Does anyone know what this is?

[Ragman1]

Hi all,

Firstly please note that I am a newbie and so be gentle on me.

i, like many of you, have been clearing out cupboards and lofts whilst in lockdown.  I found a bass guitar in my loft that I know nothing about ( my son got it for a birthday from an uncle about 15 years ago).  It says it is a Harmony and is clearly a bass guitar but beyond that I have no idea.

Does anyone know what model it is as he wants to advertise it for sale and wants to give an accurate description.

Thank you everyone in advance

 

[isaac42]

Did a little digging on Google, and now I'm guessing.

It looks pretty much exactly like a Hondo II H830 bass guitar. Those were made in South Korea in 1980 (or so. Sometimes 1979 is mentioned, but sometimes they say that production didn't start until 1980). Probably made in the Samick factory, or what became the Samick factory. Very early models had a Maxon pickup, which looks like what is on your bass. Not long after, they switched to a split P pickup.

So, my best guess is that it's a 1980 Hondo II H830 bass, rebranded and sold as a Harmony H830S. Is the S for Samick, a company that ran a factory making huge numbers of instruments for multiple brands? Your guess is as good as mine.

What's it worth? Who knows? Ultimately, it's worth what someone will pay for it. Here's an ad for a Hondo II H830 with Maxon pickup for $300.

https://www.batonrougemusicexchange.com/products/1980s-hondo-ii-h830-bass

[DeepEnd]

8 hours ago, isaac42 said:

. . . It looks pretty much exactly like a Hondo II H830 bass guitar. . . .

Unless the neck has been replaced that's a "Harmony" logo on the headstock. Beyond that, I have no clue.

[isaac42]

2 hours ago, DeepEnd said:

Unless the neck has been replaced that's a "Harmony" logo on the headstock. Beyond that, I have no clue.

That's why I guessed that it was made in the Samick factory. Most were badged as Hondo II, this one was badged as Harmony. Same bass, different brand. Happens all the time.

[Ragman1]

14 hours ago, isaac42 said:

Did a little digging on Google, and now I'm guessing.

It looks pretty much exactly like a Hondo II H830 bass guitar. Those were made in South Korea in 1980 (or so. Sometimes 1979 is mentioned, but sometimes they say that production didn't start until 1980). Probably made in the Samick factory, or what became the Samick factory. Very early models had a Maxon pickup, which looks like what is on your bass. Not long after, they switched to a split P pickup.

So, my best guess is that it's a 1980 Hondo II H830 bass, rebranded and sold as a Harmony H830S. Is the S for Samick, a company that ran a factory making huge numbers of instruments for multiple brands? Your guess is as good as mine.

What's it worth? Who knows? Ultimately, it's worth what someone will pay for it. Here's an ad for a Hondo II H830 with Maxon pickup for $300.

https://www.batonrougemusicexchange.com/products/1980s-hondo-ii-h830-bass

Thank you Issac.  I will tell my son.  Having this information has meant I could do a bit more digging and it does say on the advertisement you sent that they made copies around that time but had to stop as they started to get sued.

[Ragman1]

5 hours ago, DeepEnd said:

Unless the neck has been replaced that's a "Harmony" logo on the headstock. Beyond that, I have no clue.

Thank you Deepend.  I am guessing there is no way to tell if the neck has been replaced.

[daddymack]

20 hours ago, isaac42 said:

Did a little digging on Google, and now I'm guessing.

It looks pretty much exactly like a Hondo II H830 bass guitar. Those were made in South Korea in 1980 (or so. Sometimes 1979 is mentioned, but sometimes they say that production didn't start until 1980). Probably made in the Samick factory, or what became the Samick factory. Very early models had a Maxon pickup, which looks like what is on your bass. Not long after, they switched to a split P pickup.

So, my best guess is that it's a 1980 Hondo II H830 bass, rebranded and sold as a Harmony H830S. Is the S for Samick, a company that ran a factory making huge numbers of instruments for multiple brands? Your guess is as good as mine.

What's it worth? Who knows? Ultimately, it's worth what someone will pay for it. Here's an ad for a Hondo II H830 with Maxon pickup for $300.

https://www.batonrougemusicexchange.com/products/1980s-hondo-ii-h830-bass

same bass is at Reverb

I will agree the neck is likely original, Hondo's were rebranded across multiple logos in multiple countries.

[isaac42]

2 hours ago, daddymack said:

same bass is at Reverb

I will agree the neck is likely original, Hondo's were rebranded across multiple logos in multiple countries.

I thought as much.

[Perfessor]

I am going to go out on a limb here and say it's a bass guitar.

[isaac42]

2 hours ago, Perfessor said:

I am going to go out on a limb here and say it's a bass guitar.

Gutsy call, Perfessor!

[Mikeps]

Sounds good?

[JDHarmens]

Hello from Holland, I saw the picture of the Harmony your son has. I ve got the same Harmony bass. The finish is different, but the rest of the bass is the same, including the pickup. In the 70 s Harmony stopped the production in the USA. ( bankruptcy but I m not really shure) In Japan the brand( Harmony) started straight away with making P basses with a different shaped headstock. This one

[JC Bass]

If memory serves me correctly, Harmony was Sears' brand that they sold from their catalogs back in the 80s. 

[guitarville]

On 4/24/2020 at 11:17 PM, daddymack said:

same bass is at Reverb

I will agree the neck is likely original, Hondo's were rebranded across multiple logos in multiple countries.

34000 yen, dang

Sounds expensive to me.

Used entry level bass guitars here at the pawnshop go for as little 50 bucks , about 5000 yen.  But any thing classic really never gets put up on the rack, I think the shop ( nation wide " book off " shop put them on their website.