It's FUN! It's EXCITING! It's a DUTCH AUCTION! Instead of the price going up in a traditional bidding war, we wanted to try something new! We will randomly lower the "Buy It Now" price $100 to $500 per day for the next 7 days at exactly 12pm CST. Take a chance and wait until the last day, or "Buy It Now" and insure you don't lose out. First reduction will be posted tomorrow Feb 10th 12pm CST, stay tuned!WATCHERS BEWARE: First one to buy gets the goods!I've been on ebay since 2004 under username amartini1976, had to create a new account for selling limit purposes. Anyone who would like to talk in person please call 1-402-306-7335.This is a once in a lifetime offer! Includes hard shell case with plush red interior. This guitar was the first in production on Feb 2nd, 1981 at the Gibson factory. According to Gibson, there have been very few made in this model and color combination. In their own words they were "surprised to hear that one even existed!"  Serial #02758741One original owner, purchased new as a collectible keeper in 1982 with less than 10 hours of play purely for the purpose of setup, re-stringing and care. Needless to say, it has been well taken care of and stored. Like new, in mint condition.The last of the ES-355 models played by BB King, one of his preferred guitars up until the launch of the more economical BB King signature series known as Lucille in 1981. It’s no wonder King loved this guitar, it’s a work of art!The ES-355TD (thinline semi-hollow, double pickups, superb dual-humbucker tone) was at the top of Gibson's range of thinline semi-acoustic guitars. It was manufactured from 1958 to 1982, fitted with a Varitone Stereo option. The headstock has a split-diamond inlay rather than the smaller crown inlay on the 335/345, in addition to a multiple-layered binding. The fingerboard inlays are inlaid mother-of-pearl blocks, beginning at the first position of the fretboard. In addition to the headstock, binding is also applied to the fretboard and both the front and the back edges of the body. Rather than the rosewood fretboard on a 335 or 345, both variations of the 355 have an ebony fingerboard for a 'smoother' sound. This baby sings!The Gibson ES-335 (and the closely-related ES-345 and ES-355) remains a special instrument in guitar history. They are acknowledged as the first ‘semi-acoustic’ electrics ever made, and have been in constant production since 1958. The design and sounds they offer confirm their position as one of the most versatile guitars ever made.Need a quick 101 on Gibson ES-335s facts and why they are so special? Let’s go…1. The ‘ES’ denotes ‘Electric Spanish’. Yup, back in 1957 when the guitar was designed Gibson needed to differentiate this design to the ‘EH’ line of lap steels, which stood for ‘Electric Hawaiian’. Lap steel guitars were still popular back in the late ‘50s.2. Gibson design legend Ted McCarty felt the ES-335 was right behind the Les Paul solidbody as his most important body design. “I came up with the idea of putting a solid block of maple in an acoustic model. It would get some of the same tone as a regular solidbody, plus the instrument's hollow wings would vibrate and we'd get a combination of an electric solidbody and a hollowbody guitar.” All guitar players owe a debt to Ted McCarty’s vision.3. Early on it was nicknamed the “wonder-thin” body, as the ES-335 eliminated the feedback that plagued hollowbodies. ES-335s have a solid maple block running through the center of the body.4. An original 1958 Gibson ES-335 was often priced by retailers at $335. See, even guitar stores have a sense of humor.5. Chuck Berry was one of the ES-335’s earliest champions. Keith Richards says seeing Chuck “knocked me out” and he immediately “wanted to become a guitar player.” That’s a decent recommendation, yes?6. When an ES-335 has the full name of , it stands for Electric Spanish 335 Thinline Double-Pickup. Bit of a mouthful.7. The first two colors offered were Natural and Sunburst.8. Early 1958 models had no fingerboard binding.9. By the 1960s, Gibson was also producing ES-335s in Pelham Blue and Burgundy Red. A Cherry Red (also 1960s) finish is, to many, the “classic” color. Even now, 10. Upon launch, the ES-335 was fitted with the famous Gibson PAF Humbucking pickups or PAF (“Patent Applied For”) 54s - they were used on the guitars until 1962.11. The tilt-angle on the headstock of a genuine Gibson ES-335 is 17°. Copies by other companies have often used less, as they are easier to build and less easily broken - but they will never sound quite the same.12.  Also released in 1958 came a higher-end version, the ES-355, which came factory-equipped with multiple binding, gold-plated hardware, an ebony fingerboard, and an optional Bigsby vibrato, all for an extra $20.13. Oddly, many vintage dealers now think a Bigbsy-fitted ES-355 can reduce value by as much as 20%. Bigsby-equipped ES-355s were intended to be the most-desirable 335-derived model.14. In 1959, Gibson announced the release of the ES-345. An intermediate model between the ES-335 and the ES-355, the ES-345 came with an added Varitone control and stereo wiring.15 The most expensive Gibson ES-335 sold remains the one auctioned by Eric Clapton in 2004. His Cherry Red 1964 Gibson ES-335 TDC (bought by EC that year) sold for $847,500 at Christie’s.16 B.B. King is one of the legends associated with the guitar. He first played a Tobacco Sunburst ES-335, then an ES-355: “the one with what I call the magic switch,” he says, meaning a Varitone.17 Gibson’s 1982 B.B. King Lucille signature model was based on a Gibson ES-355TD-SV, but it had no f-holes. King eventually wanted a solid top to help reduce feedback.18. The original “Lucille” guitar of B.B. King’s was not an ES-335 model at all but a $30 Gibson acoustic he rescued from a house fire. Two people died in the fire. The next day, King learned that the two men were fighting over a woman named Lucille.19. Only 267 ES-335TDs were made by Gibson in 1958.20. Yet only 10 ES-355TDs were made the same year. If you own one of these, congratulations: you own a guitar worth the value of a house.21. The basic 335 shape has inspired many other models in the Gibson stable, the Epiphone Casino and the  being notable.22. The  is, though, completely hollow-bodied and thus more prone to feedback.23. That said, even ES-335s had a shortened center maple block in the 1970s, stopping just below the bridge. But not all of them, which seems a manufacturing anomoly at Gibson, but collectors swear it to be true. From the first early ‘80s ‘Dot’ ES-335 reisssues, they all have a full-length central block.24. Alvin Lee of Ten Years After toted one of the most iconic ES-335s. Daubed in stickers and with an added single-coil between the humbuckers, Lee made his “Big Red” famous at the 1969 Woodstock festival. The  has since recreated it.25. Blink-182’s Tom DeLonge possibly has the most unique signature model. His Gibson ES-333 has just one humbucker and one volume pot. Still, some players love the ES-333 as its back-access cover, the same as used on the Gibson B.B. King "Lucille", allows easy access to pickups and pots from the rear of the guitar.26. The original guitar now comes in all sizes and colors. The  is a little smaller if you find a traditional 335-style too big; the  is luxurious; the  now comes in an array of eye-popping colors; Oasis’s Noel Gallagher was honored with an Epiphone Supernova version in Manchester City FC Blue or a Union Jack flag finish.Standard USPS Ground shipping in the continental USA will be FREE, fully insured. Expedited shipping available for an additional fee at buyer's request. We will happily ship WORLDWIDE, but please contact us for an accurate international shipping quote before bidding or buying, as cost varies by buyer location.International orders will be declared as “merchandise,” and the value of merchandise will be declared as the amount paid. We cannot declare anything as a gift or for a lesser value. No exceptions! The customer is responsible for all taxes and duty, which may be collected upon delivery, as well as any additional charges involved with import.