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'65 ES 335 with low crown logo? (Bernie Marsden)

fakejake

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Joined
Sep 3, 2010
Messages
1,274
I just came onto this nice video of Bernie showing his 335 again, and I noticed that it has the low crown logo, as in post '66.
You can see it in several places, e.g. around 0:08
He says it's an early '65, and the other appointments seem to match that (nickel parts, wide bevel pickguard and trc, stoptail in correct position, what looks to be a wide neck..), but of course most of these can be changed.
Could it still be a conversion? Or are there known examples of pre '66 335's with low logo?
Thanks!

 

Arch D. Bunker

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Jul 9, 2015
Messages
255
That low crown inlay would be typical of a '67 or later guitar, though with Gibson you never know.

A factory reneck (with the owner at the time requesting a wider nut, if this one has it) seems another possibility.
 

fakejake

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Sep 3, 2010
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Another observation: The orange label is glued in upside down (@ around 0:53)
 

fakejake

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Sep 3, 2010
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1,274
Excuses for bumping this, but I'm still super cusirous about this guitar and the low logo.
Any of the local 3x5 experts have an idea whats going on here?
Thanks!! :salude
 

marshall1987

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Jan 30, 2005
Messages
3,278
What the heck....I'll take a stab at it.

Bernie mentions that the neck is quite large, similar to his '59 Les Paul, "The Beast", and then he also compares it to a '58 Les Paul. Perhaps he has small hands. I don't know, but it's possible the factory may have produced a '64 or '65 ES-335 TDC with a large neck profile, as Bernie is claims it has.

But then there is the low crown inlay on the headstock. This throws a curve ball into the mix, because the low position is not normally seen until 1967 models.

But a '67 would have chrome hardware, not nickel as his guitar seems to have. And a '67 would also have the narrow 1-1/916" nut, which his guitar doesn't seem to have.

I think it's most likely a '64 or early '65 ES-335 TDC, with an unusually large neck, and an unusually low crown inlay on the headstock. And probably not a re-neck.
 

Flogger

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Sep 23, 2008
Messages
555
What the heck....I'll take a stab at it.

Bernie mentions that the neck is quite large, similar to his '59 Les Paul, "The Beast", and then he also compares it to a '58 Les Paul. Perhaps he has small hands. I don't know, but it's possible the factory may have produced a '64 or '65 ES-335 TDC with a large neck profile, as Bernie is claims it has.

But then there is the low crown inlay on the headstock. This throws a curve ball into the mix, because the low position is not normally seen until 1967 models.

But a '67 would have chrome hardware, not nickel as his guitar seems to have. And a '67 would also have the narrow 1-1/916" nut, which his guitar doesn't seem to have.

I think it's most likely a '64 or early '65 ES-335 TDC, with an unusually large neck, and an unusually low crown inlay on the headstock. And probably not a re-neck.

I have a 66 ES345 with the semi low crown ( lower than 65, not as low as 67).
 
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