This profile is in active compilation — some details are awaiting a cited source.

R.C. Williams Company is a Merriam workshop that designs and hand-builds orchestral-string accessories — most visibly the Bass Buggie®, a two-wheeled upright-bass transport — from a shop on West 58th Terrace.

Description

RC Williams Company is a small manufacturer of original stringed-instrument accessories, run from a shop the company lists at 9214 W. 58th Terrace in Merriam.1 It is not a general music store. The flagship product is the Bass Buggie®, a 3.5-pound, two-wheeled chassis that straps onto an upright bass — with or without a gig bag — so the instrument can be rolled upright over indoor and outdoor terrain; the company states it fits basses from 1/10 to 4/4.23 A later, scaled Cello Buggie applies the same idea to cello (and, the company says, guitar), sized 1/2 through 4/4.4

The rest of the published line is also original designs rather than branded resale: the Amazing Bass Stand (a combination upright-bass stand and chair, advertised at 500+ lb seating capacity, in several heights and in natural or Concert Black finishes, including children’s sizes), a Pre-K cello stand, a cork-padded mandolin / small-instrument stand, and a folding Mini X stand with an optional bow-holder attachment.52 The about page also offers luthier templates and gauges, custom CNC work, and consulting.1

The goods are sold direct from the company’s site and Reverb shop, and through string dealers. Locally, K.C. Strings on Merriam Drive carries the Bass Buggie; in June 2020 Musical Merchandise Review reported that KRUTZ, Inc. had become an official U.S. distributor, with every unit “entirely made by hand at the R.C. Williams Company in Merriam KS.”67 Independent dealers farther out — Johnson String Instrument, Thomann, Gollihur Music, J.W. Pepper — still list the product as of this writing.8910

A 2019 TalkBass post by the owner warned of Chinese-made counterfeits sold on Amazon and eBay under a “bass buggy” spelling; authorized dealers still flag knock-offs against the U.S.-made original.1112

This is a different business from kc-fret-shop (5826 Merriam Dr) and from old-school-horns (Overland Park brass/woodwind repair). No independent source consulted places RC Williams Company at 5826 Merriam Drive.

Ownership and history

Rick Williams is the founder and owner. The company’s about page states that he “began RC Williams Company in 2010 to focus on creating his own designs for specialized orchestral accessories,” bringing “50 plus years of woodworking expertise” and a background in CNC machining; it describes him as an inventor, craftsman, and luthier and lists him as the contact for consulting.1 Bluegrass Today, reviewing the Bass Buggie in March 2022, independently names him as owner and as the designer of the transport.13 On TalkBass, posting as RCWilliams from “Merriam Kansas (Kansas City)” with a commercial-user disclosure of “owner RC Williams Co. LLC,” he claimed U.S. trademark serial 87627735 / registration 5528311 and international registration 1396007 for BASS BUGGIE.11

The WIPO Madrid Monitor record for international registration 1396007 confirms the mark BASS BUGGIE, holder RC Williams Co, LLC, a Kansas limited liability company, basic U.S. application 87627735 filed 29 September 2017, international registration 21 February 2018, expected expiry 21 February 2028, Nice class 12 (trolleys). Protection was granted in China, the European Union, and the United Kingdom. The Madrid holder address is printed as 9214 W. 58th Street, Merriam KS 66203 — Street, not Terrace; see conflicts below.14

Whether a second person holds an ownership stake is disputed, not merged. Musical Merchandise Review, 24 June 2020, wrote “Owners Rick and Nancy Williams personally oversee production.”6 The company’s own site, in 2026, lists Nancy McGuire as Manager (nancy@rcwilliamsco.com) and does not call her an owner.1 No source consulted states that McGuire and Williams are the same person. Do not collapse the two names.

The 2010 start is first-party on the about page; MMR’s 2020 line that the Bass Buggie had then been “in production for over a decade” is consistent with that date but is not a second founding-year statement.16 Thomann has carried the Bass Buggie since May 2014.9 Kansas Secretary of State entity ID, articles-of-organization date, and current good-standing status are “ — WIPO records a Kansas LLC but is not a substitute for a BESS filing.

Rick Williams’s earlier career, place of birth, and whether he is the original designer of every product in the current catalog beyond the Bass Buggie are “ outside the company’s own biography.

Services

  • Bass Buggie® — two-wheel upright-bass transport, 1/10 to 4/4, with or without gig bag; black or red wheels; optional neoprene cushion32
  • Cello Buggie — scaled cello (and guitar) transport, 1/2 to 4/44
  • Amazing Bass Stand — combination bass stand and chair; natural and Concert Black; several heights including children’s sizes513
  • Pre-K cello stand; cork-padded mandolin / small-instrument stand; folding Mini X stand with optional bow holder2
  • Luthier templates and gauges; custom CNC machining; consulting1
  • Wholesale and dealer sales; direct retail via the company site and Reverb1156

Sources

Footnotes

  1. “About,” RC Williams Company (official site), accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  2. “RC Williams — Musical Instrument Accessories” (home), RC Williams Company (official site), accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  3. “Bass Buggie®,” RC Williams Company (official site), accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩ ↩2

  4. “Cello Transport Buggie,” RC Williams Company (official site), accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩ ↩2

  5. “The Amazing Bass Stand,” RC Williams Company (official site), accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩ ↩2

  6. “KRUTZ, Inc. Becomes dbl Bass Buggie Distributor,” Musical Merchandise Review, 24 June 2020. URL ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  7. “The Bass Buggie,” K.C. Strings product page, accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩

  8. “The Bass Buggie, Upright Bass Transport Solution,” Johnson String Instrument, accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩

  9. “RC Williams Company Bass Buggie,” Thomann UK, accessed 2026-08-28 (listing: available since May 2014; in stock). URL ↩ ↩2

  10. “Double Bass Buggie,” J.W. Pepper, supplier ID 1949BBBK, listing observed June 2026; accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩

  11. RCWilliams (commercial user; disclosure: owner, RC Williams Co. LLC), “Counterfeit Bass Buggie,” TalkBass, 27 April 2019. URL ↩ ↩2

  12. “Upright Bass Buggie Bass Transporter (Bass Buggy),” Gollihur Music, accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩

  13. John Curtis Goad, “The Amazing dbl Bass Buggie and Amazing Bass Stand,” Bluegrass Today, 4 March 2022. URL ↩ ↩2

  14. “1396007 — BASS BUGGIE,” Madrid Monitor, WIPO, holder RC Williams Co, LLC, registration 21 February 2018, expected expiry 21 February 2028; record displayed 19 August 2026; accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩

  15. “RC Williams Company Bass Buggie®,” Reverb listing by RC Williams Company, LLC, Merriam, Kansas 66203, accessed 2026-08-28. URL ↩

See also

Categories

On the record — ks.city/registry/rc-williams-company · record updated 2026-08-28