Best 335 Builders?

[Dwight]

Originally Posted by franchelB

Some say Heritage...and considering that Heritage is built in the same Kalamazoo factory that Gibson was....

Did someone say Heritage?

[GCWaters]

The Collings are beautiful, but expensive. I've heard great things about Heritage, and the price point is very good, especially given the nice wood they're using. Price point on the Gibson ES-339 is good, if you like the smaller body...makes me wish I still had my '75 ES-335!

[690MBCOMMANDO]

Ended up getting an I-35LC w/Tobacco Burst and loving it (much more than the regular I-35).

[stratokatsu]

The 339 is an interesting guitar and I'd make sure to compare it before you go for anything in the hollow body realm. I have a buddy with a Heritage and having played it a couple times, I feel it's a wonderful guitar.

I personally have an Epiphone Dot Deluxe and a VERY inexpensive SX 335 clone from Rondo Music. All by itself, the Epi stands up as a great value with good looks. The slightly higher end Sheraton is very well respected, though I could never tell you whether the pickups are really much different from the Dot.

The SX is sort of a good platform of woodwork to build something on. At only $200, you could spent 5 times that on the best hardware, electronics and pickups and have a whale of a guitar pretty cheaply. I figure to mod the heck out of mine.

[The Old Gaffer]

The Collings sure has a great reputation. My favorite 335-style guitar is my Gibson CS-336. It is smaller (about 7/8 the size of a 335) and is "tonally carved" in that the back and sides and center block are all carved from a single piece of mahogany and then fitted with a solid maple top. Some have said that this tends to give it more of a Les Paul character and its sound is often described as midway between a 335 and an LP. FWIW, the 335 was my dream guitar and I saved up for a long time to buy one. When I went to the shop I A/B'd a 335 with a 336 and, as they say - game over.

[zabdart]

Try www.heritageguitar.com. They're made by the folks who built the classic 335's in the 50's and 60's before Norlin closed down Gibson's Kalamazoo plant. Every bit as good as the vintage Gibsons, and the better models have carved solid tops and backs, rather than the form-pressed laminates that everybody else uses.

[mikealpine]

Budget?

Also, have you checked out the 339, or are you set on a 335? I like the 339 size better, but I am 5' 6" and it is just a much better fit for me, especially if I am sitting.