Of course this is the guitar that Prince popularized as his guitar of choice, and has become even more in demand with Prince’s unfortunate recent death. Story behind the guitar: If you are looking at this guitar you are probably pretty familiar with the back story, but here it is. Anderson and called it the “Mad Cat”. Around 1978/1979 Hohner also had Moridaira produce the guitar under the Hohner brand name. These Hohner branded guitars are extremely rare and almost impossible to find, with the noted exception of Prince, who apparently found one in a guitar store somewhere around his home town of Minneapolis. He really became fond of the guitar and used it almost exclusively with the guitar getting quite a bit of exposure during the Purple Rain period. With Prince’s popularity, Hohner decided to capitalize on this by reissuing the guitar. Prince refused to endorse the guitar, however, which is why Hohner called it “The Prinz”. Around 1985 The Prinz guitar was made by Moridaira in Japan. You can tell the Japan built guitars by the blank chrome neck plate. Later “The Prinz” guitar was made by Samick in Korea. You can tell the Korean built guitars by a thick neck plate that says Hohner Professional. This guitar is the more valuable Moridaira Japan made guitar. Not many of “The Prinz” guitars were made and soon the Telecaster headstock style had to be changed due to the lawsuits by Fender. A few other variations were made after that, but those are not highly regarded. Other than the original “Mad Cat” the Moridaira made “The Prinz” guitars are the most highly sought after Prince guitar. So here is a rare chance to own one! Condition: Overall the condition of this guitar is very good. This is a guitar that has been played, so there is some fret wear, mostly on the first three frets. There is fretboard edge wear especially on the treble side, as well as a wear mark right above the second fret. There are some small dings here and there. On the front there is a small ding on the upper left bout, but it is really only noticeable if angled towards a light source. There is also a small ding on the bass side of the body. Only a few light scratches on the back. Really the body is in great condition for the age. There are a couple of separation lines on the top edge of the guitar. There is a small 1/4 stress crack where the neck joins the body on the treble side. The only real damage to this guitar are some cracks on the bottom near the end pin area. It is my guess, that the guitar was dropped on the end pin at some point causing the cracks. The cracks appear to be stable and do not appear to effect the guitar in any way except aesthetically (fortunately, not an area of the guitar that is highly viewed anyway). The guitar plays great and all electronics work as they should. The action is approx. 1/8 at the 12th fret, but definitely can be lowered with a set up. I would recommend, of course, that the guitar be given a professional set up, to fine tune it to achieve the best possible playability for your style. Alterations: This guitar is completely original with the following exceptions. When I received the guitar, it had an incorrect 5 position switch installed. Also, the pots were scratchy and the output jack was touchy. I replaced the pots, output jack and installed the correct 3 position Telecaster style switch. I also replaced all the pick guard screws since they were pretty rusty. I will include the original pots, output jack and pick guard screws with the guitar. Obviously, I do not have the original 3 way switch. Case: Includes the original hard shell case, but it is not in great condition. It looks like both locks were pried open at some time, but the middle latch does work. No rips or tears though, and it is pretty rare to have the original case for one of these guitars. Please view the pictures and use the zoom feature to view the characteristics and condition of this guitar for yourself. The item “1980’s Hohner The Prinz Electric Guitar Prince -Telecaster Style Moridaira MIJ” is in sale since Thursday, May 12, 2016. This item is in the category “Musical Instruments & Gear\Guitars & Basses\Electric Guitars”. The seller is “lnbleist3gyg” and is located in Lake Elsinore, California. This item can be shipped to United States, to Canada, to United Kingdom, DK, RO, SK, BG, CZ, FI, HU, LV, LT, MT, EE, to Australia, GR, PT, CY, SI, to Japan, to China, SE, KR, ID, to Taiwan, TH, to Belgium, to France, to Hong Kong, to Ireland, to Netherlands, PL, to Spain, to Italy, to Germany, to Austria, RU, IL, to Mexico, to New Zealand, SG, to Switzerland, NO, SA, UA, AE, QA, KW, BH, HR, MY, CL, CO, CR, DO, PA, TT, GT, SV, HN, JM.
- String Configuration: 6 String
- Brand: Hohner
- Body Type: Solid
- Body Color: Maple
- Country/Region of Manufacture: Japan
- Dexterity: Right-Handed
- Model: The Prinz