thoughts on Hofner Verithin 1961

PeckhamGuitars

What are peoples thoughts on Hofner Verithin's from 1961 ?

I have one with a Bigsby tailpiece

I love it but don't see them around too often

revsorg

I'd love to see a photo of it.  I saw a YouTube video where someone used one to demo something a couple of years ago and I thought it was one of the most beautiful guitars I'd ever seen.  And I've seen a lot of guitars.  The one in the video was a kind of antique brown, maybe a bit sunburst, had really elegant soundholes and the controls seemed fairly straightforward in a kind of German-we-do-things-our-own-way kind of way.

merciful-evans

Never played one but I'd like to.

Also a Yamaha SA-2200.

I've played some older German Hofners & rate them.

I have a Chinese Hofner HCT-J17.

ICBM

Lovely things, but don’t expect modern playability and usability.

Sassafras

I had one many years ago and with a proper set-up it was a fine guitar. Loved its 'thinness', very comfortable to play. Swapped it for a Jazzmaster IIRC.

guitars4you

ICBM said:

Lovely things, but don’t expect modern playability and usability.

about sums it up - i always think it is like driving a 1961 Morris Minor v a new Toyota Yaris

One has far more character but you'd probably not use it on a day to day basis

PeckhamGuitars

the thinness of it is great!

i love it...tough getting inside it to fix the pickups though!

guitars4you

^^^^^^^^^^^  looks a nice and clean example - is the body/neck join still okay - They can be problematic but repairable if required - A lot of history in there as well !!!!!!!!

ICBM

guitars4you said:

is the body/neck join still okay - They can be problematic but repairable if required

This, and the other common problems are the pickups failing due to wire corrosion - they all will sooner or later, but @TheGuitarWeasel is the expert at repairing them correctly - and the pots and switches getting noisy and unreliable. The pots can be replaced if necessary, the switches are a size not available in any modern equivalent but can in almost all cases be carefully dismantled and cleaned. The machineheads aren't the best but if properly cleaned, re-greased and strung correctly they work perfectly well, and if the gears are really knackered then the pinion can be replaced.

I still wish I'd kept the '59 President I had in about 1986/87 - someone had badly fitted a pair of DiMarzio humbuckers! But when fixed with something a bit more appropriate it was a really nice guitar. These days the tree-trunk neck would probably be highly fashionable too, although it wasn't at the time...

PeckhamGuitars

I'll get in touch with theguitarweasel!

neck and body join still totally fine

What do you think they go for these days?

Henrytwang

As has been mentioned old Hofner guitars are not the most reliable of instruments. If you are prepared to spend money and time they can be fixed and be made playable. I wouldn’t spend much on one myself, they’re quite interesting but never were great guitars. In the early 60s I played loads of gigs with a Hofner Colorama and also owned a Senator but as soon as I got enough money together for an HP deposit l bought a used Telecaster. I haven’t touched a Hofner since.

ICBM

PeckhamGuitars said:

What do you think they go for these days?

£600-£700 I think, going by the last couple through the shop I work for. That might be a bit out of date though.

Removing the pickups for repair should be easy by the way - if you undo the control panel the wires are soldered on there, just make sure you note which goes where, and preferably tie a piece of cotton to each one so you can pull the wires back trough easily once they've been repaired. WAY easier than a Gibson 335...

rossi

I always wanted one in the early years when it was Hofner or nothing ,well almost .I ended up with a Club 60,I always found Hofners ,Burns etc clunky and unrefined compared to US guitars at 4 time s the price .I do have small hands though and consider their playability hindered my development as a player .I wouldnt waste my money on one unless it dropped in my lap  frankly .

OilCityPickups

As @ICBM says the pickups in all vintage hofners 'go' if you so much as look at them ... a great design made with lousy materials. I probably rewind more Hofner pickups than any other make: bargain on about £70 a pickup for total rewinds and new output cables. Pickups done like this will practically last forever, as the magnets are ceramic, even in the early hofners, so the never loose charge. never make the mistake of thinking that perhaps only one coil of the humbucker will be shot ... if one has gone the other will be going ... best just bite the bullet and effectively get new/old pickups. 

Rockfather

I've wanted one since I was 13 when we used to drool over the Bell Selma catalogues,  advertised free in the Daily Mirror. couldn't afford one then and  still cant now. I was at an auction only on Saturday hoping this would be the one. It was in a poor condition and didn't fancy it.  It knocked down at £480 + buyers premium 25% so around £600 but I saw one in my local shop about a year ago in slightly worst condition for £850. There is one on Reverb at the moment for over a thousand but its a beauty. Pick ups and neck already mentioned above, but people say they howl with feedback once you put any volume into them.....So why do I still want one???

guitars4you

Rockfather said:

I've wanted one since I was 13 when we used to drool over the Bell Selma catalogues,  advertised free in the Daily Mirror. couldn't afford one then and  still cant now. I was at an auction only on Saturday hoping this would be the one. It was in a poor condition and didn't fancy it.  It knocked down at £480 + buyers premium 25% so around £600 but I saw one in my local shop about a year ago in slightly worst condition for £850. There is one on Reverb at the moment for over a thousand but its a beauty. Pick ups and neck already mentioned above, but people say they howl with feedback once you put any volume into them.....So why do I still want one???

Nostalgia - I think there is a bit of a comparison when you look at say a 60's Morris Minor and a modern small run around like a Yaris - One has far more character, but will need regular love and attention to work on a day to day business - The other is just a day to day run around that should give you far less hassle on a day to day basis

ESBlonde

When I were a lad in the 70s, a school mate went from a cheap no name western steel string to an old hofner verithin. At first we all thought it was great and an upgrade for sure, but as we each upgraded in turn it soon became evident that it was just a 'student' level guitar albeit an electric one. Mind you decent guitars were in short supply unlike today.