Gibson ES3xx Guitars

For whatever reason, ever since I have been remotely interested in guitars, I've always been partial to the semi-hollow Gibsons. To this day my favorite guitar of all time is the Gibson ES355. I didn't always know that much about the entire 3xx line of guitars but over the years I've managed to research them all quite a bit.

I did some work on Google and found a couple of basic articles regarding ES3xx guitars that I feel are pretty good introductions to them. There's obviously a lot more information to be found on all of them, but this may be a good starting point to learn a little of the history.

The first "article" discusses the history of the ES335. The 335 has easily been the most popular of the Gibson semi-hollows over the years so I thought it would be a good starting point to read about. The second "article" just shows a few examples of other Gibson semi-hollows and some information about them. There are A LOT more Gibson semi-hollow models out there than are discussed, but this gives you quite a few interesting models to start the investigating process. My favorite uncommon guitar discussed the in second article is the Trini Lopez...a really cool and rare guitar.

I didn't edit any of the articles. I literally just copied and pasted them into our blog. I aplogize for any grammatical errors in advance. I just felt there was some good basic information to be had in these reads.

Onto the pieces:

Vintage Gibson Guitars: Gibson ES335 (pasted from vintage-guitars.blogspot.com)

Gibson Es-335
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Gibson Es-335 Guitar ( 1958 to present )
Thinline Semi-hollow Electric Archtop Guitar Also Known As The Es-335 TD.


1959 gibson es-335 guitarIn 1958 gibson introduced a guitar with a wood block that was glued to the top and back of the body which ran through the guitars' center leaving the sides empty , the guitar was called the gibson es-335 , the first semi-hollow body guitar.

The wood block not only made the es-335 guitar more solid but it also enhanced its woodiness warm sound and sustain.

Its ingenious body design structure plays a major role in gibson' history and paved the way for many gibson legendary guitars to come.

Cherished by many artists such as bb-king , eric clapton, chuck berry , joe perry, keith richards , george harrison, ritchie blackmore ... just to name a few.

The es-335 is coined by many as the best all around guitar in the world because of its versatility.

In 1958 when gibson first launched the es-335 at a list price of approximately $270 the guitar became an instant success and continued its historical journey until this very day.

The first year in production the es-335 had a brazilian rosewood fingerboard with dot inlays , 2 humbuckers , bigsby vibrato or stop tailpiece , bound top and back , neck joins the body at the 19th fret , 4 knobs ( 2-vol 2-tone ) , tune o matic bridge , pickguard extends below the bridge , large fat neck , and were made in sunburst or natural finishes. ( this model is highly desirable and sought after by collectors)

1959 : Cherry finishes were added
1960 : The es-335 had shorter pickguards and thinner necks
1961 : Natural finishes were discontinued
1962 : Dot inlays on the fingerboard were replaced with block inlays
1965 : Trapeze tailpiece replaced the stop tailpiece 12 string version also introduced
1966 : indian rosewood fingerboard instead of brazilian
1969 : walnut finishes were available

gibson es-335-12Note : In 1965 a 12 string version of the es-335 was also introduced and was called the gibson es-335-12 , ( see pic ) were made in cherry or natural finishes , various colors in 1968 and were discontinued in 1971.

In 1981 the gibson es-335 was discontinued and replaced with the gibson es-335 dot which was a reissue of the original 1960 es-335 with dot inlays.

The gibson es-335 dot was discontinued in 1990 and replaced with the gibson es-335 reissue in 1991 which are still in production today.

From 1981 to present gibson also introduced more variations of the gibson es-335 such as the :

Gibson es-335 artist :( 1981 )
had a large headstock logo , metal truss rod plate , gold hardware with 3 knobs .

Gibson es-335 Dot CMT :( 1983 - 1985 )
like the es-335 dot but with curly maple top and back , gold hardware , and were made in various colors .

Gibson es-335 Studio :( 1986 - 1991 )
No f-holes , 2 dirty finger humbuckers , cherry or ebony finishes .

