Best years for a Gibson ES-125/general suggestions

[marcut]

Hey,

I’m currently in the market for an ES-125 and am wondering if there are any particular years that are better than others. I’m only interested in the full body, single pick up non-cutaway and am focusing on years 1950-1964 but am open . I’m not a big fan of larger necks and, from what I’ve read, 1959 is supposedly the year they produced a more medium profile neck until shifting to thinner necks in the mid ‘60’s. What’s more important to me is the structural integrity of the guitar( sunken top, neck reset, etc) and an original P90. The prices are all over the place right now and I’m in no rush and haven’t been able to find any locally. Any advice would be appreciated.

[wzpgsr]

My 1955 ES-125 had the best neck I’ve ever played. Medium profile, not ridiculously chunky at all. I’ve got an ES-175 from 1954 here that has the same neck profile. Unfortunately it arrived with broken braces and is awaiting a return to the seller. I wouldn’t be buying a 1950s ES guitar without getting in writing from the seller that the braces have been inspected and are intact.

[marcut]

Thanks for your response and helpful suggestion regarding getting verification in writing. Broken braces seems fairly common with vintage guitars and sellers aren’t always upfront or aware. How is the acoustic quality? It seems like the ES125 is at its best amplified but I play mostly acoustic.

[ThatRhythmMan]

The nut width during that range will be fairly uniform, around 1 11/16”. In 1965 it went down to 1 9/16”. On the other hand the depth will vary quite a bit. For example, 1960 Gibson necks are generally quite a bit thinner than 1959. Often people will ask for the depth of the neck, say at the 1st and 9-12th fret (depending on the type of guitar for the higher up measurement) if that’s important to them and they can’t check it out in person.


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[wzpgsr]

Thanks for your response and helpful suggestion regarding getting verification in writing. Broken braces seems fairly common with vintage guitars and sellers aren’t always upfront or aware. How is the acoustic quality? It seems like the ES125 is at its best amplified but I play mostly acoustic.

It’s definitely an electric guitar. Mine was more acoustically resonant with round wound strings. I no longer have the guitar but some days I wish I did.

[ThatRhythmMan]

Thanks for your response and helpful suggestion regarding getting verification in writing. Broken braces seems fairly common with vintage guitars and sellers aren’t always upfront or aware. How is the acoustic quality? It seems like the ES125 is at its best amplified but I play mostly acoustic.

I definitely would not say broken braces are common on vintage guitars. I would say it’s actually quite rare. Loose braces are a little more common, but still not that common at all.


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[FredH]

I spent about two years searching for my ES 125. There are a lot of them out there - in various conditions and prices. Initially, I passed on one several years ago that was museum quality and reasonably priced. I regretted not buying it and spent the next two years looking at lots of guitars. I wanted a full body that had been played, but not abused. Originally, these were student guitars and were considered to be a very good quality guitar in the day.

They still are a great guitar in my opinion. I finally found two of them within a two month period - earlier this year. Gruhn guitars had a 59 that was in excellent condition. It has been played, but not alot. Like many of them, it came with the original soft case - which was pretty much toast. I bought a tweed case and eventually replaced the tuners with Kluson's. Acoustically, it is a great guitar - particularly for finger style. I have used it for jazz, acoustic work, blues, etc. The P90 is the main reason I bought it. A lot of players use 125's and I have always liked the sound. Chris Whiteman frequently uses one with his trio and a singer. This one is one of my favorites to play.

Two months after I purchased the first one I found a second one - same year, but museum quality. Purchased in 1959, it was played for short time and put away until the owner passed last year. I found it in shop in South Dakota - pretty much by accident. It essentially is a brand new guitar. How it could have survived all of those years in such pristine condition is beyond me. It's all original, including the soft case - which I subsequently replaced with a tweed one. Once I saw it and talked to the owner, I couldn't pass it up. It is identical to the one I purchased earlier - except in pristine condition.

My advice is to take your time in your search. There are lots of them around but know what you are buying - check for straight necks, sinking tops, failing electronic, cracks - all of the usual stuff you'd look for with a vintage guitar.
Good luck with you search. I will try to post some pics of mine.

[marcut]

[QUOTE=ThatRhythmMan;1300793]I definitely would not say broken braces are common on vintage guitars. I would say it’s actually quite rare. Loose braces are a little more common, but still not that common at all.


That’s good to know. I came across some horror stories and it’s helpful to know that it’s a rare occurrence.

[marcut]

I spent about two years searching for my ES 125. There are a lot of them out there - in various conditions and prices. Initially, I passed on one several years ago that was museum quality and reasonably priced. I regretted not buying it and spent the next two years looking at lots of guitars. I wanted a full body that had been played, but not abused. Originally, these were student guitars and were considered to be a very good quality guitar in the day.

