Dazed Posted September 29, 2023 Share Posted September 29, 2023 (edited) Any experts on here? Recently picked up an interesting one I’d never seen before, not that I know much about Hofners in general other than the Beatle bass connection. I’ll get some pics up hopefully later today. After some research I’ve found it’s from the early 70’s, possibly only made for a year, two at most. Model number 192. 1972 HOFNER MODEL 192 BASS GUITAR HOFNER MARKETING PHOTOGRAPH PHOTO COURTESY OF KARL HÖFNER GmbH & Co. KG, HAGENAU, GERMANY Edited October 2, 2023 by Dazed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted September 29, 2023 Share Posted September 29, 2023 If you haven't already check out the Vintage Hofner website. Numerous solid bodied guitars and basses on there and not all Fender copies. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazed Posted September 29, 2023 Author Share Posted September 29, 2023 Thanks, that’s where I found the picture above. Very little info noise so far. Found maybe 3 or 4 sites but all have the same small amount of info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted September 29, 2023 Share Posted September 29, 2023 Did you knab the 4 string P type that was on ebay recently? I looked at that but I'm not playing my 4s so passed on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazed Posted September 29, 2023 Author Share Posted September 29, 2023 I didn’t see one on eBay? Have you got the link saved or remember anything if the ad, location etc? I found it in fb marketplace and it has to be one of the most difficult purchases I’ve ever made, considering it was in the same country and I replied within 4 hours of the ad going online. Took 6 weeks to finally get to buy it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazed Posted October 1, 2023 Author Share Posted October 1, 2023 Some pics I took yesterday, haven’t cleaned it yet. Spot the 5 pence 😉 I’m really impressed with the build quality and materials. It’s a solid body, looks to be some form of maple, not sure about the neck but it’s a bound jazz width with rosewood fingerboard. Decent tuners, hefty bridge. A thick 3 ply tortoiseshell type pickguard and your common or garden P bass electrics that sound good so far. Still have to set it up for me. As much as I like the Hofner branded bridge cover and pickup cover I’m don’t like how restrictive they are so they’ll be coming off. Seems I’m becoming a Sunburst collector too… a colour I avoided for 30 odd years but have grown to like in the last 10. Weighs a smidge over 8lbs. It’s got a few dings and scratches, genuine wear and really nothing to drastic considering it’s 50+ years old. After some research on what little info I can find online it seems these were only made for a year or two around 1971/2 which also means it’s a YOB. Bonus. The jazz version must have been more popular as that was made or sold for quite a few years before and after. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted October 2, 2023 Share Posted October 2, 2023 That's a nicer looking burst than most Fender basses, and I particularly like the matching burst on the back of the neck, which IMO is far more classy than a mis-matched natural neck. However the shape of the black in the body burst would suggest a fancy veneer over a plywood or butcher block body core - not that there's anything wrong with that. You'll need to neck and/or pick guard off to check the actual construction. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazed Posted October 2, 2023 Author Share Posted October 2, 2023 I do wonder if it’s a veneer, don’t think fotoflame was around back then? Seems too light to be solid maple to me. Scratchplate is coming off today to have a dig about. Feels like the thread on the pickup screws or the pickup itself is shot so can’t adjust the pickup height. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazed Posted October 2, 2023 Author Share Posted October 2, 2023 Scratch plate now off. Pickup threads are worn out so have to find some way to sort that. PTFE tape 🤔 No pickup covers, routing in the plate doesn’t leave room for them either. Still not sure about the body, could be a veneer. I don’t mind it’s light and looks good either way. Resonant too. I’m going to need to swap these bits of the bridge, I’ve seen these saddles in other basses and never understood the point of them, they’re so big it’s impossible to get the string height remotely low. The neck isn’t in bad condition there’s a couple of small areas that look more damage than wear but nothing that affects playability. Frets aren’t too bad either. I like the accessible truss rod. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miles'tone Posted October 3, 2023 Share Posted October 3, 2023 Nice. Years ahead of Musicman with that trussrod adjustment function too! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazed Posted October 4, 2023 Author Share Posted October 4, 2023 On 03/10/2023 at 09:21, miles'tone said: Nice. Years ahead of Musicman with that trussrod adjustment function too! That’s just what I thought when I saw it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazed Posted October 4, 2023 Author Share Posted October 4, 2023 (edited) On 29/09/2023 at 17:07, TheGreek said: Did you knab the 4 string P type that was on ebay recently? I looked at that but I'm not playing my 4s so passed on it. Did you have anymore info on that ? I did a search on eBay but couldn’t see anything for the past 3 months or however far it goes back now. Edited October 4, 2023 by Dazed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted October 4, 2023 Share Posted October 4, 2023 So did I after I asked the question - not on eBay so I thought it must have been Gumtree. Couldn't find it there either. It was black and IIRC the seller had bought it, not gelled and was selling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tauzero Posted October 4, 2023 Share Posted October 4, 2023 On 03/10/2023 at 09:21, miles'tone said: Nice. Years ahead of Musicman with that trussrod adjustment function too! Hayman used the same system at around the same time. Much better than taking the neck off to adjust it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazed Posted October 5, 2023 Author Share Posted October 5, 2023 21 hours ago, TheGreek said: So did I after I asked the question - not on eBay so I thought it must have been Gumtree. Couldn't find it there either. It was black and IIRC the seller had bought it, not gelled and was selling. The seller said she bought it locally on Facebook not that long before. Buying it was hard work. Had to message her every week or so, think she thought I was a scammer because I was prepared to travel 100+’miles for it. After a couple of weeks she pulled the ad, then put it back up at over double the price….. Someone must have give it some love over the years as the flatwounds sound quite fresh still that it came with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazed Posted October 5, 2023 Author Share Posted October 5, 2023 21 hours ago, tauzero said: Hayman used the same system at around the same time. Much better than taking the neck off to adjust it. I’ve never understood why that became an accepted way of servicing an instrument. Either have an accessible cutout or do from the headstock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tauzero Posted October 5, 2023 Share Posted October 5, 2023 18 minutes ago, Dazed said: I’ve never understood why that became an accepted way of servicing an instrument. Either have an accessible cutout or do from the headstock. Because Leo. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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