1958 Gibson ES-125

**Garnoth** · 11-19-2016, 01:05 PM

Hi all,

I'm a long time lurker on this forum but wanted to share a new guitar. As a Dutchman, I've had the privilege to hear Martijn van Iterson live multiple times and I've always been impressed with his sound: combination of thunk and bottom string clarity. I've been on the lookout for an ES-125 for quite some time (the full depth ones are not so easy to find in the Netherlands) and found a great one from 1958!

She's beaten up with heavy checking but plays wonderfully and holds tuning like no other guitar I own. The bridge, knobs and pickguard are not original, the rest is. P-90 sound wonderful through my Koch studiotone. Now I only have to practice a million years to get the quality of playing to match the sound...

1958 Gibson ES-125-thumb_dsc_0029_1024-jpg

**Fred Archtop** · 11-19-2016, 01:10 PM

Congrats ! You have a wonderful guitar.

Best of luck with your music.

**Stringswinger** · 11-19-2016, 01:53 PM

Congrats! She may be used, but she is not used up. Gibsons rule!

**icr** · 11-19-2016, 02:14 PM

Looks very nice.

The truss rod covers for those can be hard to find. All the ones Gibson currently sells are multi-ply with white surround. The original was single ply black.

**Garnoth** · 11-19-2016, 02:42 PM

Very true, this one is obviously not original. I am not that interested in restoring it to be honest, it's a players guitar

**mr. beaumont** · 11-19-2016, 02:49 PM

Sweet.

A good 125 is one of those guitars that's just...right.

**vernon** · 11-19-2016, 04:43 PM

Congratulations! Looks like a real treasure.

**icr** · 11-19-2016, 05:13 PM

If you have a way to post an example, I'd like to hear how it sounds.

I did see a e-bay USA seller with a single-ply non-beveled reproduction for $3.98 USD. At that price it is almost less than the cost of a screw.

**Max405** · 11-19-2016, 05:55 PM

Garnoth,
1st of all, welcome aboard. This place will enhance the experience for you.
And that is a really nice guitar you have there sir. 1958 huh? Oh my, the stories your guitar can tell..
Well it's nice having you here, and thanks for sharing your new baby with us. Enjoy it for years to come.
Joe D

**QAman** · 11-19-2016, 06:03 PM

Garnoth,
I just love those old P90's- thanks for sharing . Do enjoy !

**Garnoth** · 11-19-2016, 06:07 PM

Thanks Little Jay, I saw your '48 and how you restored it to its rightful P-90 state! Is that 48 a flat back, I remember somebody telling me the very early 125's had flat backs.

@icr, I just got a little baby girl so am a bit too busy atm to record a clip, but if I get a chance I'll post it!

@Joe D, thanks for the warm welcome! Yeah it feels like a guitar with history

**rabbit** · 11-19-2016, 07:05 PM

I can state, with some authority, that you have very good taste sir.

This is because we own very similar guitars.

Congratulations & Good Fortune to you!

**skykomishone** · 11-19-2016, 07:11 PM

Originally Posted by Garnoth

... found a great one from 1958!

She's beaten up with heavy checking but plays wonderfully and holds tuning like no other guitar I own. ...., Now I only have to practice a million years to get the quality of playing to match the sound...

Garnoth,

Congratulations on a wonderful find. Happy NGD. That is one great guitar. If there were no checking, it would seem incorrect. When you get to be that age, you get wrinkles! Nothing sounds like a 50's 125 with a p90. I love that sound. You'll be surprised how quickly you get quality of playing, especially if you love it. That's the trick. Great guitar. Thanks for sharing. And, welcome to the discussion.

S

**jim777** · 11-19-2016, 09:03 PM

Gorgeous guitar, congrats! I love that burst

**pants** · 11-20-2016, 10:30 PM

Welcome to the 125 club! I have a '55 myself.

Also a definite "player grade." It's a great tone though. Enjoy!

**Little Jay** · 11-21-2016, 06:30 AM

Cool, we could turn this into a 'post your ES-125' topic! ;-)

**Garnoth** · 11-21-2016, 07:21 AM

By all means do, I love the fact that each one, like any Gibson from this era, has a unique burst. I always notice how dark the brazilian is on mine in comparison to e.g. yours Little Jay.

**Little Jay** · 11-21-2016, 09:49 AM

Originally Posted by Garnoth

By all means do, I love the fact that each one, like any Gibson from this era, has a unique burst. I always notice how dark the brazilian is on mine in comparison to e.g. yours Little Jay.

And they all do sound a little different as well. At the local jamsessions, meanwhile we are three to have an ES-125 (a fourth one coming soon) and we don't sound alike when we use the same house amp. But of course that can also be contributed to the indivual playing techniques, strings, plectrums, etc.

What I really like of my ES-125 compared to my other guitars is the way the controls work. I have the 'fifties wiring' (I guess all of them have) and I really came to love the way the volume and tone control interact. I can mostly find my sweet spot on any amp at any volume.

I sometimes hear ES-125 players complain about feedback on higher volumes. In my experience the ES-125 is much more feedback resistant than your average archtop, but I can trigger feedback in mine if I turn the pickup-pole pieces up too much towards the string (my '48 unfortunately does not have the original non-adjustable flat pole P90 anymore). So lowering your pole pieces helps a lot. My 125 also has a sound post under the bridge and that helps even more, I can play it on pretty high volume even very close to the amp.

**Cavalier** · 11-21-2016, 02:29 PM

Greetings. Mine is a 58 also that I rebuilt from pieces, it looked like it went through a bar fight. Nothing is stock, my P90 stack, a bridge floater and transducers into a custom harness. I call it my Swiss army guitar because it covers lots of bases. I really enjoy mine, it probably gets used the most over the years. For the last few years I've been using a wood bridge.

**Encinitastubes** · 11-22-2016, 01:29 AM

Love those guitars. What are the necks like? Are they big like a lot of '50s Gibsons?

**pants** · 11-22-2016, 01:32 AM

Originally Posted by Encinitastubes

Love those guitars. What are the necks like? Are they big like a lot of '50s Gibsons?

Mine is nice and stout, C shaped, not too fat that it feels overly big (but that's subjective)

**Garnoth** · 11-22-2016, 03:38 AM

Originally Posted by Encinitastubes

Love those guitars. What are the necks like? Are they big like a lot of '50s Gibsons?

You bet, mine is bigger than the "50's neck" on my 2006 les paul. And like les pauls, the 60's ES-125's have much thinner necks.

**Little Jay** · 11-22-2016, 05:49 AM

The neck of my '48 is substantial, but by no means a baseball bat. It's a nice C that fits my hands very well (and I don't have big hands at all). Although substantial, it somehow still feels fast. I can still fret notes on the low e with my thumb - even with my size of hands. I'd say it's slightly bigger than that of my 2005 ES-333. Maybe the 50ies models have bigger necks?

**Garnoth** · 11-22-2016, 06:09 AM

I guess so, because mine can safely be called a baseball bat. I've always played big necks but this one took some getting used to even for me. But I always love big necks, to me more often than not they make the entire guitar resonate as one piece of wood

**Cavalier** · 11-22-2016, 01:13 PM

I'd put mine down as normal. It isn't a fatty at all but not electric guitar thin either. I softened the C profile a bit in the rebuild and refinish but not much.I had to dowel the break at the heel before the neck reset and take out some combat scars so I made It very comfortable for me.