This vintage 1968 Kustom K-200 Deluxe Model is in amazing condition. The Bright Cherry Red Translucent finish is unfaded and incredibly vibrant and it has that perfect vintage gloss. The guitar was produced at the original Kustom factory in Chanute, Kansas U.S.A. sometime in 1968-it was certainly one of the earlier ones. These guitars were only made for 2 years so all of them are rare. The Cherry Red see-thru finish was one of the best looking ever offered on the K-200's and this one displays that perfectly. The guitar is 100% original condition and has no cracks, no breaks, no rewound pickups, no repairs, no funny business. It has been professionally set up and needs nothing-it is ready to go!
The body features the familiar semi-hollow double cutaway design with "Cat-Eye" sound hole for additional flare. The Deluxe models received the Bigsby vibrato tailpiece and fancy Diamond-Dot position markers along with the bound neck. The body is super-solid and it is a 2-piece Maple wood construction. The finish is in very nice condition. There are a couple of small pecks in the paint-see photos...overall it is in excellent condition-especially for a 58-year old guitar. It is very vibrant and the paint looks glossy and beautiful-see photos. The neck joint is solid and it is an excellent fitment with an excellent neck angle.
The neck itself is straight and very smooth. It feels like glass! The profile is best described as a vintage Slim-C. The neck measures 1.60" at the nut . The neck depth measures .725" at the 1st fret and .865" at the 12th fret. The original Kluson double line tuners all function nicely and the guitar stays in tune great. The headstock and logo display excellent! The headstock and backside of the neck all match the Cherry Red finish and it looks soooooo cool! The headstock shape has the slightly exaggerated Cat-Ear tips that some of these guitars have, some don't. Many times, these tips are damaged-this guitar has a couple of paint flakes along the top edge-but the shape remains perfectly intact and crisp-see photos. The Rosewood fingerboard is very clean and it has a beautiful high-contrast grain. It feels very soft and smooth. The frets have been professionally leveled, crowned and polished and look very nice-see photos. The action is set very low for a fast and ridiculously easy playing experience. The string height at the 1st fret measures .010" and ONLY .040" at the 12th fret! The action can be easily raised with the adjustable bridge-if you prefer a higher action. As it is-it plays lights out with zero fret buzz and no dead spots anywhere. It plays very fast up and down the entire fingerboard.
The original DeArmond Dynasonic pickups both have an excellent signal and balance. The neck measures 11.23 ohms and the bridge position comes in at 11.39 ohms. The pickups have all of the brilliance and incredible clarity you would expect from a Dynasonic pickup, along with that sparking single coil sound...They are also quite punchy with an excellent response. The wiring harness is in excellent condition and the potentiometers all function smoothly and quietly. I found a date code from the 39th week of 1967 on one of the potentiometers-they are the original Centralab units. The pickguadr is in excellent condition and nice and flat with no issues. The hardware exhibits minuscule patina-it looks perfect. The bridge is exceptionally clean and the Bigsby vibrato tailpiece functions smoothly.
The guitar is very comfortable and lightweight. It weighs only 7.66 lbs! It feels great on a strap or in your lap-and is fun to play even unplugged on the couch-where the semi-hollow design provides a nice acoustical volume. The original Kustom Hard Case is include, of course.
Don't settle for Well-Done or even Medium-Rare...This is really Rare example of a Rare guitar in a Rare color and now you can be the hero.
