The Epiphone Forum

Hi y'all, I'll post some photos of my Wilshire when I have a chance...it is one of the first batwing models with some unique prototype features...plays and sounds great and is very nice and light. A nice break for these aging boomer shoulders!

Now that is cool!

That must be one of the very first ones with that body style.

I wonder when the shipping date was on that one. I have been trying to track down when exactly the earliest asymmetrical body / batwing headstock solidbodies first shipped. It seems to be late 1963. Have you ever put in an email to Gibson, by any chance? They are usually really cool about it - if you give them a photo and the serial number, they can often find an exact shipping date in their ledgers.

I've got a '62 Crestwood (with the older body style) - I'm gonna take some photos and post them tonight.

I did request serial numbers from Gibson Customer Service. I seem to recall the Wilshire shipped in early October 1963, believe the Riviera shipped in August 1962. I have the exact dates in a file...will try and post those...

Correction! Model number is SB-432! Here are some photos of my '63 Wilshire! It came came with the stock soft shell case but I was able to score one if the hard to find contoured hard shell cases!

One if my observations is the vintage Epi solid body models almost always seemed to be made out of premium (grainy!) Honduras Mahogany! Even a lowly Olympic could feature a nice plank of fine "hog!"

RAB - that is absolutely gorgeous!
I had a '65 that looked somewhat similar, and was near-mint, but it didn't have the stop tailpiece like yours.
Now I am thinking about getting a Wilshire
And a Riviera...

Are the controls V,T/V,T or V,V/T,T? Never mind. I see the letters on the knobs.

Beautiful guitar!

Controls are neck pup v/t and then bridge v/t. Input jack is located between the neck tone and bridge volume. A little awkward...