Dear Friends & Musicians,
Today (10/6) sometime between 2:00-5:30 p.m. my acoustic bass and 2 amplifier rigs were stolen from the stage of the Free Methodist Church, 1435 Cliff Dr., Santa Barbara, California. The main sanctuary doors are always unlocked during business hours, and we speculate that someone must have seen me bring the equipment in this a.m. (I normally don’t bring my own rig from home) and waited their chance for when the church was quiet. It would have taken 2 trips to get all this stuff (or 2 people) and someone knew how to release Neutrik twist-lock cables from their sockets to grab the stuff quickly. I filed a police report as soon as I discovered the theft, but I would appreciate you all forwarding this to as many people as you can think of who can be on the look out (pawn shops/ebay/Craig’s List/music stores/etc.) to see if I can recover the much valued tools of my trade (especially the bass, as it has great sentimental value as well) Here are the descriptions:
KAY M1 3/4 SIZE DOUBLE BASS: circa 1950’s, tan finish (probably was blonder in early years) rather worn-esp. on body by fingerboard where thumb & fingers follow through. It has some unique modifications: the original brass tuning keys mounted on matching plates (Tyrollean style) have been replaced by individual nickel plated tuners mounted on custom cut wood veneer plates that don’t match the rest of the wood either in color or grain. Also, the back and belly have had their edges sanded down & refinished to be level with the binding around the body EXCEPT in the 'C' curves of the bouts where the edges still protrude past the binding. I had mounted an Underwood pickup and a Countryman Isomax condenser mic in the bridge. Both a 1/4” and XLR connector are lashed to the tailpiece with black elastic hair ties. I also had a bow quiver mounted uniquely to the tailpiece, but these things would be easy to remove. The tuning keys and sanded edges you couldn’t hide. One more thing: I had made an endpin out of a thick dowel rod painted black that was nonadjustable. It has a standard silver hose clamp around the top to keep it from cracking.
GLASSER FIBERGLASS BOW: French style, 45+ years old, chocolate brown paint, well worn (present from my dad)
BLACK NYLON BASS BAG: chrome hardware, bow pocket on front, zippered utility pouch on lower front, double ‘D’ rings on back to adjust straps. One unique feature: I had bolted a 3” round rubber foot to the bottom to protect the zipper from wear.
ACOUSTIC IMAGE BASS AMP: Clarus II model-2 inputs (1/4” & XLR) These units are not available in most mainstream music stores-dual level, about the size of a cigar box, with a handle on top level and controls on lower. The thief didn’t take the padded bag that goes with it.
AMPEG 110H SPKR. CAB: black ‘fuzzy’ covering, about 16” cubical with a slightly rounded-up face. 10” woofer & 2” tweeter inside. Grayish metal grille plate with the Ampeg logo on front, variable tweeter control dial on back.
CARVIN AG100D GT./KEYBD. AMP: 12” woofer & 2” horn. 3 channels w/ 5 band graphic EQ. These units are most distinctive for their forest green vinyl covering.
It's late and I'm tired-I probably forgot some details, but I wanted to get this out ASAP. I haven’t had time to dig around my records for serial numbers. When I find them, I’ll send them on.
I would appreciate this list going as far and wide as possible, as I realize my stuff could already be in LA, SF, San Diego or Timbuktu by now. So if you could take a minute to think of who might be a good “relay person” and send it on, I’d be grateful. Those of you who have special instruments know that it feels less like theft and more like kidnapping when you have one taken!
Thanks & Blessings To You,
Kim Collins
805-965-2352
Wingspan10@aol.com
