One of Germany's best kept secrets - Hoyer guitars have made their way into some of finest collections, and for good reason! Well made "Retro-Futuristic" designs that are quintessentially 50's. The company underwent some mild changes over the years, but maintained building fine handcrafted instruments throughout the 60's under supervision of Arnold Hoyers son. Early examples from Arnold prove to be of excellent design and craftsmanship and this example is no exception.
The soloist was offered in many different iterations, and this example is a unique late 50's version with a Schaller made pickguard and electronics setup, this may have been installed aftermarket, but is completely era and regionally correct. Structurally this instrument is made of solid maple back & sides, with a thick solid spruce top, all bound and featuring a deep red burst. Cosmetically, this example is very clean with only very few slight nicks present around the edges, and mild checking in the thin lacquer. The binding has shrunk as expected, albeit subtly without any structural separation.
The electronics are very cool and yield a pretty versatile tonal range from fat rhythm to thinner sonics suitable for rock & roll.
The neck is in excellent shape - nice and straight with a chunky profile we've come to expect from 50's instruments. The neck measures an even 1" thick at the first position and about 1.15" thick at the tenth position before the curvature of the heel. It has a 1 11/16" nut width and is designed around a 25" scale length (featuring a zero fret). The frets are in great shape with minimal wear throughout. The fingerboard is in great shape and features the big block MOP inlay work. Low action that measures about 4/64" in height at the twelfth fret.
This is a wonderful playing guitar that is certainly unique and belongs in the hands of the appreciative player / collector. No Case.