Heritage H-535

This lovely work of art was hand crafted in the Heritage Custom Shop in Kalamazoo, Michigan sometime in 2007. It is a deep chestnut burst with standard dual volume and tone controls. It has Seymour Duncan '59's at the neck and bridge.

I'm not sure of the wood this is made out of, but the top has a very elegant quilt that you can see easily through the burst.

The neck is fairly wide and chunky, just how I like them. Heritage will vary their necks to your liking, so no worries if you don't like that kind of neck.

The fit and finish of this guitar is spotless. It is perfect in every way. The binding is perfect, the fret ends are perfect, I could go on, but you don't want me to.

The only reason this doesn't get a 10, is that the features are pretty basic and straightforward.

I plug this guitar into a Dimebag Crybaby Wah > Carl's Custom Guitars Univibe/Phase 90 > Analogman modded Small Stone > stock TS 9 > Analogman Sun Face (high gain NKT 275) > Ernie Ball Volume/Boss TU-2 > Boss DD 20 > Fender Deluxe Reverb Reissue.

I play many styles, but lean toward jazz, blues, Americana/roots rock (ala Black Crowes), and jam styles. This guitar suits these styles perfectly. I've been able to coax some Zakk Wylde pinch harmonics out of it, but I wouldn't rely on this guitar for your sole metal axe. There are better guitars for metal.

This guitar is so full of mojo that I cannot even do it justice. Even unplugged an open G chord will ring for days, and you can feel this baby come alive when you pick it up.

Plugging it in just takes the mojo to an entirely new level. It is dead quiet if you're not playing. Neck pickup settings are very rich, warm, and woody. A very organic and nuanced sound can be had. The volume and tone controls will take you all over the stylistic world, from Bluesbreakers to Kenny Burrell. The bridge pickup is just plain fun. It will take my DRRI and kick it into a beautiful, natural overdrive that is very responsive to the volume knob. Add some overdrive or Fuzz, and you can go anywhere in the rock world you want.

There is a reason that artists of so many different styles choose this kind of guitar- it's versatility and mojo can't be topped.

This guitar has no flaws at all. The only dislike I had was the light gauge strings that came with it, but that's just taste, and had nothing to do with the guitar. I strung it up with a set of DR Tite Fit 11's and it was sonic heaven.

Heritage takes immense pride in hand crafting these instruments. You can sense this by just picking one up and playing it. I don't know if it's possible, but the folks that made this beauty may have loved it almost as much as I do.

I've had it for 6 months and play it at gigs weekly without a backup. I play this guitar literally every day, and it looks like the day I got it. I take very good care of my instruments, but play them pretty hard- so this one is holding up well. I don't know that I've had it long enough to really comment on it's long term durability. I'll post another review of it in ten years and let you know!

I haven't dealt with Heritage directly, as I bought this guitar from Wolfe Guitars. There is no finer dealer anywhere. I had found several H-535's on their online inventory that I was interested in. I called on a day that the store was actually closed, and Jay answered. He talked with me probably for an hour about these guitars- on his day off!

The next day, Graham called me. He had all of these guitars lined up and played them all for me and described them. He nailed it on this one. I will buy from Wolfe Guitars again when it's time to add another Heritage to the stable. So, my rating is more for Wolfe Guitars, but they deal directly with Heritage, so I don't feel so bad giving either of them a perfect rating.

This is my "retirement" present, although I'm about 30 years off from that. I love everything about this guitar. It has soul, and it feels alive to play it. There are some instruments that you just connect with, and this one is one of them. The sound, the feel, the way that it guides your heart to create beautiful sounds and music- these all make this guitar perfect. I compared this guitar to Gibson ES-335's, CS-336's, and an L5. These were great guitars, but even the most bare bones, low end ES 335 cost more than this, and only one of the 336's came close to the mojo factor that my Heritage has.

