Another charity shop find

ICBM · July 2023

Got this yesterday from my local Oxfam - it's a 1950s 'folk' guitar, possibly made by Höfner or Framus, but I'm not sure... 'Florida' is the brand on it but I think that may be for the British market only - it just says Made In Germany below the logo.

It came with three nylon and three steel strings! It was actually intended for steel - the nut grooves are too narrow for nylon, especially the top E - but the bridge is clearly more a classical design, and given that it's probably seventy years old, the top is bellying slightly behind the bridge and the neck has quite a bow in it already, I think it's much safer to string it with nylon. I found another old black nylon top E string to go with the B and G that were already on it - I had to open out the E string nut slot slightly - and fitted some hard-tension classical wound strings, but apart from that, it really needed nothing more than a gentle clean and the machineheads oiling - it's in really very good condition for a guitar this age. (I forgot - the bridge saddle was chewed up, but I had another in my box of old spares which fitted.)

The neck is quite chunky and the action somewhat high above the 5th fret due to the neck bow, but it's still perfectly playable with the nylons on it. It's not loud, and nor does it sound 'great' - I assume it's a ply top since the back is - but it actually suits me much better than my proper classical guitar which is just not really me...

thomasross20 · July 2023

What a find - re the bellying is that something you can fix?

ICBM · July 2023

thomasross20 said:

What a find - re the bellying is that something you can fix?

Probably not - it’s just a lightly braced top that really isn’t very strong. It’s done well to survive this long without suffering worse - although when I got it, the strings were almost slack and I suspect had been left like that for maybe decades, which may have saved it. If anything, the bowed neck is the bigger issue - it would be rather uncomfortable to play with steel strings, although it’s OK with nylon.

bugileman · July 2023

It's a laminate top, back and sides. German Made guitar. Probably better with silk n steel strings.....these don't fair that well after many years unless nylon strings were used.

ICBM · July 2023

bugileman said:

It's a laminate top, back and sides. German Made guitar. Probably better with silk n steel strings.....these don't fair that well after many years unless nylon strings were used.

When I got it the B, G and low E were nylon, and the high E, D and A steel! Thankfully no-one had tried to tune it up in the shop - the strings were just about flapping in the wind, and from the dust under them I don’t think it’s been touched in at least 20 years, possibly much longer.

Silk and steels may be pushing it given the bow in the neck - even if it doesn’t cause further problems the action height will probably make it too hard to play. I’m happy enough with the nylons for those Leonard Cohen moments

.

Supportact · July 2023

I like the look of it, well done for saving it.

Smellyfingers · July 2023

It looks really nice and well preserved, if it is 70 years old, you've got teutonic workmanship from back when it was really cheap.

You don't say how much you paid?

ICBM · July 2023

Smellyfingers said:

You don't say how much you paid?

£35. Oxfam is not giving away stuff they know is worth a touch more than the usual 3/4-size junk classicals now!

AK99 · July 2023

thomasross20 said:

What a find - re the bellying is that something you can fix?

Sounds like a job for a wallpaper-steamer and some proper shed-time

guitarjack66 · July 2023

AK99 said:

thomasross20 said:

What a find - re the bellying is that something you can fix?

Sounds like a job for a wallpaper-steamer and some proper shed-time

Are we still talking about the guitar here?

BillDL · July 2023

ICBM said:

Smellyfingers said:

You don't say how much you paid?

£35. Oxfam is not giving away stuff they know is worth a touch more than the usual 3/4-size junk classicals now!

I've noticed this in the online shop. They must have somebody advising them or else somebody does a lot of Google searches to find prices. I really don't think you will get any real bargains in the Oxfam online store these days, but perhaps you still can in theirs and other charities' physical shops. In fact, I think that most of the musical instruments in the Oxfam online shop (filtered results) are overpriced (like THIS guitar that started at £1,000 and is now down to £600) and you still have to pay shipping, but they are relying on people thinking "It's going to a good cause, so I don't mind paying above market price". I think that most people would probably still feel a bit uneasy or even guilty at finding a real bargain that is seriously underpriced and snapping it up before somebody told them it's worth a lot more.

With that said, however, I like the look of your wee £35 guitar. It has a nice shape to it and has nice clean lines. There are very similar mid-50s "Florida" branded (Hofner?) guitars being advertised for between £130 and £180.

Howdy, Stranger!

Categories

In this Discussion

Become a Subscriber!

Another charity shop find

Comments