Kay / Englehardt late 60's Double Bass For Sale

[FunkBassExtreme]

I know a guy who just offered me a late 60's Englehardt for 2k. It has an Englehardt lable and the SN is in the low 10000 range. Supposedly this bass was a Kay bass that had an Englehardt sticker put on it when Kay was bought out by Englehardt. The neck had been shaved down at one time for a guy who had Diabetes and the 2 higher strings are nylon. sounds great, plays great, needs new strings and a good shine job. Is $2k fair asking price?

[MingusAmongUs]

Not sure about the serial number or the veracity of the label, but... if the bass has a good quality ebony fingerboard, is in decent shape and set up properly, and most importantly, if you like the sound and the way it plays, then it seems reasonable... A little on the high side, but reasonable. I would get it checked out by a luthier if possible. If the fingerboard is any other type of hardwood, then I would say take a pass.

[Gearhead43]

That is too high of a price for an early Engelhardt, IMHO. If it was a "Kay" branded bass, it would be a different story.

Even though the basses are the same construction, materials, sound, etc - people pay 2k and up for the Kay name. The early Engel branded basses do not carry the "premium" price, and even the last couple years Kays aren't worth quite as much as the older ones.

If it is a nice bass in nice condition, and you like it so much you'd be willing to pay 2k for it, then go for it. I just think it's priced too high. Like I said, people pay for the Kay name, and I've seen other sellers trying to cash in on their early Engels by touting the Kay name.

Nothing wrong with a nicely setup Engel, though. I love mine.

Keep in mind that for 2k, you can get any new top-model Engel set up ready to go with your choice of strings, shipped to your house. You could also get many other nice laminate basses for roughly the same price, such as Shen, Christopher, Strunal, even an Upton Standard.

My 2 and 1/2 cents.

[FunkBassExtreme]

thanks much guys. it turns out i'm gonna pass on the purchase anyways. The bass plays nice and now i know what to look for in a future purchase.