finally i own a guitar thats older than i am .... and in better condition than i am

**Keira Witherkay** · 01-10-2013, 12:38 PM

finally i own a guitar thats older than i am .... and in better condition than i am-photo0255-jpg

finally i own a guitar thats older than i am .... and in better condition than i am-photo0251_zps6d766cd4-jpg

finally i own a guitar thats older than i am .... and in better condition than i am-photo0247_zpsfe8a86d9-jpg

a Hofner 457 came within my reach and i grabbed it ........... dated inside as made or inspected on 1st sept 1960 .........

not a collectors item mind...... as it's just been to a guitar tech for a overhaul.. by previous owner .....new tuners..electrics checked (old hofner toaster pickup ) and needed a total refret and obviously the fretboard was leveled at same time..... nicely set up . with a brand new roller bridge as well ........ a real player ......

I HATE BIGSBY'S so this one is coming off ...in fact only got the guitar yesterday and already ordered another trapese tailpiece

guitar is well played and relatively banged up ... but now with refret it's 100% playable ......

also a nice price ........

only major flaw ,apart from the bigsby

.............is a badly repaired crack on the neck ...it obviously fell ... but hey that all kept the price down ........ and the repair is visible and ugly but seems solid ..... so structurally sound

guitar holds tune and sounds fabulous.........

i'll gig it on sunday ...then i'll know for sure

it's a 2 piece spruce top but one piece back , flamed maple (i think) sides are same as the back

BEST OF ALL the guitar is older than me "i'm a '64 vintage " this is a 60 ... i've always wanted to play a guitar that predated me ....... and the older i get the harder it gets to find them .... so yes a silly reason to buy this .... but i'm sticking to my story

anyway this is bought to gig .... and to travel and gig so glad it's NOT pristine and have me worrying about dinging it .... which i would with a collectors item ......

i can identify with this old lady .... we both seen a lot of life and not afraid to show the scars .......

**ronjazz** · 01-10-2013, 12:40 PM

How much? That's the issue here, it seems. what's a good deal to everybody?

**Klatu** · 01-10-2013, 01:35 PM

I think it's great that it has a truss rod. I've wanted to buy an old Hofner for some time but have held off since so many I've seen haven't had a visible truss rod.

Congratulations.

**Archtop Guy** · 01-10-2013, 01:49 PM

Congratulations she's a beauty. One piece back,nice! It doesn't matter what you've got into it. It's what you get out of it that counts.

**Spook410** · 01-10-2013, 02:34 PM

That's a nice looking guitar. I hope it gives you great pleasure for a very long time.

**cosmic gumbo** · 01-10-2013, 02:46 PM

I love the mother-of-toiletseat on the headstock.

**alanh** · 01-10-2013, 03:00 PM

Originally Posted by cosmic gumbo

I love the mother-of-toiletseat on the headstock.

Watch out for the mother of toilet seat on the headstock; its celluloid (nitro cellulose or gun cotton or cordite by other names).Put a lit cig near there and it will catch fire.

Alan

**Jabberwocky** · 01-10-2013, 03:03 PM

I'm chuffed that you're chuffed, Keira. Play her in good health.

**NSJ** · 01-10-2013, 04:11 PM

Congrats! I own one guitar that is actually order than me. The guitar is a '63 Gibby L5, with a Johnny Smith floater. I will never sell this guitar. It's a lifer.

**Patrick2** · 01-10-2013, 04:25 PM

A 53 year old guitar!! Ya gotta be real careful with guitars like these, they have a way of becoming your #1.

Congrats! Looks like a fun guitar, with a whole bunch of character and personality.

**D.G.** · 01-10-2013, 04:28 PM

I usually opt for new guitars (I don't like someone else's "mojo" smeared all over my gear

) but I do have a couple of vintage pieces older than myself:

1. 1953 Fender Deluxe D8 console steel (pickups rebuilt by Lollar)
2. 1947 Epi Triumph (it's just a wall hanger since it'd cost over $1.5k to restore it, so...)

**oldane** · 01-10-2013, 05:28 PM

Ah, that brings back memories. The Hofner 457 was my first archtop guitar. I had the sunburst version with two narrow single coil plastic covered pickups. I bought it in 1968 when I was 16 years old from a pawn broker in a suburb of Copenhagen for what equals $50 - including a non original case. I remember I proudly brught it home, tied to the luggage carrier on my moped. Years later I lent it to a friend whom I fell out of contact with for many years. I met him again a few years ago and he said he still has it around in his home. He doesn'tplay it much but he told me it is still in one piece and is playing nicely. I suppose it's a testimony of a good build quality.

You are right in getting rid of that Bigsby - it doesn't belong on that guitar. BTW, also keep an eye on the peghead veneer. It's made of celluloid and thus it can be expected to disintegrate one of these days.

457 (1952-94) - Archtop Guitars - Vintage Showroom

**PTChristopher** · 01-10-2013, 06:40 PM

Hey Keira,

Nice find, and while the Bigs may not be as much of a tone-killer as one might think (because of the way to top tends to divide up into vibrating areas) it sure will be nice to be rid of the hunk of hardware on the front.

It looks great to me, but don't think we are buying your rating on the state of condition of the owner either. (Which must sound more presumptuous than I mean it to.)

Best of all, it is nice to hear that the frets and FB are ready for action.

Chris

**passfan** · 01-10-2013, 07:22 PM

finally i own a guitar thats older than i am .... and in better condition than i am-ken-16-jpg

Oh Kiera you've done it now.I hope you know what you've started.
You've brought it all back.My first Hofner was a 1961 Colorama and the sad part is I bought it new.
The guitar I had before that was a Rosetti Lucky 7 and my sister is doing a family history and came across and old photo which I have attached just to make most of you feel really young.
Ken

**Patrick2** · 01-10-2013, 08:20 PM

[QUOTE=PTChristopher;285072]Hey Keira,

Nice find, and while the Bigs may not be as much of a tone-killer as one might think (because of the way to top tends to divide up into vibrating areas) it sure will be nice to be rid of the hunk of hardware on the front.

