ES-335 Copies

munckee

lovestrat74 said:

munckee said:

Quite a chunky c shape with fairly flat radius. It was an E35 ch. they don't sell them now but something similar. 

And you will bring it to Woking yeah

Yep sure. 

chris78

Teyeplayer said:

Hattigol said:

Teyeplayer said:

Despite the flack they get on here I was very impressed with the Eastman T59V, it was huge sounding and very well put together.

Do they get flack on here? I thought they were fairly well regarded...

There are a few of us who are fans but folks generally struggle with the made in China thing as mentioned by @rlw. I’ve also seen people complain here that the ones they have tried have been ‘sterile’. The two I’ve owned have been anything but sterile and have been better than a raft of Gibson’s I’ve tried (and I say that as someone who has owned and still owns a few gibsons), maybe I’ve just been lucky. In my opinion though, I’d say they are really good guitars for the money -particularly when picked up second hand.

I was in London yesterday and nipped into the Eastman dealer off Oxford St. They had an antiqued 59v, which looked incredible, but I must admit, the price tag for a Chinese guitar put me off picking it up and plugging it in. I’m not saying that the Chinese can’t make a good guitar, but labour costs are cheaper and I’d have expected a lower price. What am I missing?

WezV

chris78 said:

Teyeplayer said:

Hattigol said:

Teyeplayer said:

Despite the flack they get on here I was very impressed with the Eastman T59V, it was huge sounding and very well put together.

Do they get flack on here? I thought they were fairly well regarded...

There are a few of us who are fans but folks generally struggle with the made in China thing as mentioned by @rlw. I’ve also seen people complain here that the ones they have tried have been ‘sterile’. The two I’ve owned have been anything but sterile and have been better than a raft of Gibson’s I’ve tried (and I say that as someone who has owned and still owns a few gibsons), maybe I’ve just been lucky. In my opinion though, I’d say they are really good guitars for the money -particularly when picked up second hand.

I was in London yesterday and nipped into the Eastman dealer off Oxford St. They had an antiqued 59v, which looked incredible, but I must admit, the price tag for a Chinese guitar put me off picking it up and plugging it in. I’m not saying that the Chinese can’t make a good guitar, but labour costs are cheaper and I’d have expected a lower price. What am I missing?

They are what, £700-800 cheaper than the lower priced Gibson’s and massively less than the price of a custom shop one.

I think that’s quite a significant saving.  Worth comparing them to both ends of the Gibson scale to see which it is closest too

guitars4you

maybe not exactly a copy in the true sense of the word, but certainly 335 influence - almost any of the Jap built Ibanez AS50/100/200 etc models are worth a look at 

Teyeplayer

chris78 said:

Teyeplayer said:

Hattigol said:

Teyeplayer said:

Despite the flack they get on here I was very impressed with the Eastman T59V, it was huge sounding and very well put together.

Do they get flack on here? I thought they were fairly well regarded...

There are a few of us who are fans but folks generally struggle with the made in China thing as mentioned by @rlw. I’ve also seen people complain here that the ones they have tried have been ‘sterile’. The two I’ve owned have been anything but sterile and have been better than a raft of Gibson’s I’ve tried (and I say that as someone who has owned and still owns a few gibsons), maybe I’ve just been lucky. In my opinion though, I’d say they are really good guitars for the money -particularly when picked up second hand.

I was in London yesterday and nipped into the Eastman dealer off Oxford St. They had an antiqued 59v, which looked incredible, but I must admit, the price tag for a Chinese guitar put me off picking it up and plugging it in. I’m not saying that the Chinese can’t make a good guitar, but labour costs are cheaper and I’d have expected a lower price. What am I missing?

Hand made, a focus on playability, quality components and woods (for example my sb59 has a one piece back) -what’s not to like? They are all things we fall over for until the ‘C’ word is used. I wouldn’t write them off due to their country of origin.

Jez6345789

I have to say as much as getting a Gibson Memphis 345 a couple of years  which is great as much for the varitone my only other 335 type guitar has been a Korean Washburn HB and have to say with the Grovers fitted and decent hardware its was pretty good to go after a setup. It still gets a lot of use has a PAF pickup platform and to be honest I was going to flog it but it punches way above the 120 quid I paid for it. 

jamjarman

I love my Yamaha SA2200. Not quite the same as an ES-335 but a bloody good semi-hollow in it's own right. 

