bobv Posted May 15, 2008 Share Posted May 15, 2008 Has anyone had a chance to measure the neck thickness at the first and twelfth frets on an ES-335 with a 30/60 neck profile? In the store it felt thin at the nut and got fatter near the body. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobv Posted May 17, 2008 Author Share Posted May 17, 2008 Does the ES-339 come with a certificate of authenticity (or is that just in the "figured" model)? And are these models PLEKked? The Gibson video clips on the making of a 335 say the frets on those models are leveled on the PLEK (before finishing) so I wonder if every guitar in the Memphis "Custom" Shop gets that treatment? Is the headstock veneer holly or fiber? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted May 17, 2008 Share Posted May 17, 2008 The ES 339 Comes with a very nice, new style, certificate of authenticity... It has a black folding hard cover, very cool... The ES 339 is Pleked form what I understand but I could be wrong... The nut on my 339 isn't cut quite right and has been giving me tuning problems. I have put some graphite in the nut grooves which has been helping but I want to have a tech open up the grooves a bit. The 30/60 neck takes some getting used to but I am finding that I like the slight flate spot that is very nice to rest your thumb on... I have no idea about your headstock question... Maybe you can explain that a little.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobv Posted May 17, 2008 Author Share Posted May 17, 2008 Thank you Raininspain. We all followed the saga waiting for yours and I'm glad you're happy with it. The reissues have a wood veneer that's dyed black, made from Holly, and the description on the specs says "Holly headstock veneer." Modern production Gibsons have a black fiber headstock veneer with the logo inlayed into it. Not sure it makes any difference, I was just curious since I've seen both descriptions of the specs on the 339. As for the neck profile, have you compared it to a Sixties thin profile on a Les Paul or 335? My suspicion is that it's about the same down at the nut but the 30/60 gets fat/round towards the body. Incidentally I just heard Johnny A last night and on the line for autographed CD's I asked him about his signature model Gibson. He prefers the '57 Classics (like on the 339) compared to the Burstbuckers which he mentioned were "gritty." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted May 17, 2008 Share Posted May 17, 2008 My LP Classic has the 60´s slim profile neck and the 339´s neck is way different... The 339 neck feels chunckier. I´ll do some messuring and let you know what I find out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarJunkie Posted May 17, 2008 Share Posted May 17, 2008 My LP Classic has the 60´s slim profile neck and the 339´s neck is way different... The 339 neck feels chunckier. I´ll do some messuring and let you know what I find out... Before I got to the bottom of this thread and read this post, I was about to type what Dave said almost word for word. Too weird... :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
epinder Posted May 18, 2008 Share Posted May 18, 2008 Thank you Raininspain. I don't know if this was on purpose when you responded to "DaveinSpain" but for very early in the morning, I got a chuckle out of it. The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plains, etc, etc, etc . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted May 18, 2008 Share Posted May 18, 2008 Yeah I had a chuckle too.... I also liked Mark's version of my handle here "davesinpain" I could really relate to it as just at that time I was developing blisters on my fingers.... Of course I choose daveinspain from the begining because of the Rain in Spain thing.... has a nice ring and sticks in your head. Its also my e-mail address @hotmail.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted May 18, 2008 Share Posted May 18, 2008 Ok, this is what I found out... The LP Classic 60's slim neck is the same width at the nut as the 339 ( 1" 12/16ths) at the 3rd fret its 1/16 wider and stays 1/16th wider all the way down the fretboard. the thickness of the neck seems to be about the same but a different shape. The LP Classic has a rounded C shape while the 339 has more of a flat back C shape. This was not a very scientific study, I did all the measurements with a ridged beat up paint covered ruler... Sorry I don't have a micrometer.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarJunkie Posted May 18, 2008 Share Posted May 18, 2008 I have some calipers around here somewhere. When the kids go to bed tonight, maybe I can take some actual measurements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobv Posted May 18, 2008 Author Share Posted May 18, 2008 Thanks for sharing the info, Dave - glad you were amused. A pair of calipers is what you'd need to check the neck thickness, but that's about the only use those things have and all the strings have to be off. I thought the contraption would be useful for woodworking (measuring veneers or binding thickness) but it turns out that for real thin pieces you have to make test cuts and measure with your fingertips by feel anyway. If you want to get into anal retentive measurements for guitar setups a better investment would be a machinist's ruler that's marked in 64ths and a set of feeler gauges. Having said that, given that this is the internet, there are plenty of geeks like me out there who are amused by measuring things