The Gibson ES-335

All of the guitars in the “For Sale” section are in my possession unless I mention otherwise. They are not all my guitars. Some may be consignments. All of them have been set up by me and played by me to make certain they are everything I say they are. You are entitled to a 48 hour approval period. Buyer pays return shipping and will be charged for the initial shipping if it was free if the guitar is as described. If you just don’t “bond” with it, that’s a legitimate reason to return it but you will be responsible for its safe return to me. It must be shipped back by the same method you received it and must be fully insured.  All parts are photographed before shipping and parts that are missing or changed on a guitar that has been returned will be charged to the buyer. It’s not pretty but it happens. Fortunately, it rarely happens. You can also find me on Gbase and Reverb.com. My dealer name is OK Guitars. You can pay using Paypal, credit card, check, cash and bank wire. I will hold any guitar as a courtesy for 24 hours without a deposit. Just call or email me and let me know you’re interested. This isn’t the entire inventory. Check Gbase for more guitars. Amps and parts are on a separate page on this site. Always check Gbase-I usually update that first when I get something new and there are more photos. They are on Reverb as well but they will charge you sales tax. I don’t have to unless you live in Ohio.

This is a 59 “first rack” 345. They are different than all the ones that come later. Thin top, huge neck. This one has been converted to 335 spec and has no issues. Original harness and Varitone in the case. $59,000

Can’t stretch the budget for the 59 you really want? Buy this mid year 1960 and save yourself close to $30,000. The only difference between this guitar and a 59 is the neck profile. It’s slim and wide. Only notable wear is to the back of the neck. Measures .80″ at the first fret and .87″ at the 12th. And a pair of zebra PAFs. All original except the frets and tuner tips. $53,500

This 62 ES-355 is a rare one. The ebony block trem tailpiece was used for only one year and almost exclusively on SGs. I’ve seen only two on ES guitars-both ES-355’s. The other one was blonde and sold for well into six figures a few years ago. This one suffered a headstock break and Ken McKay made a new neck for it using the original finergerboard, truss rod and headstock overlay. Instead of a super slim 62 neck, he carved a 59 profile (.88″ and .98″). PAFs and a wonderful player. $28,000

It is most unusual for me to have two “first rack” 345’s at the same time (there around 100 of them total). This one still has its Varitone but has a few issues. Back of neck has been resprayed, Repro pickguard, Grovers on and off, original Klusons back on and treble side neck binding has been replaced. Save $18,000 over the other one I have in stock. $42,000. That’s cheap for a first rack.

**HOLD**I don’t do much business in archtop jazz boxes but I’m in love with this one. It plays beautifully and sounds like a choir of angels. Condition is 9+. Seriously great guitar. I’m surprised that these don’t cost a lot more. Three PAFs including a double white in the bridge position. All original except for the bridge and the tuners. The original is included in the near mint case. $20,500

I’d really like to own a 59 Les Paul but, unfortunately, I can’t afford one. I could buy an R9…nice guitars but new wood and old wood are not the same. Some conversions have an old wood body and a new wood top. Some have all old wood. For my money, that’s what makes a good conversion as close to the real thing as you can get. Even more so than original 59 parts. A repro tailpiece sounds the same as an old one. But old wood sounds different than new. This is a 52 that luckily had a center seam flame top under the gold paint. The parts are all 59 except the pickup rings (repro) and the pickguard (52 cut for humbuckers). I’ve owned 8 or 9 bursts and I can’t tell the difference between this conversion and the real thing. $59,000

“Lucy, I’m home…” Too young to get the reference? It’s 1954 and bandleader Desi Arnaz gets home from work and calls to his wife Lucille Ball. Lucy was the world’s most famous redhead and when Eric Clapton gifted George Harrison a converted 57 Les Paul Goldtop that had been refinished in red, he named it “Lucy”. This one is a 1952 conversion. The center seam top is original-not easy to find a center seam goldtop to convert. The neck was re-set to the proper angle for an ABR-1 and the P90 routs were filled with maple inserts and re-routed for humbuckers. It has a pair of 1959 PAFs installed. The harness is from 1952 with 1959 bumblebee caps in place of the stock Grey Tiger caps. Most of the rest of the parts are original (from 52). You can find Gibson’s reissue Lucy for $70,000-$90,000. Or you can go for old wood…a stunning Jim Weyandt conversion for a bit more. With real bursts selling for more than $500,000, this, at $99,000 is a well priced alternative. I’ve owned a dozen 58-60 Les Pauls and if I close my eyes, I couldn’t tell the difference between this conversion and the real thing. Four latch vintage hard case from the 50’s. $99,000

You don’t see these too often (because they only made 43 of them). It’s a 59 L5C, better known as the “George Gobel” model. It is in excellent condition, we’ll call it 9+. Spruce top and maple sides and back (with lots of flame in the maple) and a big fat neck like most 59’s. Unlike a typical L5, the body is thin-2 3/8″ deep. Comfortable to play and gorgeous to look at, a Gobel is one of those elusive Gibson’s you can spend half a lifetime looking for. There is one other on the market at $150,000. This one (in better shape by the way) is $39,000.

