gnappi 43 Report post Posted March 16, 2019 Did Gibson ever make one (A 335-12) in the Norlin years WITH a volute? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Grog 56 Report post Posted March 17, 2019 I've never seen one. According to Gruhn's Guide to Vintage Guitars, they were introduced in '65 & discontinued in '71. That makes a volute in the latter guitars a possibility. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
j45nick 460 Report post Posted March 26, 2019 Never seen one with a volute. The one I had (1968) until two years ago had the typical late-60's skinny neck, with 1 9/16" nut. Neck profile in that period was very similar to Gibson acoustics of the time: narrow, and thin. 1967 was the peak production year for the 335-12 with 1048 built. Production dropped to 340 in 1968, 61 in 1969, and only 46 in 1970, the last year of production. It would be a surprise if the neck configuration was re-tooled with production dropping so rapidly. The 335-12 neck is a totally different animal compared to that of the 335 in the same period, due to the massively long headstock. Gibson did a run of 335-12's just a couple of years ago, with a 1 11/16" or 1 3/4" nut width (can't remember which). If you could find one of these, it would be a more playable instrument than most of the vintage models, if you are looking for an ES 335-12. Who knows how many 335-12s snapped headstocks, the primary reason for adding the volute? The extra string tension of a 12 makes that a real risk, even if you are careful. The one I had showed virtually no evidence of having been played, which is probably fairly common, although I looked at some pretty beat-up instruments when I was shopping. The miracle is that it was in such good condition despite never having a proper case before I got it. These don't fit in a normal Gibson 335 case. I ended up getting an Epiphone 335 case, which fit like a glove thanks to the six-string Epi's longer headstock compared to the Gibson version. A Gibson EB-2 case for the bass guitar version of the ES 335 will fit the 335-12 as well. That sums up about all I know about the 335-12. It's a cool-looking guitar, but I figured out I'm not Roger McGuinn, so it wasn't a keeper.(Yes, I know McGuinn plays a Ric, but his Martin HD-7 is also a cool guitar.) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Grog 56 Report post Posted March 27, 2019 I bought this 1968 over 20 years ago. I'm not a big 12 string guy, it doesn't get played much but it was too good to pass up. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
