Restoring a Vintage Gibson ES-335 - Reclaiming the Tone & Mojo
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Is owning a vintage Gibson ES-335 out of reach? In this episode of the ThroBak Guitar Lounge Podcast #031, Jon Gundry and Matthew Quail show how a player-grade vintage electric guitar can be carefully restored to reclaim its original tone, feel, and mojo—with patience, knowledge, and the right parts.

📬 The ThroBak Mailbox

The show kicks off with unfiltered viewer comments and questions, as Jon and Matthew dig into real-world guitar tone debates from the ThroBak community.

🎸 Player-Grade Vintage: 1968 Gibson ES-335

Next, we dive deep into a 1968 Gibson ES-335 that’s been thoughtfully returned to its natural state.

• Correct Patent Sticker early T-Top pickups
• Player-grade authenticity vs collector perfection
• Hear the guitar come alive in a classic ThroBak jam
• Is restoration about originality, tone, or both? We break it all down.

⚡ Lightning Round Guitargument

• Another fast-paced Lightning Round Guitargument fires up:
• Fender vs Gibson
• Strings, tone myths, and guitar lore
• Strong opinions, hotter takes

Cooler heads prevail in the Cool Down… or do they?

🎵 Rorschach Riffs & Musical Musings

Matthew challenges Jon and the audience with four new Rorschach Riffs.
Then it’s time for Musical Musings, covering:

• Famous guitarist birthdays
• Dave Stewart
• AI licensing and the future of music rights

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🎸 Gear Used in This Episode

Guitars:
• 1968 Gibson ES-335 - With Original T-Top Patent # Pickups
• Fender 70th Anniversary Fender Broadcaster — With ThroBak Nocaster- A3 Classic Pickups 
• 2025 Fender Squier Telecaster Custom

Amp:
• 1979 Fender Deluxe Reverb

Pedal:
• Nobels ODR-1 Overdrive

ThroBak Electronics, located in Grand Rapids Michigan, was established in 2002 to bring the best of vintage tone back to the guitar player of today.Make sure to watch the ThroBak Guitar Lounge Podcast each Saturday on YouTube.