Dear b********,
Anything made by the current Gibson company is a fantasy-they can keep their robot tuners & models that never existed as production guitars. Really they are promoting that their plywood tops have poplar in them? What a joke the once great Gibson company has become ever since moving production to Memphis. It's been about two decades since they built a production guitar that was really worth a damn which is really sad as by the end of the '80s they were building some of their best instruments(from 88-96 they made some great guitars, but the quality falls off dramatically after 1996).
Historically 90-95% of the ES355 came with a Varitone and a mono one would have been modded or custom ordered. How are you calling this Pelham Blue- let me guess those geniuses at Gibson said this finish was Pelham Blue. They don't even know their own finishes. Essentially you are calling this a 355 due to a possible ebony fingerboard(after the baked maple fingerboards I would take anything offered by Gibson with a grain of salt) & the headstock overlay which kind of looks like an 355.
For $4,500 I could buy a couple of mid '80s dot neck 335s that would be far better investment (not to mention that they would play better). Or I could get 2-3 Guild Starfire IV from the early '80s. What a depressing end for the Guitar Center led Gibson company(meaning that the production quota for stocking all of the Guitar Centers with $4,500 CNC made guitars with poplar plywood. I can't believe they use poplar. What will be next: using luan for a top ply because it looks like mahogany). For $4,500 you could buy a Collings or an actual early '70s 355. I hadn't thought of buying a newer Gibson since about 93-94 and now I know that was the absolutely correct path for me.
Good luck with the listing: I am sure somebody will love it.
- a****23
