Hofner 176 Deluxe (Galaxy)

Here we have a very nice Hofner 176 Deluxe, some refer to it as the Galaxy, from 1966.  This is one of 3 that I own and I need to fund another project so this one is in the hot seat. 

It is nearly all original with the exception of the nut that needed to be replaced when I first acquired it.  The body is finished in a two tone, bound vinyl and has a bound neck.  The binding is completely intact and has yellowed nicely over the years.  The neck is finished in a glossy black.  This was Hofner's special thing they did before the late 60's when they switch to traditional paint finish's.  It's kind of a cool different thing of the era.  For a guitar approaching 50 it is in incredible shape.

Functionally this one is in very solid condition.  This one was the only one I have ever bought that didn't need work out of the gate.  Electronically all the switches, knobs and dials are in working order.  As you can see there are plenty of them.  All pickup outputs register to period spec's.  Just a point of note, when you rotate the selector on the lower horn towards the bass side it does get a bit thin.  This is normal and consistent with the other two I have.  The tuning knobs function quite well.  The vibrato and palm mute are also both functional.  The vibrato is does a really nice job of standing in tune, I can usually get away with a couple songs use before I have to retune.  I can't say the same of my Jazzmasters.

Cosmetically this one is in solid shape although not perfect.  The vinyl doesn't have any tears or discoloration to it.  The vinyl has separated a bit in the horn section however, this isn't uncommon for these.  You can see this in the pictures.  It never interfered with my playing and I like to get low on the neck.  The action is neither high or low and the frets have a lot of life in them.  I don't believe they have ever been leveled and I didn't notice any notable low spots. 

This comes with the pictured HSC.  If you have any questions hit me up and don't be shy with best offers.  You never know how I'll feel on any given day.