1962 Gibson ES-335 Sunburst

62 is the sleeper year for ES-335's. The dot necks and the 64's get all the glory but a 62 gets you something most 64's don't have. That would be PAFs, of course. Granted an early patent is the same pickup but for the sticker but when it's time to sell, a PAF guitar will move a lot quicker and for a higher price than one with patents. It's worth noting that the sunburst 62 is the rarest sunburst 335 from the 58 to 65 and later. Players had taken to red ones in a big way and the total for sunbursts in 62 was a dismal 266 units (there were over 600 reds in 62). Why a 62 over, say, a dot neck 61? 61's have neck issues due the ultra slim "blade neck". That neck has a lot of stability issues and fortunately Gibson beefed up the 62's to eliminate the truss rod crack, the back bows and the twists that plague so many 61's. While this one is still slim but at .81" at the first and .89" at the 12th, it's a fair bit larger than most 61's. Both PAFs are factory sealed. All parts are original or vintage correct. No wire ABR-1, short seam lightweight stop, long studs, single line double ring Klusons and all original plastic parts. This guitar had Grovers at some point but they were installed properly (the nuts on the front of the headstock were properly hand tightened, not torqued down with a wrench) and left only the faintest "owl eyes" on the front of the headstock and no extra holes. That's the only issue in an otherwise 9/10 guitar. It sounds great-musical and balanced. It is not as aggressive as some and sweeter sounding than most. More of a blues instrument than a hard rocker but crank it up and it will rock with the best of them. It weighs 8.5 pounds. Case is a very clean Gibson badged black with orange lining. It is labeled "Arthurs Music Store" in Indianapolis. Still there in the same location 60 years later.