to the thousandth of an inch. I have some notes frome someone on the old Gibson forums posted a quote of specs from an even older Gibson Web page (so neither one of those sources can be verified at this point): Model/Thickness at First fret/at 12th '59 Rounded .808" .963 Classic .800" .875 (60's slim taper) Melody Maker .820" - .900 (60's slim taper) As of April 2006 when they posted this information, the Les Paul Studio, Supreme, and Standard with '59 or '50s rounded profiles all had the same dimensions (contrary to what I've read about R8 and R9s having different necks). However "60's slim taper" has some variation so my suspicion is that the "thirty over sixty" is not far off from some "slim taper" models. I did notice the 30/60 neck had a flat area towards the nut as you describe it and got rounded as you go up the neck. I'm curious if they added the extra .030" all the way up and down, or whether they made it a more dramatic taper so it's thicker at the heel. Incidentally my Epiphone Dot measures a hefty .900" and 1.000", and on the other end of the spectrum my *&%!-ocasters (sorry, but you do need a reference point) measure .785 - .855" (1997) to .830-.880" (2007). Skinniest thing I've ever seen is my mid sixties Hagstrom which measures .740" and has almost no taper to it - it's only .780" at the 12th fret which isn't really noticeably thicker than at the nut. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted May 18, 2008 Share Posted May 18, 2008 Interseting.... My 71 SG Standard has the skinniest neck ever. 1" 1/2 at the nut, 1"3/4 at the 3rd fret and 2" at the 12th fret. The neck has a round C shape as well but also feels thinner.... Its very easy to play although a little cramped in the open chord area... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobv Posted May 21, 2008 Author Share Posted May 21, 2008 I may be able to give you my own measurements of a 339 neck soon, but then I'll have to change my avatar ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobv Posted May 26, 2008 Author Share Posted May 26, 2008 First I changed the avatar. Next string change I'll get out the calipers and answer my own question. Very comfortable neck indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarJunkie Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 Tease!!! You need to get out the camera before you get out the calipers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Bb Posted May 27, 2008 Share Posted May 27, 2008 I received a 339 a few days ago and was told it was the fat neck but from what I've read elsewhere I think I may actually have the 30/60 neck, as everyone refers to that as having a flat spot, whereas the 50's neck is supposed to be round. Either way, I really like the one I've got but would like to know the neck thickness measurements nevertheless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobv Posted May 27, 2008 Author Share Posted May 27, 2008 OK honestly the photobucket stuff is uploading right now. My 30/60 neck measures .845" at 1st fret and .907" at 12th. Put a dial caliper behind the first fret (if it's nearer to the nut it'll actually measure thicker, the thinnest spot is right behind the first fret) and the 12th fret, without the strings on. It's not as round as the neck on a '69 Les Paul Custom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Bb Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Thanks for that. I'll take some measurements of my 339 when I change the strings in the next couple of days and report back... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Bb Posted May 30, 2008 Share Posted May 30, 2008 ...just as I suspected, despite ordering a fat neck, it looks like mine's got the 30/60 neck profile. Measurements for my guitar are 0.810" at the 1st fret and 0.920 at the 12th. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldun Posted November 8, 2008 Share Posted November 8, 2008 I'm in the uk and have been trying to locate a 339 30/60 for a while.I dont know where youre based Captain,but it seems that here in the uk all the 30/60s have been sold and there are dealers left with Fat necks,seems lot of people prefer the 30/60 me included.Can anyone measure their 339's width measurement on their respected 30/60 and fat neck models for a comparison i.e what the width is at the first and twelve frets it would be interesting to know Cheers Oldun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobv Posted November 8, 2008 Author Share Posted November 8, 2008 Don't lose hope yet Skipper. I was trying out the new '08 Les Paul standards (notice I didn't capitalize standard, no more comment than that) and I saw they had an ES339 on the wall - rare for suburban Guitar Centers. Anyway it was labeled as a "50's neck" and did not feel much different than mine - maybe even flatter and did not feel round at all. SO either they're mixing up the labels at the retailer OR there's not much difference between the two by the time you factor in the hand-rolling variations. I played a Nashville Custom Shop ES-335 that had been ordered with the 30/60 spec and that neck is fatter than mine. Again, Gibson doesn't put the neck option on the model number on the f-hole sticker, and it's not written anywhere on the outside of the box, either. I'd give a call to customer service and see if they can track the serial number for you. Mine I'm not worried about, it's wonderful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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