1966 Kalamazoo KB-1 Vintage Gibson USA American Bass Guitar

1966-1969 Kalamazoo KB-1 short-scale bass with a Forest Green refinish. This bass was made by Gibson's USA factory. It has been modified with an additional matching bridge pickup, Badass bridge, custom pickguard, and pickup activation switches. The original bridge is included. One strap button has been replaced as well as one neck screw. A previous owner etched their personal details in the neck plate and two tuners. This bass plays great and sounds fantastic with zero issues. There is just a small amount of fretwear. There are minor scuffs and scrapes throughout. The neck is perfectly straight and the truss rod works. The original tuners work perfectly. The bass weighs 9.3 pounds. The nut measures 1.7". The neck thickness measures 0.762" at the 1st fret and 0.943" at the 12th fret. The scale length is 30.5" and the string spacing is 2.165" at the bridge. Does not include a case or any accessories.

The Kalamazoo bass guitar, or Kalamazoo KB (sometimes referred to as KB1), arrived in 1966, as a companion model to two Kalamazoo KG guitars that had been launched a year earlier. Like Gibson, and as the name suggests, they were produced in Kalamazoo, Michigan; however in a separate plant to the main 'Gibson' facility.

The vintage Kalamazoo-brand bass guitars are perhaps not that well known outside the United States, due to their short production time (just a few years in the mid 1960s) and the lack of endorsement by well known musicians; however being made by Gibson, in the USA, out of genuine Gibson parts meant that they were better instruments than many in the same price range.