Here is a really nice example of a vintage 1977 Gibson ES-335 TD model guitar in original "Wine Red" finish. It looks more like a darker version of the typical Gibson Cherry finish-I would call it Dark Cherry and be good with that. This particular guitar was completed on Monday, November 28th 1977 and the guitar was produced at the original Gibson factory in Kalamazoo Michigan, U.S.A. The guitar appears to be 100% original condition including the beautiful and vibrant finish. This guitar was obviously very well-taken care of its whole life and came from the original owner's family. It is free of any cracks, repairs or funny business. It is set up and ready to go-it needs nothing.
The body is the familiar semi-hollow body with center block design, contoured top and back, with a double-bound edge. The translucent finish is clean and unfaded, and the maple top has a beautiful grain. The light-cream binding is solid everywhere with no issues. It is very striking and a nice contrast with the deep red hue. The backside is slightly darker and just as clean as the front-see photos. Look long, it's a beauty. The neck joint is solid and an excellent fitment. The neck angle is also excellent.
The neck itself is a 3-piece maple design and it is super straight with zero deflection. The backside is super smooth and very clean-see photos. The neck width measures 1.58" wide at the nut. The neck depth measures .774" deep at the 1st fret and .981" at the 12th fret. It is a classic vintage 1970's Gibson Slim/Medium profile. It feels very comfortable and lends itself to easy chord play down low with more girth for aggressive solos up higher. The original tuners are very nice and operate smoothly. The guitar stays in tune perfectly. The headstock and logo both display very nice along with the Gibson "Crown" inlay in the center. The rosewood fingerboard is very clean with only a couple of very small wear marks at the 1st fret and another small one at the 2nd fret-see photos. The block position markers are clean and classy. The frets are very good condition with a good height, wide profile and clean surface. They have been professionally leveled, crowned and polished. Some of the original fret nibs are still present on the upper frets-the rest have been worn down to the fingerboard edge. You can see that the frets do not protrude over the binding-indicating that they are indeed original. The action has been set low for an easy and fast playing experience. This guitar really plays nice with a very soft touch. The string height is currently set at .010" at the 1st fret and .055" at the 12th fret. It plays effortlessly all over the fingerboard with zero dead spots and zero fret buzz.
The pickups are the original "Tarbacks" aka "superhumbuckers" designed by Bill Lawrence. The pickups both have an excellent signal-the neck position measures 5.25 ohms and the bridge position is 7.90 ohms. All Tarbacks share this neighborhood and the disparity between rhythm and lead resistances. The reason for this is simple: The pickup design is very efficient and the neck position's bass response amplifies more, therefore it requires less output (response). These are some of my favorite pickups ever to leave the Gibson factory. They have more brilliance and low end than anything else Gibson ever offered-but the best part is the characteristic 'shimmer' that cuts through. They simply sound incredible at volume...You can't get enough of it. The entire harness is clean and functions perfectly. The potentiometers all match and date to 1977. It looks like the 43rd week, which would make perfect sense with the production date being a couple of weeks later. The switch on the lower bout is factory original and it is a 'split-switch' aka coil tap. When activated, it splits whichever pickup is selected and disables one coil of the humbucker-so you have a single coil. The net result is a thinner sound with less low-end. When the switch is in the position that it appears in these photos, the humbuckers operate normally. The pickguard is clean and nice and flat with no breaks or cracks. The bridge is nice and fully functional.
The guitar is actually lightweight, it only weighs 7.88lbs which is slightly less than your average Fender Stratocaster (8lbs. if you're curious). The guitar sits comfortably in your lap and feels nice on a strap. Of course it sounds fantastic even when it's not plugged in, and it is right at home on the couch. It sounds killer in the studio and really shines with any quality time amp cranked up.
The original Gibson form-fit hardcase is in good condition-the handle itself is broken on one end, but all of the latches function and the magenta interior is clean and looks really cool.
