Help in naming an early guitar of mine

[Bill Williams]

Just a nostalgia thing really, but I would be grateful if anyone could
help me name the hollow-body I'm playing in these two 60's photos
(depicting a somewhat more youthful and hirsute me):

http://clientes.netvisao.pt/bill/SummerHoliday1964.jpg

http://clientes.netvisao.pt/bill/BeatClubCork1966.jpg

I bought it in Cork, Ireland but thought it was US made. The name I
recall is something like Manhattan or Madison but can't quite make it
out on the headstock.

TIA

Bill Williams

[tom walls]

In article <1151504055.3...@i40g2000cwc.googlegroups.com>,
bill.w...@mail.telepac.pt says...

Great photos! I didn't know that you were in The Beatles.
--
Tom Walls
the guy at the Temple of Zeus

[brez]

looks very hofner-like to me.

[Bill Williams]

brez wrote:
> looks very hofner-like to me.

Thanks but I definitely would remember if it was a Hofner because I was
a bit of a Hofner fanatic back then and used to pore over and memorise
their catalogues (in the privacy of my bedroom). Many years later I
picked up and restored a much maltreated 1958 Senator.

Bill

[SP]

Never mind the guitar - What do you call the haircut!!!!!

SP

[LarryV]

Email the pics to FatDawg guitars and see if they can identify it for
you, they deal in a lot of obscure vintage guitars.

webmaven at fatdawg dot com

[tomb...@jhu.edu]

I don't know what it is, but I like it. Please let us know if you
figure this out. (Great haircut too!)

[joel fass]

Aye, Laddy Buck: Methinks it's a Danelectro. (Remember those?) The
real question inquiring minds want to know, though: did it help you get
laid?

If so, is it for sale?
(----:

[LarryV]

I was thinking it was a Danelectro as well, or possibly a Hagstrom -
but Danes typically had lipstick style pickups. The headstock sure
looks like a Dane though. It's a pretty cool looking guitar if I do say
so myself. I was also thinking it could have been a Silvertone model as
a lot of Danes got rebadged as Silvertones.

[Peter Huggins]

Absolutely not any kind of Danelectro product. I doubt it is from a USA
manufacturer, it looks European to me, possibly German. The pickup looks
like it was almost an afterthought..... If I can find a match-up I will
let you know.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
" I`d dance with you Maria, but my hands are on fire " - Bob Dylan

" We had a knob, and all we had to do was turn it." - Les Paul

Grins, Peter
http://community.webtv.net/guitarmaniax/THISISTHE

http://community.webtv.net/guitarmaniax/unfinished3

http://community.webtv.net/guitarmaniax/PhotoReserveNo1

http://community.webtv.net/guitarmaniax/MYFRIEND

[Bill Williams]

> it looks European to me, possibly German.

Hmm ... I was quick to say it wasn't a Hofner earlier on (well I'm
positive the name on the headstock wasn't Hofner) but as you say it
isn't like the Danelectros I have seen pictures of whereas the
headstock is quite similar to some 50's Hofners and the body not too
far from the Hofner Club 125
http://www.vintagehofner.co.uk/gallery/gallery2/arch.html

So it could well have been German.

Thanks for all the suggestions, guys. I did also email Mr Dawg as you
suggested, Larry, but he hasn't got back to me yet.

Bill

[tomb...@jhu.edu]

Bill Williams wrote:
> > it looks European to me, possibly German.
> Hmm ... I was quick to say it wasn't a Hofner earlier on (well I'm
> positive the name on the headstock wasn't Hofner) but as you say it
> isn't like the Danelectros I have seen pictures of whereas the
> headstock is quite similar to some 50's Hofners and the body not too
> far from the Hofner Club 125
> http://www.vintagehofner.co.uk/gallery/gallery2/arch.html
>
> So it could well have been German.

The cutaway, control plate, and headstock all reek of Hofner to me, but
then I've never seen a Hofner model that matches this one.

> Thanks for all the suggestions, guys. I did also email Mr Dawg as you
> suggested, Larry, but he hasn't got back to me yet.