NelsonP

WezV said:

chris78 said:

Teyeplayer said:

Hattigol said:

Teyeplayer said:

Despite the flack they get on here I was very impressed with the Eastman T59V, it was huge sounding and very well put together.

Do they get flack on here? I thought they were fairly well regarded...

There are a few of us who are fans but folks generally struggle with the made in China thing as mentioned by @rlw. I’ve also seen people complain here that the ones they have tried have been ‘sterile’. The two I’ve owned have been anything but sterile and have been better than a raft of Gibson’s I’ve tried (and I say that as someone who has owned and still owns a few gibsons), maybe I’ve just been lucky. In my opinion though, I’d say they are really good guitars for the money -particularly when picked up second hand.

I was in London yesterday and nipped into the Eastman dealer off Oxford St. They had an antiqued 59v, which looked incredible, but I must admit, the price tag for a Chinese guitar put me off picking it up and plugging it in. I’m not saying that the Chinese can’t make a good guitar, but labour costs are cheaper and I’d have expected a lower price. What am I missing?

They are what, £700-800 cheaper than the lower priced Gibson’s and massively less than the price of a custom shop one.

I think that’s quite a significant saving.  Worth comparing them to both ends of the Gibson scale to see which it is closest too

Epiphones are made in China, by Gibson and are a whole load cheaper than that.  So I guess that is a better benchmark for Eastman in most people's minds.

Of course there are differences in materials, craftsmanship and labour hours but Eastman have more work to do to justify their relatively higher prices as a result of the above.

WezV

Depends what’s most important,  the spec sheet or the country of origin.  

If its spec sheet, compare them to Gibson’s.  If it’s country of origin compare them to epiphones.

Or combine both and end up with a price somewhere in the middle, like Eastman did

Fifty9

I’ve settled on 2 nice ones. Orville by Gibson 59 reissue and Korean Peerless Epi dot with gibson pups. Had tokai & gibson. Both pretty good also.

guitarcookie1

My Epi Dot owes me about £100 (arrived with a neck break & no hardware). I’m sure a Gibson 335 would be nicer, but 25x nicer? 

Winny_Pooh

my personal experience

Try before buying: Gibson, Heritage, Yamaha Epiphone, Peerless & all the other MIC stuff

Ok to buy sight unseen: MIJ Tokai, Eastman 

I've not tried these: Edwards, Greco

joetele

My Dad bought one of the Ibanez ones which used to be about £250-300 around 10 years ago, with (I think) the little lightning bolt in a circle on the headstock? It's a decent guitar, very well constructed, and the tone is nice. Occasionally goes out of tune which I suppose is to be expected. Always fancied buying it off him. 

Hattigol

The Eastmans are handmade IIRC. When you combine that with them being significantly cheaper than Gibsons, it does make them look attractive. 

Unless you're a label snob. Which, if I'm honest and I know I'm not alone here, I am.

Gerz6558

I love my Eastman acoustic, outstanding in every way but I got it for a great price. I'd love one of their semi acoustics but always talked myself down due to the poor resale value.

It shouldnt matter but I flip guitars for fun so that's always stopped me. Used examples are few and far between, probably because they are so good no doubt.

SlopeSoarer

Well I love my budget Tanglewood TSB 59. The neck is 43mm at the nut and I'd say a nice slim C, whilst the weight is just over 7lb (I do have a slightly dodgy back so appreciate it being pretty light) oh and it sounds great!

.

Phil_aka_Pip

I still like the Tokai ES-60 I got from @Gassage. Nice instrument

pintspiller

Washburn HB35

DrJazzTap

I've got a tokai es130 lovely guitar. Genuinely better than the 335s I tried at the time and about £700 less expensive. 

erky32

I once had a Hagstrom Viking. Very nice fabrication, super neck (if you like them skinny!) - but I could never get a decent tone, tried SD Phat Cats, tried other humbuckers & P90s, but I always found the tone very lacklustre regardless of pups. Unfortunate because it was a great player & well built. 
I eventually bought a 98 ES335, but I didnt keep it more than a year, because I was preferring the feel of my Midtown, and quite honestly wasn't getting a great difference in sound - for live work the Midtown felt better.