Instrument: The Sorella from the mid-price segment of Framus was one of the greatest successes and remained in the range from 1957 until the bankruptcy in 1975. It was available in all colours from black to brown shaded and natural to the rare show finishes in red-gold, white-gold and black-gold. Ours has what was certainly the most popular colour at the time, Black Rose. It was one of the first Framus models to be equipped with a truss rod as early as 1958. The Schaller pickup holder with Framus engraving was a popular accessory, offered at the time as a "Mischpult" (mixer). Our guitar was also retrofitted with it. The just visible stamp shows a 59 I, so the Sorella dates from September 1959.
Material: The body is made entirely of maple, as is the one-piece, massive neck. This has a beautiful rosewood fingerboard with perloid rectangular inlays in four frets as well as side dots. The popular Black Rose finish is perfectly executed. The massive tailpiece bears a Sorella engraving, all parts are old acquaintances from the Framus shelf.
Electrics: The pickup plate, made by Schaller and nickel-plated, has the single coil used countless times by Framus. The sound selection is made via a rotary switch and offers four variants, plus a volume control. The standard jack socket is easily accessible on the side. These units were available in a variety of finishes and, in addition to Framus, also with Schaller and Hopf engravings. They were expensive and exclusive accessories at the time, which not many guitarists could afford.
Instruments history: Unknown. This guitar has certainly spent its life well protected in the living room, the fantastic condition proves that it cannot have experienced much. Since you can still see the old screw holes of the original pickguard, it can be assumed that the pickup plate was retrofitted at the owner's request, perhaps by the music shop. We have had the beautiful Sorella in storage for years and no longer know where it came from.
Restoration work: Actually, only a complete cleaning had to be carried out. The body was blown out and all the lacquer surfaces were polished. We sanded and oiled the fingerboard and polished the frets. A few rusty screw heads have now been freshly polished, all hardware parts polished, the tuners cleaned and re-oiled. Of course, the guitar got a new set of 011" roundwound strings in phosphor bronze from Pyramid and a complete setup.
Current condition: It is simply beautiful! Wonderful appearance, the slim early headstock shape, a dream in red-black-nickel. 100% original, it exudes a lot of spirit of the times and amazes with its perfect condition. An eye-catcher for band and stage. Everything works and is 100% intact, all glue joints are bombproof, fingerboard and frets are as good as new. A few tiny superficial dents, practically no lacquer cracks, only the delicate nickel surface of the pickguard shows a few signs of play. Playability is very easy thanks to the modern, slim neck profile and the as-new fingerboard, you immediately feel at home on the Framus. The unamplified sound is soft and warm, well differentiated and assertive. When amplified, everything is possible, from soft jazz to crisp rockabilly. However, the range of sounds is limited by the four-way switch. We were only fully convinced by the T+B+ position, i.e. full boost of bass and treble. These units, which were called "trick switches" at the time, simply have to be supported somewhat with the amplifier options. But the basic sound is awesome. A guitar for any collection and a great investment, a piece of Framus success history, but above all a great player, perfect for different styles and an absolute eye-catcher.
Measures: Overall length 41.7”/106 cm; body length 21.3”/54 cm; lower bout width 16.5”/42 cm; waist width 10.2”/26 cm; upper bout width 11.8”/30 cm; body depth 3.3”/8,5 cm; scale length 24.6”/62,5 cm (zero fret to saddle); fingerboard width 1.6”/4,1 cm at zero fret, 2”/5,1 cm at 12th fret; overall weight 2.620 g, string action on 12th fret 0.08-0.12”/2-3 mm.
Purchase and payment: Just send us an email to info@german-vintage-guitar.com and you will receive your invoice immediately. Or simply order here through the shop.
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