It looks great to me, but don't think we are buying your rating on the state of condition of the owner either.

Based upon Keira's constant berating of her photos . . . I'm starting to wonder if she might be Photo Shopping her photos to make her look better than she really does.?.? Because, she looks pretty damned good in those photos!

**GNAPPI** · 01-10-2013, 08:47 PM

Your post made me feel much older... I'd have to buy a guitar a decade older than that one to make your comment valid for me:

"finally i own a guitar thats older than i am .... and in better condition than i am"

For now I settle for cutsie guitars that my GF likes too :-)

**RonD** · 01-10-2013, 10:29 PM

I could find a guitar in a dumpster in better condition than I am!

Keira, seriously... great find and you look mahvelous.

**hot ford coupe** · 01-11-2013, 05:44 PM

Wow, sometimes you find a little bit of gold when you least expect it. Enjoy.

**Keira Witherkay** · 01-12-2013, 12:45 AM

[QUOTE=Patrick2;285093]

Originally Posted by PTChristopher

,

Based upon Keira's constant berating of her photos . . . I'm starting to wonder if she might be Photo Shopping her photos to make her look better than she really does.?.? Because, she looks pretty damned good in those photos!

mmm well my comments are a taste of my sense of humour......... and like with all humour...what makes it funny is there is some percentage of truth in it .......

and yes i am like this hofner...... from a distance and the right angle ...all looks good but once you get up close ..... the chequered lacquor and small cracks and lines start to show.........

anyway don't take it too seriously ... i love being "older" and in fact after a lifetime of touring and travelling for almost 25 yrs now and all that goes with it ... i'm surprised , i even made it this far ......... and between you and me i don't regret a day of it .

**Hammertone** · 01-12-2013, 12:48 AM

Originally Posted by Klatu

I think it's great that it has a truss rod. I've wanted to buy an old Hofner for some time but have held off since so many I've seen haven't had a visible truss rod.
Congratulations.

Klatu:
I have a four or five of these from the 1960s, with truss rods, waiting for hardware to be installed. I'm happy to sell you one configured the way you want. PM me if you're interested. - Hammertone

Keira:
Neat old guitar!
I hope you got a German taipiece.
The ABM model 1251 would look great and has been used by Hofner since the 1950s:
The ABM model 1221 is very close to what would have originally been installed on the guitar since the 1950s:

**Keira Witherkay** · 01-12-2013, 12:55 AM

Originally Posted by ronjazz

How much? That's the issue here, it seems. what's a good deal to everybody?

well price wise i paid the equivalent of about $550 (US dollars) for it in the state it's in (meaning that only last year it had a major overhaul .. refretted, new gibson tuners... the bigsby was replaced but it's about to be removed when the new trapese arrived next week ......... and a pro setup ........)

so i need not "restore" this guitar in any way to make it playable.... a

lso the owner included a brand new hard guitar case (not the original hofner one) ...

so for me i think it's a good deal ........ and here in south africa where i have lived for the last 6 yrs ... there are not many old archtops lying around...... and the real selling point ...apart from it's a nice player is the age ... as i mentioned in the title it actually was on my bucket list to find instruments older than me ... (let me add that i can afford )

**oldane** · 01-12-2013, 02:12 PM

Originally Posted by Keira Witherkay

..... and yes i am like this hofner...... from a distance and the right angle ...all looks good but once you get up close ..... the chequered lacquor and small cracks and lines start to show.........

anyway don't take it too seriously ... i love being "older" and in fact after a lifetime of touring and travelling for almost 25 yrs now and all that goes with it ... i'm surprised , i even made it this far ......... and between you and me i don't regret a day of it .

All this talk about age is becoming a bit intimidating for me. I'm 60 and still young so how can you be old?

However, WHEN we get old, many, many years from now, we may agree with the Swedish writer Wilhelm Moberg who was quoted saying that "It's great getting old. Being young was too darned."

**PTChristopher** · 01-12-2013, 03:07 PM

Keira,

This is awkward as hell online and such. But I suppose we are all friends in this surprisingly small forum community - so what the heck,...

Simple arithmetic places me right between you and Oldane, and my plan is to not think about cashing in my chips for quite a while.

You must just be looking in a slightly defective mirror - and definitely still got it goin' on - much appreciated by your bro's here as you may have noticed.

Anyway, back to the guitars - it will be great if you can post pics and sounds of the Hofner when it is un-Bigsby-ficated.

Chris

**PTChristopher** · 01-12-2013, 03:11 PM

Oh, and - can you please note what differences in sound you notice after the Bigsby is changed out.

**Patrick2** · 01-12-2013, 03:23 PM

[QUOTE=Keira Witherkay;285382][QUOTE=Patrick2;285093]

mmm well my comments are a taste of my sense of humour......... and like with all humour...what makes it funny is there is some percentage of truth in it ......

and yes i am like this hofner...... from a distance and the right angle ...all looks good but once you get up close ..... the chequered lacquor and small cracks and lines start to show.........

anyway don't take it too seriously ... i love being "older" and in fact after a lifetime of touring and travelling for almost 25 yrs now and all that goes with it ... i'm surprised , i even made it this far ......... and between you and me i don't regret a day of it .

I certainly don't take you for the type of a woman that thinks unless she looks half of her real age, then she doesn't look good enough. You seem to be very comfortable with who you are . . . to the point that you can joke about it. That's important . . . good on you!!! I guess we're all our own biggest critics.