Mahogany ES 175

[jmendoza]

Was reading a little about the 1983-1990 Mahogany ES175 models, as I have one made 1n 1989, its tobacco sunburst. Mine appears to have a very dark fingerboard, it could possibly be ebony, as there is no red or brown hues in it. The frets are wider and a bit flat on the top, especially from the 10th fret up, almost like they filed them flat without re-crowning them to get the action right. I have had a small issue with the neck edge binding cracking on the fret ends, presumably due to the fingerboard shrinking, it probably was not made from fully aged and dried wood. New, this guitar was priced at $1525.00, but I purchased it on a discount for $1325.00 with the case.

 

I originally used Gibson flat wires but changed to Thomastiks Swing series .012s years ago as they are easier to play, have great tone, and last a very long time. Have been playing pretty much exclusively on a 1954 Gibson L-50 for the past 10 years, but recently awoke the 175 after a long hibnernation only to find it's tone had gotten much richer and warmer. That meant it needed more attention so on went a new set of T.I.s and it now plays like butter.

 

After doing all the BillM mods to my Blues Jr. amp and putting new JJ Tesla tubes in it, the ES-175 becomes a tone king with a huge range from fat bass to clear highs availablle from either pick-up at any of the pickup selector switch positions. About the only thing it does not do is heavy meteal, but a change to T.I. Bee Bops would take care of that, and besides, my Sheraton and Strat are more suited to rock styles. 26 years of aging has definitely improved this 175, it has much better warmth and overtones, plus a noticable increase in acoustic volume, although ES-175s are notoriously "dead" due to their plywood construction and massive hardware (pickups) damping the top.

 

The shorter scale makes for less tension and faster playing when compared to my '96 Epi Regent, and the Gibson has better balance so it's more comfortable when playing with a strap (standing up). Plus, it has the old school fret nibs on the edge binding which gives a special slick feel to the neck that all newer guitars lack.

[milod]

Personally I think the 175 - and a few higher-end clones too - is pretty much the ideal guitar, although some folks go half ballistic when they find I use 9-42 strings... Then again, I'm a fingerpicker and almost never use a plectrum.

 

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[jdgm]

I'd love to see a pic.

I bought an ES175 in 2013 - black, P94 pups, Bigsby.....

[gnappi]

Was reading a little about the 1983-1990 Mahogany ES175 models, as I have one made 1n 1989, its tobacco sunburst. Mine appears to have a very dark fingerboard, it could possibly be ebony, as there is no red or brown hues in it.

 

Unless it was a custom, or an ES-775 which had ebony I know of none with ebony.

 

I've seen some pretty dark rosewood, and some ebony with red / brown in it too. Also a lot of people are dying rosewood with Feibings black leather dye so it may be difficult to tell but I'll bet it's rosewood.

[jmendoza]

Gary,

Thanks for the insight, it is not jet black, but very dark, so it's rosewood.

 

Mine is made with hide glue and nitro-cellulose lacquer, but I understand the newer Gibsons are made with Tite-Bond glue (rubbery) and some of the Gibsons now come with Polyurethane finishes. I don't feel this is too terribly inportant however because the 175, with it's really thick 5 ply maple top, is designed to be less resonant in the first place, mainly to resist feedback under amplification.

 

I did not play my 175 for many years, as I have a nice L-50, and lacked a really good sounding amp for jazz. Now that it is over 26 years old, it has aged and it's acoustic tone has noticably improved, which was a nice surprize, it's a whole new guitar in that respect.

 

My only complaint is some small hairline cracks in the neck edge binding at the point it covers the fret ends, due to the fingerboard shrinking slightly, but you can't feel them.