I'm not going to get on my soapbox for very long, but you really should check out the history of the Heritage company. You'll find that alot of the folks that are making these lovely instruments by hand today are the same people that made the vintage Gibson instruments that we all spend waaaaaay too much money on. If you're not aware- the Heritage factory used to be the original Gibson factory when they were in Kalamazoo. A quality, handcrafted instrument is not cheap- but when stacked up next to a comparable Gibson, you'll find them to be very fairly priced.

If this guitar were lost or stolen I would be very sad. I would contact Jay or Graham at Wolfe Guitars and start the search for another Heritage once I got out of my grief counseling.

1993 Heritage 535 which I bought in Sept 07 for $1,000. Natural finish (maple, light blonde, lightly figured wood), double cutaway 335-style semi-hollow body, maple laminate top and bottom, mahogany neck, figured wood pickguard, 2 Schaller humbuckers, 2 volume and tone controls, Grover tuners, roller type bridge, hard stop tail piece, nitrocellulose finish, hard shell case.

Very solid, vintage PAF sound. Depending on the amp and amp settings, I can get a classic jazz sound or a great vintage blues sound. This guitar will rock too. The Schallers are very articulate pick ups; not particularly hot or over wound. The best word I can come up with is articulate; really articulate. Based on the number of 535 owners who wrote reviews and ordered their guitars with Seymour Duncans, I was initially worried about the quality of the Schallers. However, the owner of the shop I got it from urged me to give them a fair hearing; saying that Heritage was a quality brand and that they had reasons for picking Schallers. He was right. In the neck position, with a clean, jazz type amp setting, the Schaller has that distinct, soft, woody snap or pop that I associate with 335 style guitars (third, forth and fifth strings on the upper frets). It is really beautiful. For that sound alone, if that is all this guitar could do, I would be completely happy. The first and second strings are softer sounding on the higher frets; great for blues and jazz. But, with something other than a clean amp setting, the neck pick up can be a little colorless. The bridge pick up is much brighter and the third, forth and fifth strings on the upper frets have a brassy, trumpet type quality. I eventually did a side by side, digitally recorded comparison of the 535s Schallers with my Gibson Les Paul with Burstbucker Pro Vs and my Epiphone Sheraton with a Seymour Duncan Jazz and a Custom Custom. The pick ups all sounded great; they were often indistinguishable from one another. IMO, quality pick ups in the same style (PAF or not overly hot), are just subtle variations of each other; more alike than not. All had that great 335 type woody pop in the neck and a sweet, brassy quality in the bridge. As with other guitars, the amp and amp settings are also key tone components; they either allow you to unlock what the guitar has got or it works against the guitar. IMO, this guitar works best with a tube amp (on the clean side) and a little overdrive; for me, its my Fender Deluxe Reverb RI or Blues Jr with a Fulltone Full Drive 2 pedal or my Chandler Tube Driver (rack version). My guitar teacher recently played my 535 and really put it through its paces and said it was a perfect guitar. I agree.

For a 14 year old guitar, it is in terrific shape; no dings, dents or scratches. I got real lucky. This is also a beautifully made guitar. The neck is straight and this one is definitely on the thin tapered side. It is a pleasure to play. In the music shop, I was comparing it to a used, 2005 Gibson 335 with a thin, tapered neck and the Heritage was slimmer and easier to play. That really sold me. It has the width of a Gibson and the girth of a Fender. The action is terrific; no string buzz or dead spots. Tone and volume controls operate smoothly with no sudden sound drop out. The pick up selector switch is silent and rock solid. The Grover tuners are very accurate and this guitar stays in tune. The top is just lightly figured, nothing wild, with a natural finish. It is very classy. Nothing over the top. If it calls attention to itself at all, it is because it is understated and just plain cool looking. One small thing I like, the input jack is on the side of the guitar (like a Les Paul) and not on the top of the body like a 335. Why drill another hole into the top of the guitar body and detract from that lightly figured wood? Every aspect of this guitar is well done and well thought out. It even sounds good acoustically; a real first rate musical instrument. The quality is very high all the way around and I think the little tweaks and personal attention to detail at all stages of the build add up to a discernable, qualitative difference. It is hard to describe; but this guitar just has a real presence to it. My guitar horizons have really been broadened.