They still are a great guitar in my opinion. I finally found two of them within a two month period - earlier this year. Gruhn guitars had a 59 that was in excellent condition. It has been played, but not alot. Like many of them, it came with the original soft case - which was pretty much toast. I bought a tweed case and eventually replaced the tuners with Kluson's. Acoustically, it is a great guitar - particularly for finger style. I have used it for jazz, acoustic work, blues, etc. The P90 is the main reason I bought it. A lot of players use 125's and I have always liked the sound. Chris Whiteman frequently uses one with his trio and a singer. This one is one of my favorites to play.

Two months after I purchased the first one I found a second one - same year, but museum quality. Purchased in 1959, it was played for short time and put away until the owner passed last year. I found it in shop in South Dakota - pretty much by accident. It essentially is a brand new guitar. How it could have survived all of those years in such pristine condition is beyond me. It's all original, including the soft case - which I subsequently replaced with a tweed one. Once I saw it and talked to the owner, I couldn't pass it up. It is identical to the one I purchased earlier - except in pristine condition.

My advice is to take your time in your search. There are lots of them around but know what you are buying - check for straight necks, sinking tops, failing electronic, cracks - all of the usual stuff you'd look for with a vintage guitar.
Good luck with you search. I will try to post some pics of mine.

Thanks for your informative response. I’m curious if you tried out any different years in your search for an ES125 and how they compared to the two you purchased. I’m guessing it has more to do with the condition of the guitar rather than a particular year but I’m not sure. Pictures are always great if you’re up for posting some.

[marcut]

Totally agree about Chris Whiteman. Another ES125 player I like is Alex Farran. He has some lessons on YouTube and I’ve signed up for his Patreon page.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=K4qtEtx2...BTLuQven7d0U7b

[Little Jay]

Did you already check my ES-125 group on Facebook? ;-)

In my experience the quality of the 125 is very consistent through the years. After ‘59 the necks get a bit thinner indeed, but I simply loooooove the shape of my 1950’s neck, it’s not too big at all.

Acoustically I find it’s sound very pleasing, just not very loud.

[Little Jay]

I have noticed braces becoming unglued. Loose braces can cause the top to sink. A symptom is a very high bridge, so if you see that you better check the braces (a mirror on a stick and a goose neck light are handy to take when you inspect a potential new buy).

I glued back the braces of my friend’s ‘54 (they only became unglued at the very end near the neck):

[Little Jay]

Can’t resist posting my take on Polka Dots and Moonbeams (in which I worked some stuff I stole from Chris Whiteman haha):

[Little Jay]

And a last comment to take away your fears:

My ES-125 came to me without any braces, they were gone! I chose not to open the guitar up and put new braces but I opted for a sound post under the bridge. Has been stable for the past 10 years and no sign of sinking/warping of the top.

[marcut]

And a last comment to take away your fears:

My ES-125 came to me without any braces, they were gone! I chose not to open the guitar up and put new braces but I opted for a sound post under the bridge. Has been stable for the past 10 years and no sign of sinking/warping of the top.

Hi Jay,

Thanks for all the helpful info. I joined the FB group a couple of months ago and it’s good but I find this forum has this most useful information when the threads stay on topic. I’ve watched most of your videos and you are one of my inspirations for getting an ES 125. Great playing and you really nail the sound that I’m hoping for (my playing is definitely a work in progress).

[vinlander]

I love my 1959, it has hands down the best neck on any of my guitars past and present.
Prices and condition are indeed all over the place when looking for one on the market but there was definitely a price hike since I bought mine around 2018.
A thread on the Gibson 125 would not be complete without a mention of Mr. 125 himself in my book : Martijn Van Iterson
He is one of the reason I decided to get one.

[FredH]

I steal from Chris all the time. He's one of my favorite players and I've told him so often. He's an inspiration to many, I suspect.

[Jabberwocky]

You should also look for the ES-135, made between 1954 and 1958. The ES-135 was the more upmarket version of the ES-125, with a bound fingerboard and trapezoid inlays.

If you're not averse to a larger 17" body, the 1950s ES-150 with a single P90 is worthy of a consideration.

[ThatRhythmMan]

You should also look for the ES-135, made between 1954 and 1958. The ES-135 was the more upmarket version of the ES-125, with a bound fingerboard and trapezoid inlays.

If you're not averse to a larger 17" body, the 1950s ES-150 with a single P90 is worthy of a consideration.

The first thing about the ES-135 is there was a much more recent unrelated Gibson given the same model designation. So one has to weed through those. The second is, the vintage examples are rarely listed correctly as 135s. They seem to be mostly incorrectly named as 125s or 150s. Even Carter Vintage got one of these wrong not too long ago.


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[skykomishone]

I have a '47 that is solid with the only change being tuners.
If that's something of interest then PM me. It has the original P90.