1967 Epiphone Casino + Hard Shell Case.

The Epiphone Casino (more so than it’s slightly older sister the Gibson ES-330) has come to define the sound of a certain period in rock n roll history. The extensive use of the Casino by The Beatles during their ‘mid period’ (and by John Lennon from thereon) and by many other players in the mid 60’s such as Keith Richards, Dave Davies and Brian Jones has left an undeniable sonic footprint on the music produced during that period. Latter day devotees of the Epiphone Casino include Paul Weller, U2’s The Edge, Ed O’Brien of Radiohead and Jeff Tweedy of Wilco amongst others.

This example dates from late 1967 and was made in Gibson’s Kalamazoo factory. It is finished in the relatively rare cherry finish which was a custom option first introduced in 1967 on the Epiphone Casino. The original finish has a nice vintage patina showing some lacquer checking, moderate playing wear and a number of light nicks and small dings, but overall this guitar has been well looked after and is in great shape for a 55 year old instrument. It blacklights perfectly showing no signs of any touch up, overspray or any breaks or repairs.

All the electrics are original with undisturbed solder joints throughout and the original frets have plenty of life left in them. The neck profile is a nice comfortable medium C profile fairly typical of guitars produced by Gibson during this period and very close to the revered ’64 profile. The 41mm nut width (while 2mm narrower than pre ’65 Gibson’s) doesn’t in any way feel tight and the playability of this guitar is superb.

There have been a few minor changes over the lifetime of this guitar which mean that it isn’t strictly 100% original – but is original in all the right places. The tailpiece, pick guard and tuners are all repros. The original tailpiece is broken but is included in the case should you wish to repair it. The pick guard is a WD Music repro with the foil ‘e’ logo and the tuners are the correct metal button Kluson Deluxe type repros – probably Gotoh’s. The tuner holes have at some point been drilled to 10mm to accommodate Grover type tuners, however there are no signs that anything other than the correct Kluson Deluxe type tuners have ever been on the guitar – there are no tell-tale washer or tuner housing indentations from Grovers or anything else. Perhaps a previous owner decided to change the original tuners due to malfunction and had it drilled for Grovers but then changed their mind and opted to put a set of the correct Kluson Deluxe type tuners with conversion bushings on instead?

The pair of P-90’s have all of the sonic hallmarks you’d expect of these great pick ups, and when combined with the natural volume and resonance of the hollow body deliver a big sound that has warmth, bite and clarity in equal measure. This guitar would be a fantastic addition to anyone’s studio arsenal. It can cover so many bases sonically.

If you are looking for vintage Casino at a good price then this one is well worth checking out.

Comes with a deluxe TKL hard shell case.