In light of how great this guitar is at 14 years, reliability and durability are superb.

No need to call so far. It seems Heritage was having some problems within the past year or so. But, the website says that they have reformulated their ownership and hierarchy, and have resumed production of guitars. That was good news. So I guess they will still be around to handle any problems that might come up. Whatever happened, I hope they maintain the same traditions and standards. These guys really know how to build a guitar

Although I have some great guitars, this is a qualitatively different instrument. As I said earlier, this 535 has broadened my guitar horizons. It is a very different thing. It is not flashy or showy, just great, unmistakable quality and attention to detail. I have always liked 335s, but I could never justify the cost. I have played a lot of used and new Gibson 335s for the last few years and, when it came down to this used Heritage and a used 335, the Heritage was the better guitar. Although it was more than I would usually spend on a used guitar, I am very happy I bought it. The 535 is the real deal; and, since it was built by a lot of the original Gibson staff with the original Gibson equipment, you could say that this is the real vintage deal. In this case, it had a lot more presence than the new or used Gibson 335s in the store. The attention to detail is great, the sound is great, the playability is great. I am very happy with it. I think the quality is beyond question.

1998 Heritage H-535 SSB. Made in Kalamazoo, MI -USA-

This is a high quality USA made copy of Gibson's ES-335.

In terms of materials used and sheer craftsmanship the H-535 surpasses that of the ES-335.
-bound multi-ply laminated maple top and back
-solid maple rim
-one piece mahogany set neck
-bound rosewood fretboard
-24.75" scale
-high gloss nitro cellulose finish
-mother of pearl "dot" inlay
-chrome Grover rotomatic tuners
-chrome covered Schaller "golden 50" humbuckers
-chrome Schaller "roller-bridge"
-chrome schaller tailpiece (stop bar)
-amber "bell" knob controls
-3 way toggle
-bound "ebony" pickguard

This guitar has really got it all.
The parts are of very good quality and the overall construction is very solid.

The wood has a ton of figure and the SSB "Sunset Burst Finish" is very attractive.
It is a 3-tone burst using only two spray colours. when the outer ring meets the inner ring it creates the third colour.

All the binding is clean and there is no "orange peel" in the finish anywhere.

The neck is very straight and the fretwork is actually quite good.
The truss rod is identical that of a gibson. If you dont like the Heritage truss cover you can use a Gibson bell cover and it will fit very well with no modification.

The neck is a very nice shape and size falling nicely in between the '59 and slim-taper 60's necks by Gibson.

It has "some" mass (no where as clunky as a '59) but it still very accessible and fast.

The H-535 is a very balanced instrument and the stock Schaller pickups are a perfect fit for this semi-hollow instrument. This is probably the first instance where i have seen an OEM set of pickups actually work incredibly well in its intended instrument.
They have a good bit of tonal character and never get muddy or shrill. I have found that my tone controls are not as obsolete as I thought in the past...and actually enable me to dial in the right amount of "mojo".

The electronic components such as pots, caps and jacks are of very high quality... in this instrument "cloth" wire was used and the caps are not ceramic...but higher quality not found in anything Gibson makes outside the "custom shop".

The input jack is located on the lower-bout "rim"... not on the top like a typical 335.
I am rather find of this modification as it eases any stress of "cord" related incidents, ect.

This came with the original Hard Shell case and Hang Tags.

My only complaint is the logo. It looks like a sprayed on or decal... and it was put on very crooked and is not centered on the headstock... this really irks me as quality goes. It really kills the symmetry. The guitar would do well with a simple "pearl" logo.

The overall sound is wonderful.
The H-535 is very balanced and organic.

It's tone is very woody and resonant unlike the Gibson's... which have a tendency to sound rather "plinky" un-plugged.

