2/22/2024 0 Comments Gibson mini etuner tech support![]() When a later red ES guitar is exposed to sunlight it tends to darken rather than lighten, moving in the direction of brownish maroon. The New Jersey Bigsby is clearly faded to that wonderful watermelon shade. They look similar to later reds that haven’t faded. The 58, the Varitone 59 and the “diamond” 59 are still vibrant. ![]() The guitars pictured in this post are a pretty good representation of what these early reds can do. In guitars that spend most of their life in the case (and not a store window), the red can retain nearly all of its original color. In more extreme cases it can fade to a pale orange. While it starts off a rich vibrant blood red, it often fades, with UV exposure, to a pinkish light red we’ve all called “watermelon”. ![]() Until mid to late 1960, the red dye used to color the wood red was particularly UV sensitive. It’s a fairly late one…serial number A31481 This is a factory stop tail that had a Bigsby added and then removed. Is this the first Varitone? I don’t know but it certainly could be. Also worth noting, I’ve never seen a stereo 355 with a 58 FON. This 59 ES-335 is serial A29553 but the FON is much earlier. So, is this the very first Varitone equipped guitar ever built? The serial number of the earliest known ES-345 is A29132 shipped in February 59. But this guitar, which had to be a special order, started its build in 1958. The Varitone first appeared in February of 59 on a short run of 4 or 5 ES-345’s that pre-date the “first racks” of April 59. The following year, I get an email from a dealer in Paris (France, not Texas) asking me if I’d be interested in a red 59 335 stop tail. It sold again recently and is still in CT. I did eventually buy it in 2020 (for a lot more than $55,000) and sold it shortly after locally. I should have bought it back when I first saw it at the Philly show. Anyway, all went well (whew) and my search was over. It turns out it was a Bigsby with a big neck and a zebra in the bridge (I think). I’m always hesitant to meet someone I don’t know with a paper bag full of Benjamins but I really wanted the guitar. It was $18000 which, at that time was in line with what a sunburst 59 would cost. He said to meet me at such and such a park in North Jersey and bring cash. Then, out of nowhere (well, out of New Jersey, actually) a guy calls me (this was maybe 2008) and says he has a red 59 and I said “I want it”. The rumor back in the late 90’s was that there weren’t any-only a stereo 58 that left the factory in December of that year. I formerly used the user name “red59dot” on guitar websites and forums (fora?) because I had been on the lookout for a red 59 335 for years. I first posted this in 2018 and a few more red 59 dot necks have turned up and, of course, I bought them (and sold them). Gold knobs were probably factory (355’s had them too in 58). It shipped in December of 1958 and was wired in stereo. Witch Hats, Chicken Heads and Cupcakes?.
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