Gibson ES-335TD Sunburst 9860 (1961)

A fabulous sounding and looking one-owner dot neck 335 that'll give any Les Paul some serious competition

1961 Gibson ES-335TD in original Sunburst finish just in!

This '61 dot neck walked in our front door recently from the grandson of the original owner, and we instantly fell in love. A played-in example with great character, it struck the perfect balance of what makes these old vintage electrics so special.

Judging by the four-digit serial number, this is an early year build that was a part of Gibson's transition from the late 50s spec to the fast-playing 60s models. The Slim Taper C neck is just that - lean and smooth playing that still has some roundness to its shape without feeling too much like the blade thin carves often found on SGs from this era. The body retains a vibrant Sunburst finish with some buckle rash on the back and various nicks, dings, and scratches throughout. There's some nice figure sprinkled throughout the top too, where bits of flame pop in the right light. Overall, it's a fairly clean guitar with just enough wear to show you it's been lovingly played for over half a century. There's a small sliver of Mahogany that had come off the back edge of the headstock, but it has not impacted structural integrity at all.

The guitar features an original and undisturbed set of PAF humbuckers that - you guessed it - sound ridiculous in this guitar. Like many 335s from this period, they have a distinct clarity about them that sits in a mix with ease, clean or gained up. With the exception of the toggle switch, the electronics are original to the guitar.

As sometimes seen with 1960-1961 ES models with PAFs, the neck pickup is missing its sticker. It's undoubtedly original to the guitar and the cover has never been off, but worth mentioning for those curious enough to explore under the hood.

We just refretted the guitar in-house, and the setup is superb! The guitar rings out like crazy, too! The original single line Kluson tuners were pulled off in favor of an aged set of Kluson reissue tuners, and will be included with the sale. One of the buttons started to degrade, and instead of sourcing a lone replacement, we felt it better to just keep the original set intact.

Includes a modern TKL hardshell case.