All the electronic components are well-suited for this model... and bring out the best that this instrument has to offer.

The H-535 is very versatile and can cover all the bases effortlessly... from jazz, blues and rock and pop.

I think a "varitone system" in this particular model would extend this guitars versatility into the stratosphere.

I got this guitar used from Wolfe Guitars.

I was a little misled in thinking this guitar was in immaculate condition.
The headstock has few minor chips actually in the wood and there are a couple deeper scratches in the top... particularly by the tailpiece.

I was told the bridge and stopbar were replaced and was aware of that upon buying.

The stopbar was nickel and did not match any of the hardware (colour wise) and the bridge was a TonePros that could not be possibly locked down as the improper mounting studs were used ( actually the original schaller studs remained on the guitar).

Due to this the bridge was sliding and the intonation was all out of whack and the guitar was virtually un-tunable... I don't discount that the strings has lost their life as the cold weather during shipping may have taken a toll on them.

The frets had quite a bit more wear than I expected and there were several "divots" in the frets within the first 5 frets or so...

I contacted Wolfe Guitars and explained the problem and they promply sent me the original bridge as well as tailpiece... so I could keep the guitar 100% original. They were very gracious and quite professional and friendly over the phone.

I also releveled the frets and recrowned and polished them... I also recut the nut slots and intonated the guitar.

The setup was fair but in many ways rather "in-complete".

Now that all things are taken care of this guitar is a monster...in a positive way.

If taken care of i believe every guitar can last forever.

I believe the reliability and durability of this guitar in my possession is great and will probably last me as long as I want it to last.

I downsized my collection to get this guitar. I now have only one other electric guitar and I am depending on this 535 along with my custom made Telecaster to handle it all.

I have great faith in this instrument for the years to come.

SEE ACTION, FIT & FINISH.

I bought this guitar under the pretense of being "the one".

I still stand by that assumption and am still confident that it is.

I see guys looking for the ultimate guitar in terms of versatility and I have done the same in years past. A guitar is only as versatile as the player.

I have always said that a great guitar inspires a player to be better. The Heritage H-535 does just that.

With the high build quality, options, overall vibe and price how can it not inspire???

The Heritage H-535 is a good solid investment that seems to hold it value quite well.
The 1997 BlueBook of guitars had the original MSRP of this guitar at $1500.00...
The 2006 Vintage Guitar guide listed this at being worth $1200.00 plus.

it has retained most of its value over the past decade and being an American made piece will continue to do so.

Bought it used in near mint condition. Electronically and wood-wise, everything you would expect from a 335's close derivative. Mine has a beautiful Dark Almond Burst, which is near to never found on a Gibson. A TKL case included. Anchor key included, too. Made in 2005 (so, her best times are still yet to come). The main noticeable differences from 335 in design are the headstock (makes it look kinda modern) and the form pickguard (I like it lots).

By the time I was bying this baby, I had tried several various ES-335's already, so I did have expectations. Not dissapointed at all. Even with .009 strings, the sound was fat and solid, and had beautiful overtones. I play .011s, and that's a real pleasure on this instrument!

As for amps, I've tried this one with Fenders Twin and Deluxe, a Marshall JCM 2000 and a 1x12 Mesa Boogie (not sure about the model). I play into a crunch channel mainly - just plain crunch sound. It sounded great with all of the amps, but I really loved the sound with the JCM and the Mesa. Fenders are for Fenders, to my opinion (unless you want a pure clean sound, in which case better go for a Twin).

It's as versatile as a guitar like this can be. I also keep in mind that it takes a versatile player for any guitar to be versatile. Mine has no coil-splitter, but I don't miss it when playing. The neck pickup does that rounded, jazzy sound (which can blow you off the floor if you crank up the amp) and the bridge pickup is a real screamer! Think 'Paranoid Android' but twice more hysterical - just what I always hoped to get from a Les Paul, haha. The mix of the pickups is really good, too.

This guitar sounds great both in a studio mix and in a dictaphone audience recording.