Gibson es-335 Showcase Edition : ( 1988 )
black hardware , emg pickups ,white or beige finishes and were made in limited quantities - 200 made .

Gibson es-335 Centennial : ( 1994 )
Gold medallion on the headstock , were made in cherry colors , diamond inlays in tailpiece . ( not more than a 100 were made )

Gibson es-335 '59 Historic Collection : ( 1998 )
basically a replica of the original 1959 model with dot inlays .

Gibson es-335 '63 Historic Collection : ( 2000 )
based on the original 1962 model with block inlays .

Gibson also made es-335 custom shop guitars during the 80s and 90s with a custom shop logo on the back of the headstock .

Vintage Price Value For 2008 :
1958 > $60 000 to $75 000 ( Natural )
1958 > $50 000 to $60 000 ( Natural-Bigsby )
1958 > $34 000 to $41 000 ( Sunburst )
1958 > $32 000 to $39 000 ( Sunburst-Bigsby )
1959 > $75 000 to $100 000 ( Natural )
1959 > $50 000 to $65 000 ( Natural- bigsby )
1959 > $40 000 to $55 000 ( Sunburst )
1959 > $35 000 to $40 000 ( Sunburst-bigsby )
1960 > $25 000 to $35 000 ( Cherry )
1960 > $35 000 to $50 000 ( Natural )
1960 > $25000 to $35 000 ( Sunburst )
1961 - 1962 > $26 000 to $32 000 ( PAFs )
1961 - 1962 > $25 000 to $32 000 ( Pat # )
1963 - 1964 > $19 000 to $27 000 ( prices vary according to specs & color )
1965 - 1969 > $4 500 to $9 000 ( prices vary according to specs & color )
1970 - 1976 > $3 500 to $4 600
1977 - 1981 > $2 000 to $3 200

1965 - 1971 > $2 600 to $3 000 ( es-335-12 string )
1981 - 1990 > $2 300 to $ 2 950 ( es-335 Dot )
1981 - 1982 > $2 300 to $2 600 ( es-335 artist )
1981 - 1999 > $2 700 to $3 000 ( es-335 custom shop )
1983 - 1985 > $2 700 to $3000 ( es-335 Dot Cmt )
1986 - 1991 > $1 100 to $1 400 ( es-335 Studio )
1988 - 1989 > $2 300 to $3 500 ( es-335 showcase edition )
1994 - 1995 > $4000 to $4200 ( es-335 centennial )
1998 - 1999 > $2 200 to $2 700 ( '59 historic collection )
2000 - 2001 > $2 700 to $3 000 ( '63 historic collection )
1991 - 2000 > $1 700 to $2 300 ( es-335 reissue )

guitar price guide1958 - 1969 > Avg Upward Trend Of 21% A Year Since 2000
1970 - 1981 > 9% ( does not include the es-335 dot reissue )

Prices are according to 4 different vintage guitar price guides and rounded off to the nearest dollar .

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Gibson Archtop Guitars (from rocknrollvintage.com)

A brief history on Gibson Electric Acoustic Archtop models

Gibson Archtops come in an amazing range of models. The ES-350 was launched in 1947, and the first "new generation" Gibson electric archtops. It featured 2 fitted pickups and was designed ground up as an archtop electric acoustic archtop guitar. The single pickup ES-175 followed the ES-350 in 1949. Many consider the ES-175 as the first mass produced electric archtop from Gibson. Gibson launched a beginner electric in 1950 with the new 3/4 scale ES-140 model. In 1953 the ES-175 was offered with a second pickup. The L5 and Super 400 were top of the line jazz guitars and in 1951 Gibson added a CES designation with permanently installed twin pickups and controls. In 1955 Gibson launched Thin Line models often using the "T" designation after the model number. The new thin line guitars included the Byrdland and the ES-350T. Thin line guitars appealed to players who wanted a thinner, less bulky guitar.

