The Hondo Guitars hold a distinction of having differences in multiple eras. The earliest guitars are almost identical to the Odyssey versions on down to the paintjob, using a Asian form of ash known as "Sen Ash" in place of the Northern hard ash used on the originals.Some people have told me that the Hondos are better built than the Odyssey guitars in some ways, but weather this is true or not has yet to be proven.
After Paul Dean shifted to Kramer, Hondo continued to use up Paul Dean necks and bodies on variations of the II and III as late as 1985. This leads to some really interesting one-offs including some with non-tilt headstock necks (string guides!!), rosewood fingerboards, regular Hondo headstocks, slightly different hardware, and various other features. Even by then, the finishes went from just transparent red to solid black or even Zebra Stripe finishes. Production ceased as late as even 1986 possibly. It could have also been, as this was a high end model - that some people might have asked for custom options (different paint jobs, different pickups, different hardware).
A bit of a question on origins. I've had the chance to see a lot of these guitars online since buying mine, seems I've sparked them to show up. My early one, as well as many others, have been described as being AMAZING guitars, amongst some of the best Hondo put out in the early 80's, while the later variant was reviewed by MyRareGuitars to seem more modern-Chinese in quality - probably due to changes in hardware and design from the early variations. It is possible - since Hondo supposedly ended in 1984 - that these were chinese built guitars using Japanese parts - to use up overstock.
Specifications
3 piece maple neck, resonance slots, 10 degree headstock tilt, maple fretboard, option of generic sealed machine heads or Grover Rotomatics at an upcharge (I think $60 more), special tuner spacing, 21 jumbo frets, 1" nut width, heel-end hex-bolt truss-rod. Some much later (after 1984) Paul Dean II's came with a regular Hondo 24.75" neck similar to those found on the Deluxe Series models.
2 or possibly 3 piece Sen Ash body, differs from the original Odysseys by some extra wood on the bass-side (neck-shift protection?) and more rounded (likely CNC Computer cut) routs. Later ones may have been using different body woods as it seems some custom finishes showed up around that time (after 1984).
2x Samick X14 Humbuckers (7.8K Each), 2x DiMarzio K-10 (8K each, $60 upcharge?), or 2x DiMarzio Super II DP104 Humbuckers (8.4K, $60 upcharge - option up until mid-late 1984),
1 Volume, 1 Tone, 3-way selector switch
Leo Quan Badass style Import Wrap Around stud tailpiece/bridge w/ adjustable intonation
Haircell Anti-Scratch Pickguard
Initially only came in transparent red like the Odyssey originals, later Hondo started offering more custom options, I have seen at least one other PDII in black, and there may have been some Zebra-Stripe ones as well if the PDIII's are any indication.
Usually these either got a gig-bag or a Chipboard case. Apparently these were custom tailored to the Paul Dean (the chipboard case) though I've seen others around similar in size and shape.