In a word, I found all of this guitar's sounds to be what I'd dreamed of.

Perhaps, I'll have to A-B-compare it to a good old 335 to draw my final opinion. But even now I am sure this guitar deserves an honest 9 for the sound.

The action was very very good straight out of the box. I tried to loosen the anchor to better suit my custom, but I found the out-of-the box set up had been better, and turned it back.

The pickup adjustment was ok - no suprises here.

As for the rest in this topic - no flaws found, everything's perfect.

Today I dropped this guitar (no straplocks mounted yet - idiot, I know), then picked it up and it didn't even come out of tune. This guitar is as reliable as a semi-hollow can be. I use it onstage without even thinking of a back-up. I see no way this guitar could let me down.

Never had to deal with them.

I've been playing for 16 years now, 13 years in bands, 6 years for a living, and the living is good! Besides a Heritage, I also own a '78 Les Paul and a '00 Tele (USA-made, yes). I've also tried so many good guitars, newer and older, that I can hardly count - so I think I do know and feel what a good guitar is.

This guitar will inevitably get compared to a Gibson. But this one is more or other than just a copy. You can feel it in the looks (see Features), the feel (the neck), and the sound too.

If you want a Gibson ES-335, please wait for some more money and buy a 335. For some, the inlay logo on the headstock is no less inspiring that the sound, that's understandable; and a Gibson really has some important things about it that no other guitar can possibly have. But if all you want is a very beautiful semi-hollowbody guitar, hand-made in the USA, with a sound that makes you want to take it to bed, very player-friendly, constructed much like a 335, and all that for a $1400 - don't hesitate to go for an H-535.

If this guitar were stolen, the thief would have his hands cut off. If it were lost... no, that's hardly possible. This guitar doesn't have me quit dreaming of an old 335, but it sure stopped me drooling at the new ones. Yes, I do recommend it for anyone to try. Overall, it's an honest 9, if we disregard the money factor. It will be a 10 some years later: good guitars only get better.

I purchased this guitar about 10 years ago. It hung in a shop where pimply teenagers went for shredder guitars. The people in the shop didn't really know much about Heritage. I stalked this guitar for two years and finally made a ridicoulus offer This guitar was finished in Antique Sunburst. The finish was flawless. It's a thinline double cutaway like a Gibson 335, with a chrome after-market tune-a-matic like bridge and tailpiece. The tuners are chrome Grovers, non locking. I don't know who makes the pickups, but mine are really loud. The pivkups are passive black humbuckers with black rings but no covers. One tone and one volume knob and one knob to dial in the amount of "out of phase" you want. There are three mini toggle switches to tap the bridge or neck pickups with one to switch on the VIP, which is the "old style' VIP. There is a toggle switch which is mounted near the bridge to select pickups. The guitar has 22 frets and joins the body at the 20th fret. The scale length is 24.75" and the frets are pretty fat, set in a rosewood fingerboard. The fretboard is marked with dot MOP. The medium neck is cream bound Mahogony and the body is made of plywood. The body is slightly thinner than a Gibson 335 and has cream binding on top and bottom. The f-holes are not bound. There are no cover plates on the back which has some pretty tiger-striped maple.
The store where I bought this guitar had lost the case so they gave me a new Gibson 335 case complete with a hot pink satin interior.
This guitar was probably made in 1991 as it has a serial number that begins with "H."

I play blues, jazz and rock and this guitar can go all the way on everything. The pickups are very loud and can easily overdrive my Rivera Fifty-five Twelve. At full volume, the guitar can sound a little bit jangly. Both the tone and volume controls have a great deal of influence on the sound. Back off the volume and the guitar quiets down a great deal. You can back off the tone until you sound like Jim Hall. The coil splitting function and variable phase control gives the guitar thousands of sounds. For a really neat jazz sound, I really like putting the neck pickup in single coil and backing off the tone to about 50% of it's travel. Putting the bridge on single coil, you get a thinner bridge pickup sound which is neither Strat nor Tele but something else. Overall, this is a very good tonal range and not like the Gibson, which I heard someone say: "It can sound like a lot of different guitars, but does none of them really well."

