Alver hollow body, red stain finish, made in Australia around 1961. Alver was the student line of Maton from the late fifties until the very early seventies. The name is apparently a combination of Maton founder Bill May's wife's name, Alma, and his sister-in-law's name Vera.... wholesome content. They were made by the same luthiers at the same factory as the Maton branded guitars of the time, and were eventually discontinued as they were too pricey to produce relative to their modest asking price. It's a lovely thing in the hands: lightweight and resonant, with a pretty slim and agreeable neck and tidy workmanship. The original bridge limits the accuracy of the intonation, but it's 'close enough for jazz', as they say. It would appear this left the factory with a pickup, but it's since been removed, leaving the hole that housed the volume pot and the jack intact... it'd be easy enough to add a pickup again without major surgery if you were so inclined. The red finish has plenty of marks and checking, offering a well-played vintage charm. Vintage Maton stuff is skyrocketing in value lately, so get in on the ground floor with this one while it's still accessible. 

Model: Alver by Maton, model possibly a 2C
Made: Melbourne Australia, 1961 approx
Finish: red stain
Body: fully hollow, laminate, full depth, species unknown
Neck: appears to be mahogany, rosewood fretboard, slim C shape, 16" radius, 24" scale
Weight: 1.895kg
Mods: pickguard removed, pickup removed, bridge repaired, neck appears to have been reset at some point
Pickups: none
Case: none

Cosmetic condition notes: minor finish wear. The headstock has some rub wear around the edges, dings on the corners, dimples on the back and widespread checking. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands, with minor scuffs and dimples on the back, some rub wear on the edges and widespread checking. The back has widespread scuffs and surface scratches as well as checking all over, no major marks though. The sides have minor dimples, scuffs and checking the whole way around the body but no major marks. The front has a decent pair of scratches near the F hole and on the bottom horn, some extra screw holes above the strings and some dimples on the elbow area and bottom corner. The hole on the bottom horn appears to be original, it's likely that's where the original volume pot would have been. Overall: good condition (7/10).

Playing condition notes: Action is low, neck is straight (although not 100% perfect), intonation is reasonable but limited by the factory bridge, truss rod works. There's an output jack installed with a cloth wire attached, which appears to be original, but no pickup is currently installed. The frets are in pretty good shape, 8/10 for life left. Wearing fresh 11/49 Moonshiners strings.