Selling my ES-175 (or not)

**Bach5G** · 05-11-2026, 04:44 PM

Not a “for sale” ad.

I have had it in my mind for some time to sell the 1975 175 I’ve owned for the past 15 years and got around to listing it on FB Marketplace.

Very little interest, even after dropping the price a bit. One guy was interested but bailed at the last minute, telling me that based on the patina on the neck as shown in the photos, my guitar was likely made in the 80s. Patina?

That led to an interesting trawl through the various AI apps, which ultimately led me to conclude the guitar was indeed built in ~ 1975. Can’t make out the pot codes though.

But I started playing it a bit more. It’s got a bit of a buzz so I thought I’d take it in to one or other of the 2 techs I trust. Unfortunately the first could not see me until August. The second didn’t seem interested in tracking down the source of the vibration, and noted that he likely put the .010s on it, which meant the strings were likely > 10 years old. He was unimpressed (“no, you shouldn’t put .010s on an archtop”) and frankly was a little cold after that. I left somewhat humbled and embarrassed.

I told my teacher about this. He laughed but agreed with my tech.

But today I bought some Gibson polish a nice plush Fender polishing cloth (will this void my warranty?) and some .011 D’Addarios, with a wound G and got to work.

I figure that the pickguard is the obvious source of the rattle, as it isn’t fixed at the bottom end. It vibrates when I tap it with my finger. No obvious fix other than to remove it, and maybe one just learns to live with it. My teacher said it’s pretty common with these guitars.

With a bit of TLC it’s a lovely guitar (natural). I wanted one since hearing Metheny with G Burton 50 years ago. Jeez, if I’d only practiced eh?

So, I ended up making an August appointment with my tech anyway. The pots are a bit scratchy, the truss rod might need a tweak. After 50 years, a trip to the luthier isn’t out of line.

I took the ad down.

**grahambop** · 05-11-2026, 05:42 PM

My 175 had a truly annoying pickguard rattle for ages, eventually I got fed up with it and worked out it was coming from the point where the underside of the unsupported edge of the pickguard was touching the top of the plastic pickup mounting.

So I stuck a tiny blob of blu-tak between the 2 surfaces (it is underneath the pickguard so is invisible) and it has been silent ever since.

I assume it’s still there, as I did it over 20 years ago!

**Cunamara** · 05-11-2026, 07:13 PM

Ah, the ES-175. When I bought my first archtop, a 1981 Ibanez GB10, 40 something years ago I had no idea that the ES-175 was the guitar I had heard used on so many records. I knew about Pat Metheny (and saw him at Luther College right around then, playing his 175) and Steve Howe, but didn't really know about the equipment used by Joe Pass, Herb Ellis, Jim Hall and wouldn't even have guessed that they were all using the same model of guitar given how different they sounded.

I really like my GB10 and have had it for decades, but it's different from the ES-175. My guitar teacher in college had an L-7 with a Bill Lawrence floater; he replaced that with a Gibson Johnny Smith. As a result my personal notion of an archtop guitar was with a floating pickup and that's all I used. I bought a Benedetto style archtop from Matt Cushman in 2006 which I'v always liked acoustically but have been unhappy with the electric tone until I put a Pete Biltoft floating PAF on it a couple of years ago and -boom- there's a great tone. Also two, or maybe even three years ago now, I bought my 2005 ES-175. And yup, that's the sort of sound I had heard on so many records. It's a great guitar- very comfortable with a great neck and is so close to the GB10 (winner of the "best neck ever" award), although in the fullness of time I have grown into the sound of my archtop with that Biltoft floater. How ironic- for decades I was searching for the ES-175 type sound and now that I have one my tastes have changed!

**Bach5G** · 05-11-2026, 07:29 PM

So I threw on the .011s. These are kind of … light.

Crazy.

**Cunamara** · 05-12-2026, 01:02 AM

I've got .011s on mine (John Pearse Jazz) and like 'em a lot. They were the strings that came on it when I bought it and I've stuck with them because I really like the sound. I've got Pearse .012s on the carvetop and those are great in that application. I have not put 12s on the ES-175 yet, but they might be great there too.

FWIW, Jim Hall used .011s and even .010s on his ES-175. His tone was OK.

**grahambop** · 05-12-2026, 09:16 AM

I’ve always had .012s on my 175, helps give it that fat punchy sound.

However I recently got an Ibanez semi-hollow and I’ve put .011s on it (with a plain 3rd), I found that a good compromise which allows for a bit of string-bending when channelling my inner Scofield!

**vernon** · 05-12-2026, 10:46 AM

I had a 1974 natural for several years. It had that sound and I even paid to have it refretted. It’s not a sellers market, but I managed to trade it and see a $700 profit. The 175 wasn’t the easiest playing of my guitars… my Soloway hollowbody won out. In the end, I’ve had three Gibson guitars, Les Paul, 335, and the 175 none of which I’ve hung on to. Weight (LP), bad ergonomics (335), and playability issues (175)…