantastic. My first foray into C6 tuning. I’m really digging it.
I would appreciate anything anyone could pass along about this old warhorse.
Thanks for the replies. It might be homemade, or home altered, as I’ve seen other steels the same shape branded Kay., but with different PU and knobs.
The horseshoe PU is very nicely installed, and the pots, knobs indicators are really old, probably 30’s, which leads me to believe it’s all original.
I don’t think it’s the same Aloha company, it doesn’t have the Hawaiian seal like those on the Aloha site.
Regardless , I’m happy to be here and excited about all the resources this site offers.
yours looks legit. this ad is from 1937. knobs are the same as epiphone used on the electar of the same vintage. not a homemade guitar at all.
jack you nailed it with chicago too.
Wow! Thanks, Mark, that’s awesome. I appreciate you posting that ad.
Noah, you’re right, It was built by Kay.
I came to the right place. Thanks for the input, guys.
