Rodebald HOYER "Samba" ~1958 German archtop guitar - FREE SHIPPING TO THE USA

Beautiful old jazz guitar, made by Rodebald Hoyer in about 1958 in West Germany. Rodebald Hoyer was one of the prime luthiers of the golden age of the German archtop. 

This is a big bodied archtop, typical for the era of 1950s German archtops. I am not entirely sure about the woods; some sources say all laminated maple, others claim that this has a solid spruce top. In any way, it is a beautiful and cool archtop, ideal for many kinds of music (though it was constructed mainly for 1950s dance music rhythm, but soloing brings out the Django in you instantly as well).

Sound and Playability:

As all archtops of that era, the guitar has a cutting wooden tone, really suited well for cutting through the mix of an ensemble. It`s more twangy and percussive than mellow, but not as bright as the completely laminated later archtops and smaller models.

String action is at a well playable 2,5 mm on the 12th fret high E. The guitar plays very soft and comfortably with a slightly underbowed neck, which has no truss rod. The neck is a mid-chunky D.

New 11 gauge strings (steel bronze, Pyramid - made in Germany) are attached.

Measurments 4,2 cm nut width, scale 640 mm, width at lower bouts 42 cm, depth 7,6 cm.

Flaws:

The guitar is in a good condition for its age. Of course it has lacquer cracks all over, but no serious damages.

The frets show some minor wear, but are totally fine. 

The original scratch plate is missing. The rosewood bridge is new.

I polished the frets, oiled the fretboard and the tuners, and put on new 11 gauge strings. The guitar comes un-tuned, and is playable immediately after tuning it up.

Summary:

Very fine German beauty - beautiful!