Neil Buckley Posted January 23, 2012 Share Posted January 23, 2012 Hi, I'm thinking about buying a Gibson ES-335 Dot Plain Gloss and let me know if these guitar are "Custom Shop" or not. I would also like to know what kind of serie numbers they have, and so I´ll can check it before the buying. And finally, I wonder what kind of documentation is attached with the guitar. Thank you so much, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swampash Posted January 23, 2012 Share Posted January 23, 2012 I picked one up myself yesterday and a friend of mine who owns three said that all ES-335s were made in the Custom shop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Buckley Posted January 23, 2012 Author Share Posted January 23, 2012 Thank for your Kick Response swampash. Someone can tell me about the serial number that must carry and accompanying information should wear? Thanks, thanks, thanks,...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swampash Posted January 23, 2012 Share Posted January 23, 2012 You should recieve a certificate from the Custom shop outlining the Guitar's authenticity in a small hardback folder. You'll also get details on the Guitar's warranty. If you get details on the Guitar's serial number in advance of purchase, you can check it here: http://www.guitardaterproject.org/gibson.aspx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delleo Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 Hi, I'm thinking about buying a Gibson ES-335 Dot Plain Gloss and let me know if these guitar are "Custom Shop" or not. I would also like to know what kind of serie numbers they have, and so I´ll can check it before the buying. And finally, I wonder what kind of documentation is attached with the guitar. Thank you so much, Every guitar coming out of the Memphis factory is "Custom" made according to their official designation. I understand that this factory is being called a Custom Shop by many. Nashville may still make occasional runs of 335's in their Custom Shop, so you'll have to check the orange label inside the guitar to see if it reads "Memphis" or "Nashville". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Buckley Posted January 25, 2012 Author Share Posted January 25, 2012 Thank you very much for your help delleo, when I get home I look that. Anyway, I have watched my serial number and tells me: "Your guitar was made at the Nashville Plant, TN, USA Gibson’s Nashville plant was opened in Tennessee 1974. All electric models and some acoustic models currently made at this factory. This facility has an average production rate of 220 guitars a day. Each guitar is built by hand and takes about 4 to 6 weeks to complete. Note: Most hollow and semi-hallow body guitars are made at a separate plant in Memphis Tennessee. This facility has an average production rate of 40 guitars a day" Tomorrow I'll tell you what it says on the orange label ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rejuvenated Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Are the Memphis builds also hand built? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delleo Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Are the Memphis builds also hand built? I toured the Memphis factory a couple of years ago. Most of the process is by hand, with the help of wood presses and various light machines. Was very impressed with the whole operation. I have not toured the Nashville plant and can not comment on what happens there, but I assume it is similar. As others have said in this forum, good guitars come from either place, as do an occasional "not-so-great" instrument. It's always optimal to check out a guitar personally to make a judgment. I have not personally noted much difference in Nashville vs Memphis guitars. Photo is a 2010 Memphis made Fat Neck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j45nick Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 I toured the Memphis factory a couple of years ago. Most of the process is by hand, with the help of wood presses and various light machines. Was very impressed with the whole operation. I have not toured the Nashville plant and can not comment on what happens there, but I assume it is similar. As others have said in this forum, good guitars come from either place, as do an occasional "not-so-great" instrument. It's always optimal to check out a guitar personally to make a judgment. I have not personally noted much difference in Nashville vs Memphis guitars. Photo is a 2010 Memphis made Fat Neck. The only ES 335 models recently produced by the Nashville shop are the '59 dot neck and '63 block neck "Historic" models. The labels are identical on the Memphis and Nashville models, except that one says "Nashville" at the bottom of the label, and the other says "Memphis". However, the numbering system for the Historics is entirely different from the standard Gibson serial number system used on the Memphis-built ES 335's. Checking a guitar out first-hand is the best way to know if it's the right one for you. The photo below is of my Nashville-built '59 Historic ES 335, made in 2009. The "Historic" series is dramatically more expensive than even the higher-end Memphis-built models such as their own '59 Dot Re-Issue, and only you can decide if it's worth the extra money. It was for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunburst PB Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 