A flame top 59 ES-335 is a bit of a unicorn. This is the fourth or fifth one that I’ve owned (out of hundreds of 335’s). You’d like this one even if the top was as plain as the girl next door. It’s a great player that’s up there with the best of them. All original except for the frets. Only issue is that some of the finish was removed from the back of the neck, presumably to make it smoother (like the Fender guys do all the time). $81,000

You don’t see these very often. This is the Gibson built thin line Emperor. The fat body version is pretty common but this model was made in extremely small numbers (probably because it was wildly expensive). It’s full hollow-no center block. It’s a 1960 and it’s near mint. This is out of a large Epiphone collection from Canada that I recently acquired. Call for price.

Good news and bad news. Factory black Firebird V…most definitely good news. Headstock repair is the bad. Still, a good repair (and old). The finish is heavily checked and lots of scrapes and dings but a cool player and a rare bird. All original. $29,000

Custom color Firebirds are rare. There were lots of colors offered but they seem to never come up for sale. And when they do, it’s usually a III. here’s a Cardinal Red Firebird V in stunning condition. There are no issues except for one really odd one. In very small numbers, the number 5 and the number 10 are etched into the side of the neck, presumably to tell the player where the 5th and 10th frets are. It’s barely visible but it’s there. You can see photos on Gbase or Reverb that show this. Very cool rare guitar. $84,000

1959 Epiphone Coronet in red. Mint. Stunning. I’ve never seen another slab body Coronet in this color. Most of them were black. I’ve also never seen another in this condition-red or any other color. These are spectacular players with unusual and distinctive tone from the single coil “New York” pickup. $29,000

1959 ES-335 in the very desirable and very rare blonde finish. They only made 71 in blonde and a lot of them were Bigsby versions. There are perhaps 30 stop tails in existence from 59. They don’t come up for sale often since it is considered one of top collectible guitars. This one has been well cared for but it has been played and has been re-fretted. It is all original except for the frets and the tuner tips. Big neck profile and sealed PAFs. $135,000

This is a 1960 Epiphone Sheraton made by Gibson shortly after they acquired Epiphone. It still has many Epiphone parts and is one of the rarest Epi’s there is. I think they made three in this configuration. It is, essentially, a 335 with single coils. The neck is wonderful-with a fat vee profile. I think it’s the best neck made by anybody…ever. Beautiful to look at and a joy to play. $65,000.

There are conversions and there are CONVERSIONS. Sure, you can take a Jr. and put a fancy maple top on it and repro parts and call it a 59 conversion. Or you can take a 56 goldtop and rout it for humbuckers and add all correct parts and you have a CONVERSION. This has a super rare one piece original birdseye top. Never broken or repaired. All parts are from 56 or 59 except for the pickup rings. Zebra PAFs. Original 56 guard cut for humbuckers. This is about as close to a real burst as you can get without spending another $200,000. It is expensive but reasonable for what it is. $125,000

These early Gibson made Sheratons are not just a rebranded ES guitar. The neck is totally different than a Gibson. It is a deep V profile and I think it’s the best neck ever made by anybody. Single coil NY pickups are distinctive and musical (although not terribly high output-turn up your amp). A 59 335 is pushing $90,000. The knobs shown are excellent repro “carousels”. It came with 59 ES-345 knobs but I like these better. This is less than a third of that at $23,000

“Lucy, I’m home…” If I had my way, this one would be living at my house forever. It has everything I look for in a Les Paul. This started as a 52 and was converted to a Lucy by Jim Weyandt (Jam City Guitars). It’s one thing to find flame under the gold top and quite another to find a center seam top. This is off center by less than the width of the string separation. Even with the red finished top, the flames come roaring through. Those are 59 double white PAFs. Most of the parts are from 52-all the plastic except for the pickup surrounds. The harness is modern with vintage bumblebees. The tailpiece is a Montreux and the bridge is a Callaham. If you want a real 59 tailpiece and bridge, I can swap them in at cost. Everything else is correct vintage 50’s. The case is a 5 latch Stone. Call for the price.

**HOLD**Red dot necks aren’t rare unless you don’t want a 61. There are fewer than 100 red dots that aren’t 61’s. Your best non 61 bet is a 62. Most folks don’t even realize that there are 62 dot necks. Medium neck profile, PAFs and a wonderful player. Frets are new. It left the factory as a stop tail and the Bigsby and pearl dots over the stud bushings were added later. $38,500

This is one of my personal players. I played a Mosrite through the 70’s when I was still a gigging musician. It wasn’t this one, however. This is one of the first Ventures Model Mosrites made showing serial number 0130. It has all the early features-side jack, set neck, bound body. Vibramute tailpiece. Condition is played but very good. It has scrapes and scratches especially on the back but nothing massive. Very cool guitar with the lowest action I’ve seen on any guitar, ever. The bridge shown is a repro. The original is in the case and totally usable. It has a minor buzz that I fixed but it plays better with the repro. $12,500

The Duo Jet came out in 1953-Gretsch’s answer to the new Gibson Les Paul. They are rather similar-the DeArmond single coils are great pickups and will do everything a P90 will do only with somewhat better manners. The Melitta bridge was innovative for its time and is an improvement over the hard to intonate wrap tail that Gibson was using until 1956. Cadillac Green isn’t everybody’s favorite but on a Gretsch, it seems like it belongs. They are rare. $13,500

If you’re a rocker, you know that the P90 is a rocker’s pickup. A 59 Les Paul Special can speak very loudly and aggressively. Big fat neck and lots of bite to overcome that heavy handed drummer. This one is original except for the frets and nut. Original tuners in the case and exact match repros installed. The missing dot marker at the 15th fret has been replaced. Case is modern. $13,500