Hofner 456 model (1952)
In 1949 Hofner continued production after the war, and this was one of the first models. The old way of construction was still used for the body, with the rings glued on the binding, a very expensive artisanal process that disappeared in 1952.There are many differences with the following instruments, they were only built with these characteristics for two years and the production was very small.
It is extremely rare to find a guitar like this, in such good condition and with all the original parts.
It is the deluxe version of the 455 model with more bindings on the fingerboard and on the body. And more selected woods.
It has the original bound pickguard, this was only done in 1952.
It is all built in 2-ply laminate, maple on the outside and mahogany on the inside. Later models were made in 3 ply: Maple, Mahogany, Maple. The top is thinner and has a different sound.
The varnish is beautiful, which preserves the shine of the original sunburst in three shades like the first day.
The frets are original, have been reconditioned and are in perfect condition, and allow you to play comfortably with a very low string height and without fretting or buzzing. It also has the old headstock and neck design, rosewood fingerboard.
It has been completely revised and is in very good condition and fully operational!It is strung with ELIXIR 0.11 bronze strings
"When Hofner re-commenced production in Moehrendorf, Bavaria after WW2 in 1949, the 456 was one of the archtop models offered. A very similar archtop had been produced with that model designation before the onset of the war when Hofner was based at Schoenbach in Bohemia.The 456 was intended to be Hofner's mid-range archtop, utilizing nicely flamed maple for the body back & sides, with a maple top.A good standard of ornamentation was used on the guitar, with binding/multi-purfling around body top & back edges and soundholes, with the rosewood neck also bound.Pearloid strips were used for the fretmarkers, and on all but the very earliest guitars, a pearloid/tortoishell/pearloid celluloid fascia covered the front of the headstock .There can be problems differentiating between the 455, 456, and 457 models, particularly as Hofner seems to have continually revised the detail cosmetics of these models over the years.The main basic difference between the 456 and the slightly later 457 is that the 456 had a maple body top and the 457 had a spruce top. Both the 455 and the 456 had maple tops, but the ornamentation on the 456 was of a higher standard than the 455. For example, the 455 was not provided with binding to the neck initially, though later examples (after the demise of the 456 ) did gain this feature. Initially the 456 was only supplied in brown sunburst finish. Later, a natural blonde finish was available, and some examples even have a red-burst finish. As with the rest of the Hofner range, the 456 was available from c1954 with the option of factory fitted electrics. The 456 disappeared from the range in 1962, by which stage the 457 model would seem to have taken over as Hofner's principle mid-range archtop."
Hofner 456 model (1952)
"This guitar has been authenticated and dated by the official vintage Hofner page. Its photos appear on it to illustrate the characteristics of this model, for being one of the oldest and best preserved. Also for keeping all its original parts, since it Very few examples are preserved from this period.
You can see it on the official page of "Hofner vintage" in this link:
http://www.vintagehofner.co.uk/gallery/archtops6/arch19.html