j45nick, That's a beautiful '59 ES-335 Reissue!. I agree that the Historics coming out of Nashville are very well crafted. In addition to the Historics, custom ordered guitars, including semi-hollow body and hollow body guitars, are also produced in Nashville. The Memphis Shop builds pretty much all of the semi-hollow body and hollow body guitars with very few solid body guitars the exception being White Les Paul Customs. Les Paul Customs in all other finishes are built by the Nashville Custom Shop. Both Shops use a Plek for the necks on all guitars. The Nashville Shop is setup to accommodate custom orders and very small runs with tighter controls in all phases of manufacturing. While the Memphis Custom Shop builds some incredibly good guitars, there are a few subtle differences between the Memphis Custom Shop and the Nashville Custom Shop. First off the Nashville Custom Shop microchips all instruments made there. This is done to closely track each instrument during the manufacturing process and for Gibson's ability to identify fakes and those unscrupulous collectors that will try to pass off a VOS reissue for a real vintage instrument. Second, the craftsmen working in the Nashville Custom Shop seem to have much more experience particularly in the finishing department. Secondly, the scrappers who clean the binding seem to do a better job of scrapping without leaving any finish on the binding, maintaining incredibly sharp lines. The folks who apply the finish to the body have been doing it for a long time and in my opinion do a much better job. The finish is applied smoother and more consistently on each instrument. In particular, the VOS finish was perfected in Nashville shop I believe. Third, the experience of the woodworking craftsmen also clearly shows in the fit more so in the Nashville built instruments. The sanders are most experienced in Nashville and consequently they are the ones working on sanding the thin veneers of the Les Pauls which can easily be ruined by too heavy a hand. That being said, since all detail work in both shops is done by hand by Humans and not machines, nobody is perfect and people do make mistakes. Each shop will turn out bad instruments from time to time. I recently custom ordered an ES-355 which was built in Nashville and was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the finish work. I ordered a Vintage Sunburst finish and while the Memphis built guitars I have seen did a great job of bursting the tops and bottoms, Nashville bursted the rims neck and headstock back as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delleo Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 Thanks for the info. That is what I was looking for, someone's actual experience with the models made in both plants. Very helpful! j45nick, That's a beautiful '59 ES-335 Reissue!. I agree that the Historics coming out of Nashville are very well crafted. In addition to the Historics, custom ordered guitars, including semi-hollow body and hollow body guitars, are also produced in Nashville. The Memphis Shop builds pretty much all of the semi-hollow body and hollow body guitars with very few solid body guitars the exception being White Les Paul Customs. Les Paul Customs in all other finishes are built by the Nashville Custom Shop. Both Shops use a Plek for the necks on all guitars. The Nashville Shop is setup to accommodate custom orders and very small runs with tighter controls in all phases of manufacturing. While the Memphis Custom Shop builds some incredibly good guitars, there are a few subtle differences between the Memphis Custom Shop and the Nashville Custom Shop. First off the Nashville Custom Shop microchips all instruments made there. This is done to closely track each instrument during the manufacturing process and for Gibson's ability to identify fakes and those unscrupulous collectors that will try to pass off a VOS reissue for a real vintage instrument. Second, the craftsmen working in the Nashville Custom Shop seem to have much more experience particularly in the finishing department. Secondly, the scrappers who clean the binding seem to do a better job of scrapping without leaving any finish on the binding, maintaining incredibly sharp lines. The folks who apply the finish to the body have been doing it for a long time and in my opinion do a much better job. The finish is applied smoother and more consistently on each instrument. In particular, the VOS finish was perfected in Nashville shop I believe. Third, the experience of the woodworking craftsmen also clearly shows in the fit more so in the Nashville built instruments. The sanders are most experienced in Nashville and consequently they are the ones working on sanding the thin veneers of the Les Pauls which can easily be ruined by too heavy a hand. That being said, since all detail work in both shops is done by hand by Humans and not machines, nobody is perfect and people do make mistakes. Each shop will turn out bad instruments from time to time. I recently custom ordered an ES-355 which was built in Nashville and was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the finish work. I ordered a Vintage Sunburst finish and while the Memphis built guitars I have seen did a great job of bursting the tops and bottoms, Nashville bursted the rims neck and headstock back as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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