Why not email one of the Hofner webpages? Or try this collector of
German archtops:

http://jazzgitarren.k-server.org/menu.html

[LarryV]

Lark Street music said they thought it was European and likely a
Hofner. Must be a rare bird at that.

[tony...@yahoo.com]

[tony...@yahoo.com]

LarryV wrote:
> Lark Street music said they thought it was European and likely a
> Hofner. Must be a rare bird at that.
>
> tomb...@jhu.edu wrote:
> > Bill Williams wrote:
> > > > it looks European to me, possibly German.
> > > Hmm ... I was quick to say it wasn't a Hofner earlier on (well I'm
> > > positive the name on the headstock wasn't Hofner) but as you say it
> > > isn't like the Danelectros I have seen pictures of whereas the
> > > headstock is quite similar to some 50's Hofners and the body not too
> > > far from the Hofner Club 125
> > > http://www.vintagehofner.co.uk/gallery/gallery2/arch.html
> > >
> > > So it could well have been German.
> >
> > The cutaway, control plate, and headstock all reek of Hofner to me, but
> > then I've never seen a Hofner model that matches this one.
> >

Hi all,

It's definitely European but not a Hofner. It might be a Hoff or a
Hohner most likely Austrian or Czech made.

Cheers,

Tony

[Bill Williams]

Thank again for all the pointers so far. I went through the photos on
the German guitar site and the others it pointed to until my eyes
ached. The guitar in question isn't there but it definitely seems like
its the right ballpark. It is said that at the time these European
guitar makers often shared the same suppliers for the parts they used
which would explain why the tone and volume knobs are very similar to
those on my 1958 Hofner I guess.

I also remember when I was in Prague a while back there were quite a
few small shop selling weird and wonderful archtops from the 50s and
60s.

Bill Williams

[Greger Hoel]

On 30 Jun 2006 11:33:52 -0700, "Bill Williams"
<bill.w...@mail.telepac.pt> wrote:

>Thank again for all the pointers so far. I went through the photos on
>the German guitar site and the others it pointed to until my eyes
>ached. The guitar in question isn't there but it definitely seems like
>its the right ballpark. It is said that at the time these European
>guitar makers often shared the same suppliers for the parts they used
>which would explain why the tone and volume knobs are very similar to
>those on my 1958 Hofner I guess.

Looks like it could be a Levin, a Swedish brand ith quite a variety of
models in the sixties.

[Bill Williams]

> Looks like it could be a Levin, a Swedish brand with quite a variety of
> models in the sixties.

Thanks Greger,
Your suggestions sent me off checking Swedish and related vintage
sites:
http://goyaguitars.tripod.com/levin_catalogs.htm
http://goyaguitars.tripod.com/index1.htm
http://www.myrareguitars.com/1960guitars.html
http://hem.passagen.se/awe/hagstromenindex.htm
http://www.provide.net/~cfh/other.html
http://www.provide.net/~cfh/gallery.html
http://www.vintage-guitars.se/gallery.htm

Lots of fun but didn't really end my quest.
Closest IMO was a 1961 Hofner 4570 that I found at one of the above
(but can't backtrack to right now).

I am positive though that the only name on the guitar was on the
headstock and definitely wasn't Levin, Hagstrom, Teisco, Hofner, Eko,
Kay or Egmond because we were fairly aware of those different brands
back then where I grew up and I would have remembered, I'm sure.

Funny, just 40 years back I knew the name perfectly well but somehow ..

Bill

[Bill Williams]

Still haven't named the guitar but I did discover yet another obscure
European guitar website:
http://meatexz.com/cheesyguitars/

Bill

[ott...@hotmail.com]

> I am positive though that the only name on the guitar was on the
> headstock and definitely wasn't Levin, Hagstrom, Teisco, Hofner, Eko,
> Kay or Egmond because we were fairly aware of those different brands
> back then where I grew up and I would have remembered, I'm sure.
>
> Funny, just 40 years back I knew the name perfectly well but somehow ..
>
> Bill

Silvertone(as in Sears?? Probabnly made by Kay.
Bg