Take a look at McCartney's bass action.

[shoulderpet]

I also have a V63 that I'm working on after a few years in the bass closet. Same issue - the neck is perfectly straight and the bridge is dropped all the way down, but it's still very high - about 4/32 at the 12th fret. I don't want to shave the bridge down (I don't like irreversible mods on something this pricey) so I'm thinking of removing the adjuster wheels.

Maybe buy a new bridge and sand that down, that way you still have the original non modified bridge if you want/need it

 

[shoulderpet]

Who says Hofner is not well constructed? There is more craftsmanship in a Hofner than most bass guitars out there?

This is true, Hofners being badly made is another of these myths that never seem to die

 

[Mannyinnewyork]

I've got two Hofners - a medium priced CT and a very inexpensive Ignition. Both have very low action, have fine intonation and are a blast to play. Sound wise, I like them a lot. I've been PBass person for decades but went on a Hofner kick in recent years. I'm not a bass player really, just a guy that happens to always wind up playing bass when in a band situation. The Ignition weighs less than 5 pounds - what a joy. I have a little PC recording setup at home so I took my most recent track and replaced the PBass with the ignition. Sounded just as good. If you're interested in hearing a $ 250 Hofner on a track, go here. If not , trust me, it's not bad.

Tried to remove this post but for some reason I cannot. Sorry it is misleading. When I got my medium scale fender jazz I replaced the Hofner with the Fender. Sorry for any confusion the current track is my Jbass.

 

[shoulderpet]

Anyone that thinks the action in the OP's pic is high, take a look at the action on this bass that I saw on a well known music gear site

 

[bass71]

Looks fine.
Everyone gets hung about getting the bass with the lowest action.
Then everyone forgets that great tone comes from the highest action.

 

[shoulderpet]

Looks fine.
Everyone gets hung about getting the bass with the lowest action.
Then everyone forgets that great tone comes from the highest action.

Ok, that would be very very high action for me but if it works for others then fair enough, I would certainly agree with you that higher action tends to give a better tone

 

[Slapndbayass]

Take a look at the high action!!! I know that he is not a fast player, that the Hofner is not a very well constructed bass, and that it is short scale. Still, it looks painful to play.
View attachment 1681839

I saw Count Basie decades ago. His guitarist was his mainstay Freddie Green. I noticed he had the strings off the board, would be impossible for most to play his guitar.

I went up to him and asked him, why are your strings so high?

He answered, "because I like it that way."

And Freddie's performance was as his quote below:

"You should never hear the guitar by itself. It should be part of the drums so it sounds like the drummer is playing chords—like the snare is in A or the hi-hat in D minor"

— Freddie Green

I could not hear his guitar during the show but he was playing the snot out of it.

I don't think it is correct to judge an instrument only from the build. A guitar is sum of its parts.

Not every part needs to be the best made parts.

Lots of guitars have imperfections.

What it needs to do is sound good and play well enough for the player.

I saw the Beatles. Was more into their performance than I was about their equipment. It was a known fact they had odd choices in instruments. No Ventures, no Beach Boys.

They came from Europe so yeah they played what they could get their hands on.

Yet today, the "lowly" Hofner is here because The Beatles made remarkable music with it.

See how that works?

 

[Andy R]

"It had been painted over with 5" housepaint-brush and had brushstrokes all over it. It was a really unique and thoughtful gift. She must've been a real peach of a wife."

The first year that we were together my wife bought me a MM Sterling fretless.
Wives like that do exist.......