Gibson ES-175D, Natural (1956)

The Gibson ES-175 has long been a jazz and blues titan in the guitar world ever since its introduction in 1948. With its laminate maple construction, it offered players a more stage-friendly archtop electric with increased playability and comfort.

This player-friendly example has maintained all of its critical original components like the great sounding dogear P90 pickups, tuners, bridge, and tailpiece. It has been refretted with a slightly larger fretwire than what was originally used by Gibson, but still retains the vintage feel. The most notable repair can be seen on the treble side surrounding the input jack. In what is presumed to be a fairly substantial input jack "tear-out" likely from a drop directly on the cable or some other type of blunt force, there's some significant body repair in the area by way of some patched in laminate along with a large metal jack plate to reinforce the structural damage once suffered. Not the most aesthetically pleasing repair work, but the work itself is solid.

The original Kluson 'single line' tuners are stable and work great, with little to no button shrinkage or degradation. Volume and tone controls feature the original amber knobs, and the rosewood adjustable bridge and nickel-plated tailpiece remain unchanged. The original Natural finish has faded slightly to a rich, deep blonde, with light to moderate finish and play wear throughout. The original wiring harness was replaced and features recent volume and tone pots. The neck was also shaved down at some point from what would've been a fairly full C carve to a 62/63 carve, measuring approximately .82" at the first fret and tapering to about .88" at the tenth fret.

When it comes to tone, 50s ES-175s are often unequaled in their class. The original P90 single coil pickups represent quintessential 50s "dogear" tone - beautiful chime and sparkle on the top end with a well-defined bass response and clear midrange.

If you can live some with bruises, this is a fantastic guitar in a rare finish that delivers on playability and tone.