1961 Gibson ES-335 Red

If you want a red dot neck 335, the choices are simple. Unless you are incredibly patient and you have a lot of money to spend, you have to get a 61. They aren't exactly common (only 420 made) but next to 58 through 60, there are loads of them. Huh? Really? There is one 58. There are 6 or 7 59's. There are 21 from 60. Let's see thats 28 or 29 of them. Rarer than a 58 Explorer. Rarer than a 59 blonde. rarer than a burst from any year. There are 62 dot necks as well but they are rare too as they were only made for a few weeks in early 62.

So, you're ok with a 61? Good, let's move on. A lot of 61's have what is known as the "blade" neck. It's plenty wide but it is very shallow and flat. The depth at the first fret is .76" to .78" and the 12th fret depth is usually around .87". That's a slim neck. The blade necks are prone to instability issues and will often develop a hairline crack down the middle of the back of the neck. Folks will tell you it's a check. Or a scratch. Or a "grain separation" whatever that is. It's none of those things. It's a crack from overtightening the truss rod. OK, Let's get down to this guitar. It's a 61. It's not a blade neck (.81" at the first fret and .89" at the 12th). It has no crack. It is in beautiful condition with no fade to the finish and only light wear to the neck. This is .81" at the first and .88" at the 12th-still slim but much less prone to the issues of the blade neck. PAFs are both unopened and have intact stickers. This is a no issue, all original, collector grade 61. It has the "2" designation on the headstock meaning there's a finish flaw somewhere (good luck finding it). Never had a Bigsby, never had Grovers, never been modded in any way. Comes with some case candy (case key, ABR-1 instructions, dealer tag and warranty card. Wonderful, unusually resonant player. Guitar has been re-fretted with a new nut.