ES-335 help

[jayareg]

Hi have just acquired a 1960’s all original ES-335 in Cherry from a reputable dealer here in the UK. The guitar looks and plays amazingly. My one question however is when looking up the serial number #30040x  it clearly shows it as being manufactured in 1965. The serial number matches on both the headstock and sticker. However when looking at the pots they appear to date to 67. Everything seems to be original, so was it common for Gibson to dated headstocks laying around for two years or is that the serial numbering just was less accurate during this time?  Many thanks for your help and input. 

[JO'C]

Hello jayareg,

Unlikely to be the case. More likely the opposite. They bought the pots in high volume so it is likely the pots would have an earlier date than the serial# year since they were already made and finished before the guitar was made. I have a 1969 ES-335TD that could her been a '66 or '69 based on the serial #. The pots were not readable with an inspection mirror so I had to pull one to get my answer. The pot dated to late 1968 confirming that it is a 1969. I also had a '66 and the headstock logo was a bit different than the '69. Some pics of the headlock front and back and the label inside the f-hole might help determination. Are you sure the pot code was properly interpreted? Also it looks like just a few #'s higher, starting with 306000 could have been from '65 or '67, as was the case with my '69. Gibson serial #'s were a mess back then.

JO'C

[Grog]

The shape of the cutaways would be different in a 1960 VS a later sixties ES335. They refer to the earlier shape a “Mickey Mouse Ears”. Not to mention nickel hardware VS chrome & a late sixties would have “Witch Hat” knobs VS reflector knobs. Here is a photo of my 1967 ES335.

 

Edited November 23 by Grog