The ES-335 was introduced in 1958. While it looked like it had a thin line body it was actually a semi-hollow body guitar as it featured a solid block of wood running through the center of the body. This made the guitar much less prone to feedback when played at high volume. The ES-345 and 355 were introduced in the same time frame however they offered stereo wiring and a six way selector switch called a "Vari-tone". TD models were deluxe variations. Vari-tone was unpopular with players and and many guitars had the vari-tone wiring removed. Gibson continued to introduce variations of standard and thin line guitars and in the 60's they began to release signature models including the Barney Kessel Custom (1961), Johnny Smith (1961) and the Tal Farlow (1962). The 1961 ES-330 is a little unusual as it did not feature a solid central block in the body and the neck was set further into the body. Gibson continued to release models in the 70's, 80's, 90's and may of these guitars are still available today.



The ES-345



The ES-345 was introduced in 1959 Gibson and was available until 1982. It was a a semi-hollow thin double cut body double cut body, 2 humbuckers, 2 volume and 2 tone knobs Vari-Tone. The fingerboard was Rosewood with parallelogram inlays and gold plated parts.



The Super 400 CES


Available in 1951 and still being sold today, originally featured a spruce or maple top, dual P-90 pickups, 2 F-holes, ebony fingerboard, inlays, sunburst or natural finish. Alnico V pickups soon replaced the P-90 pickups the humbuckers were added in 1957. The 1969 Super 400 CES had a solid 2 piece back. This guitar is still in production.




The ES-225T


Sold from 1955 to 1959. Feature a thin body single cut body 1 or 2 P-90 pickups, a trapeze bridge/tailpiece and a rosewood fingerboard with dot fingerboard inlays.


The ES-140T


Sold from 1956 to 1968. This is a 3/4 scale thinline guitar with a single P90 pickup and dot inlays.


The Gibson ES355-TD


In production from 1959 to 1982, the 355 was a thin body double cut semi-hollow with maple block down center. Vari-tone rotary tone switch and stereo wiring, 2 humbucking pickups and 2 volume and 2 tone knobs. Note the Bigsby vibrato and walnut finish.


The ES-175-D


Sold 1949 to the present. Originally had one P-90 pickup, and available in sunburst or natural finish. The D designation on this model denotes it's a dual pickup model. Still available but only as a dual pickup model.


The ES-330


Sold from 1959 to 1972. This is a hollow thin body rather than a semi-hollow with a deeply set neck. Featured 2 P90 pickups, trapeze tailpiece, pearl dot fingerboard inlays. This model has rectangular inlays where were added in the 60's.


The ES-335


Sold 1958 to present. 1958 Gibson ES-335 specs include thin double cutaway body, semi-hollow body, 2 humbucking pickups, 2 volume and 2 tone knobs, tune-o-matic bridge, and rosewood fingerboard. This later model has rectangular inlays.


The Gibson ES-340


The 340 was available from 1969 to 1984. It was a semi-acoustic double round cutaway with arched maple top, tune-o-matic bridge-trapeze tailpiece. It included two humbucker pickups, ,volume, mixer and two tone controls plus three position selector switch. It was available in Natural and Walnut finishes.


The Trini Lopez


Sold from 1964 to 1971. This guitar utilized a ES-335 thinline body with diamond-shaped soundholes, 2 humbuckers, Tune-O-Matic bridge and trapeze tailpiece.


The Byrdland


Gibson Byrdland Thinline Electric Archtop was first available in 1955 and is still available today. This was a thinbody short scale version of the L-5CES. Originally featured a carved maple back, 2 Alnico V pickups,ebony fingerboard with block markers, narrow neck in a sunburst or natural finish. The Alnico pickups were replaced with humbucking pickups in 1957.


The Barney Kessel


Available from 1961 to 1974. Featured double pointed cutaways, 2 humbucking pickups, tuneomatic bridge, trapeze tailpiece, rosewood fingerboard with parallelogram inlays, nickel plated parts in a cherry sunburst finish. In 1961 inlays were also available in a bow tie pattern.