2005 Gibson ES-335 block '63 reissue
I bought this in May 2016 from the same Melbourne dealer from whom I bought the Zemaitis.
I've always been a sucker for 335s (and Les Pauls too) and I've owned a few in the past:
- A 1968 one that I had in the mid to late '80s
- An Orville one made in Japan that I had for a short time in the mid noughties
- A 1966 one that I only had for a few months in 2010-2011
This one is a 1963 model reissue so it has block fingerboard inlays (not dots), narrower horns than the 1950s dot necks, rolled fingerboard binding, and no volute at the back of the headstock. This one also has a fairly unusual pale coloured sunburst finish. Full detailed specs are on the Gibson web site.
It is supposedly a Yamano order and it has Yamano paperwork (all in Japanese) in the original Gibson case. Depending on who you listen to, this is either completely meaningless or indicates that it went through extra quality control especially for the Japanese market, Yamano being Gibson's distributor in Japan for some time.
Whether it means anything or not, it seems that this guitar was originally sold in Japan and made its way to Australia from there.
It is in near perfect condition. It had some buzzes and dead spots when I got it but I raised the bridge slightly and it's now perfect in every way. In fact it's now easier to play with the higher action. I have also replaced the tailpiece with a Gibson fine tuning tailpiece (see the black & white pic on the right). I pretty much never use the fine tuners but I like the way it looks and I believe the extra mass improves the sound. However, others believe they are bad for the guitar's sustain.
