1964 Customized Framus Strato 5/155

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This Framus "Atlanta" isn't a regular Framus model, but a custom job on a 1964 Strato 5/155 (like the one you can see down there; early Framus naming can be a little bit tricky since both Strato and 5/155 have been used for different models, and this for Germany since in the US Strato was replaced by Apollo).

Pickups,electronics and pickguard have been replaced and the guitar (poorly) refinished in black, but they kept the coolest part, the big German 1960s vibrato! No idea where the Atlanta logo come from...

Bertram

Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 10th year!

1974 Framus Electric Mandolin

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I'm tripping on electric mandolins lately, as I want to expand my music and really enjoy what Warren Ellis does with Grinderman (he doesn't play only his signature tenor guitar). 

This 1974 8-string Framus Electric Mandolin in Black Rose finish could fulfill my dreams and my birthday is soon (my anti-GAS no-more-guitar policy doesn't apply here, it's a mandolin)...

Bertram

Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 10th year!

Framus Atlantik 5/113 52 T

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This 1960s Framus Atlantik 5/113 has all the cool characteristic features of the model - the slanted single-coil pickups, the batwing pickguard, the four knobs in line, the trem... - but also a nice custom psychedelic paint job... 

I wrote this here already about another guitar: the Germans were the best hippies! 

Bertram

Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 10th year!

Framus 5/51 acoustic single f-hole model from 1969

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Here's a sweet little guitar from Germany: a Framus 5/51 archtop with - unusually for an acoustic guitar - just a single f-hole on the bass side. As is commone with old Framus guitars, the neck is made from multiple laminates, and is also a bolt-on - proof that it wasn't just the Italians (Eko, etc) who used this construction technique on their acoustics.

G L Wilson

Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 10th year!

Framus Camping guitar

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This Framus Camping guitar from 1968 is an acoustic guitar that could only ever have come out of Europe. Its style is quite distinctly different from anything from the American market which more often than not conformed to the law of C.F. Martin. Likewise, Japanese and other Far Eastern-made acoustic guitars were inspired by the American way of doing things.

European makers, however, were happy doing their own thing. This Framus is a perfect example, being a flat-top guitar but with the floating bridge and trapeze tailpiece you'd notmally expect to find on an archtop, and with a parlour-like 12-fret neck on a wider, more rounded body.

This, of course, is all topped off by the simple artwork depicting a scene of tents pitched along a lakeside with mountains in the background. It's very North European, very German! It's a charming little guitar, and one which the seller describes as having a sweet action and an effortless playability.

G L Wilson

Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 9th year!

Mandolin beauties galore from Framus

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Martin Niggemann writes:

I just stumbled upon a recent addition to the Framus vintage archives you might be interested in: the mandolin section. Apparently they made a couple of high-end electric/acoustic mandolins that were modelled on their famous jazz and electric guitars, e.g. the Black Rose, Television/Hollywood, etc., but with a twist!

I never came across any of these on eBay, so I suppose they are quite rare.

Cheers from Germany,
Martin

Thanks for that, Martin. I never knew that these existed either. I note also that there are 10-string and 12-string mandolins (each with 4 courses of strings in pairs and/or triples) as well as the more familiar 8-strings. I really like the solid-body electric - it's a much more pleasing shape than the more usual Fender Mandocaster.

G L Wilson

Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 9th year!

Framus Tennessee Pro

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I've seen this Framus Tennessee Pro before but the regular models in natural finish felt a little bit heavy and boring, like the 50s plywood dresser of my grand-mother, so I paid little attention. 

Then today I found this one, in burgundy - coming then from the Framus custom shop (it's not produced anymore otherwise, but it's not a vintage model, it's pure 2000s) - and it looks really cool, a convincing update of the contoured old German jazz guitars (that made famous the characteristic German carve), with its contemporary Seymour Duncan humbuckers, Gibson-esque stoptail and flamed maple top on a chambered mahogany body. 

Bertram

Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 9th year!

1965 Framus Missouri

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I've always loved archtop acoustic guitars, and I wonder why they are not more common... They feel more suitable for steel-strings when flat-tops and round holes belong to nylon strings. This 60s Framus Missouri is way cool, with a deep cutaway perfect for jazz players (it's not a model to play folk songs around a bonfire). 

bertram

  Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 9th year!

Framus Strato Deluxe XII

guitarz.blogspot.com:
We've looked at a Framus Strato Deluxe previously on this blog, but here is the 12-string variant. As well as having the tremolo (many 60s-era 12-strings had these even if it does seem like a recipe for disaster), this guitar appears to have even more switches than its 6-string counterpart. You have to wonder also at the decision to finish these in sunburst seeing as almost the entire front of the guitar is covered in plates.

G L Wilson

Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 9th year!

1958 Framus Bill Lorento thinline

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There's already been a Framus Bill Lorento guitar presented in this blog, but not as fine as this beautiful thinline model from 1958. This is another example of how terrific German jazz guitar have been in the 50s - though this one doesn't have the huge hollow-body characteristic of these guitars. 

Its most noticeable feature is of course the raised metal pickguard that includes the pickup covers - I don't think I've ever seen this before... 

the lyre-shaped tail is also something, as are the big block inlays on the fretboard.

bertram



Guitarz - The Original Guitar Blog - now in its 9th year!

1959 Framus Tenor Thinline 'Peter Kraus'

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Tenor guitars are in the air... Just found another one, a coolissima Framus Peter Kraus Thinline (actually it's nowhere called a tenor guitar, it has 4 strings and a small body but the scale is not mentioned)...

Peter Kraus was (apparently) the first German rockstar from back in the 50s, and this is one of his early signature models, you can learn more about him (like I just did) here and here.

bertram



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Retrofit 60s Framus Strato Deluxe

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That's an interesting case: should a vintage guitar be completely renovated like this Framus Strato Deluxe in order to be played in the best conditions and last longer, or should it stay genuine and degraded (similar guitar here) and keep its status of vintage guitar - and paradoxically gain a higher value (sorry but it's now a f*** serious issue for cool guitars).

Anyway I do like this one, refinished in natural blond wood with new pearloid pickguard, shiny chromes and brand new knobs, it probably looks better than when it first saw the light sometimes back in the 60s...

Bertram

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60s Framus Billy Lorento BL10

This is a late 60s Framus BL10 Billy Lorento (aka Willi Lorenz aka Bela Lorentowsky aka Bill Lawrence).

Herr Lorenz is without any doubt an authority in guitar pickups, but this model looks like a shaped planck - that is always a failure for a guitar. On the other hand the shape itself is quite good, and in my opinion an unexplored yet direction for future guitar design.

bertram

60s Framus 5/119-54 Television

It's been a little while since we've showed some nice German vintage guitar here (OK, just one week...) so here's a Framus 5/119-54 Television (not 100% sure because the gear is chrome, not gold). We've actually had the bass version shown here a few months ago but I like this guitar better for its fanned pickups, that with the asymetric F-holes make it quite unique.

There are many good pics of it on the eBay page where I found it - it worth having a look. You can also go directly to the excellent framus-vintage.de website, on which - what an excellent idea! - you can learn anything about the whole Framus production since almost ever. Other companies should really do that (Rickenbaker has something similar but not so complete), and I realised how interesting Framus guitars are - or at least have been - and I will be more aware of them now.

bertram

Framus Strato Deluxe 1964

I don't know why this 1964 Framus Strato Deluxe is called Strato since it has a Jaguar shape and its pickups look like nothing else... But its blobish pickguard (can you still call that a pickguard?) is so cool! Also it has one of these many vibratos they experimented back in the 60s.

bertram