Instrument: Klira Patricia, Höfner 455 and Framus Sorella were probably the most classic, typical, most built and most successful representatives of the German post-war jazz guitar era. All three are long-running and of very similar construction, all three are mid-range guitars and all three are increasingly rare today in good condition. The Klira Patricia is often mentioned when unknown Klira models are to be given a name, but identification is quite easy: for only if the tailpiece has a Patricia engraving is it one! Model No. 871C was built for about 10 years from 1960 to 1970, very long for a Klira model. Ours is an early model without a truss rod and must therefore have been built before 1962.
Material: It is a typical violin maker's guitar and made entirely of maple. The elaborately built neck, including the headstock, is also made of maple with a mahogany strip inside. The fingerboard is made of rosewood as usual and has perloid rectangular inlays in five frets. Matching pickguard and headstock in beautiful pearloid, the headstock with a black celluloid wedge. The open tuners are standard Schaller, the black-stained pearwood bridge is standard Teller, the engraved lyre tailpiece is standard ABM-Müller and the varnish is the classic Black Rose, very popular at the time. As said: it doesn't get more typical than this.
Instruments history: Unknown. The guitar comes from family property, but when, how and where it was bought, we could not be told anymore. The pickguard was missing and the neck foot had come a small part out of the body, otherwise the guitar was complete and in very good condition.
Restoration work: We have blown out the body and carefully bale polished all lacquer surfaces. The fingerboard was sanded and oiled, the frets polished. The pearloid surfaces also shine like new after polishing. The open tuners were cleaned, polished and oiled. We glued the neck properly back into the body and reinforced it permanently with an invisible wooden dowel. We closed and retouched an old drill hole in the pearloid cover of the neck foot. The wooden dowel was covered with a contemporary strap button in the neck foot. We replaced the missing pickguard with a perfectly fitting original from 1961 from our Kirschnek stock. In the end, the guitar got new strings and a basic setup.
Current condition: If you are looking for a or perhaps "the" typical German jazz guitar, you should consider the Patricia. It is in original condition and of perfect quality for any collection. Everything works perfectly, the neck is straight, fingerboard and frets like new. The varnish shines all around with great depth and the gorgeous reverse style pickguard is New Old Stock and untouched anyway. A few traces of play are hardly worth mentioning after 60 years of guitar life and are completely harmless: a quirk on the back of the neck that we retouched - we suspect capo continuous use on the 2nd fret; beautiful crackling and micro lacquer cracks and a handful of small dents on the sides. All this is hard to photograph and can only be seen against the light. Visually, the Patricia is very harmoniously designed in the three-colour look of black, red and creamy white, which is pure zeitgeist. The sound is also convincing and somehow typical for a jazz guitar: loud, with present mids, yet warm and woody and with an arrow-quick response. We haven't seen a better Patricia in a long time!
Measures: Overall length 42.1”/107 cm; body length 20.5”/52 cm; lower bout width 16.3”/41,5 cm; waist width 10.4”/26,5 cm; upper bout width 12.2”/31 cm; body depth 2.8”/7 cm; scale length 25.2”/64 cm (zero fret to saddle), fingerboard width 1.7”/4,2 cm at nut, 2”/5,2 cm at 12th fret; overall weight 2.070 g, string action on 12th fret 0.12”/3 mm (adjustable).
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.
