1961 Epiphone Olympic anyone?

Introduced in 1960, the Olympics shared the same manufacturing floor as Gibson’s Melody Maker, following the same lines. Designed to be cost effective to produce, the slim body and pre-assembled pickguard was a departure from their previous solid body designs. 

This example is in great condition. There is a scratch on the upper horn but no other signs of damage. If you look under the pickguard you can see that the finish has faded a little, but overall this is a great example of an early 60's sunburst finish.

Neck too is in great shape. The headstock has been cracked and repaired which you can see in the pictures. This repair is solid. The fretboard shows no sign of wear and the refret makes this guitar a joy to play. The tuners are later reproductions and a new nut has been fitted. The tailpiece is also a reproduction. 

Electrics are all correct too, with both Centralab pots' date being obscured by solder.

Sonically this guitar is a surprise. The single pickup seem to be locate in the perfect position so as to provide that right amount of treble without being shrill. This means that the controls can be manipulated without the loss of output and yielding a wide variety of very useful tones. The neck is very comfortable and the light weight makes it a joy to play sat down or stood.

As with all these so called ‘student instruments’ there is so much more than meets the eye with his guitar. If you’re on the hunt for something a little different, look no further…