I don't know how well the guitar was set up at the factory. It had remained in the shop for 6 years! One of the shop workers was sad to see it go because he said it was the best guitar in the shop for demoing different amps. I usually set up my own, but needed to do very little to this one. The thing buzzed on some of the higher notes but when I put on heavier strings, that went away. I have not noted any flaws either in finish or workmanship. The only thing I think would have been nice was if they bound the f-holes, but Heritage saved that for their upscale model, 555. This is really a pretty guitar. When I open that case with its hot pink satin, the dark brown guitar always evokes some ooos and ahs.

I do not play live or move my guitars around very much. If I did, I'd probably use my G&L S500, but I don't want to get a scratch on that either. I did take it to my lessons a few years ago. My teacher, Bob Shaw (http://www.geocities.com/bobshawguitar/) loves this guitar and offered to trade me his Gibson 345 for it! In his hands the guitar was a work of art! This guitar is well made but you don't want to bang it around, like some old solid-body. I'm sure the guitar will hold up without falling apart. The finish is well applied and very durable. I can depend on this guitar. After long lay-offs the guitar stays in relative tune, but needs to be tweaked up a little.

I have no warranty experience. There have been no problems with the guitar at all, but one of my friends tried to talk me into sending it to the factory to have the neck reset. I have called the factory and discussed whether I needed to send it in for any reason. Over the phone they were very helpful and eventually we all realized that my friend was a little on the hypochondriac side.

I've been playing over thirty years, but I never said I was good at it. I've owned a dozen guitars of all styles and this is the only one I'd never sell. I think about changing the pickups (read what Ed Roman says about Heritage guitars... He knows all the flaws) I don't really play good enough or have the kind of ears that distinguish the finer points, but it sounds good to me. I only own two other guitars: a Taylor mahogony cedar grand auditorium, and the G&L S500. The only thing I wish was different was the f-holes.

I'm not an expert. If I start to sound like one, move on to the next review because I'm probably full of shit.
I wanted an old 335 from the late 50's early 60's but I didnt have, you know, TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS laying around.
Having said that, this 2006 model is made just like they made them in the 50's.
This is a Custom Shop model, speced by Wolfe Guitars. They order them with all the right features and put them up on their website at wolfeguitars.com.
Mine has a gold top with walnut stained back, sides and pickguard, sperzel locking tuners, graphtec nut, schaller roller bridge and Duncan Seth Lover pickups. This setup keeps tuning with the Bigsby very stable. The Seth Lovers are my favorite pickups, very vintage sounding. They're not potted, which gives them added honk, but a little too much distortion and they squeel like pigs.
The neck is the most comfortable I've played. Somewhere between a 50's and 60's profile. Not sure on the weight, but it's feels lighter than a les paul or my old ES-135.
Case is a TKL, very nice but probably one step below their best model like the one that came with my Hamer. Fits perfectly though.

I play blues. Obviously, rock n roll is just white guys playing blues, so I play that too. I do some country stuff too but that's just red neck blues. It's all blues to me.
If you're looking at these, you probably know what they're for and know the roster of guys using them (Freddy, BB, WOF Clapton, Chuck, Alvin, Keith, the list goes on and on). I'm on a rockabilly kick lately and it's fine for that as well.
My G&L ASAT Bluesboy is the best sounding guitar I've ever heard, until I got this one. Same neck pickup, but this one just has more tone. The ASAT has that single coil in the bridge, so its still the twang king though.
All in all, I could not be happier with the sound of this, I would just make sure you know what pickups you like and have them installed.
I play through a couple of decent tube amps. I use a Blues Driver for some boost on the leads and thats it. I'm looking for a decent delay pedal now. The Rocktron that I bought is useless. The clean sound is so rich and warm but still cuts through the mix. Crank it up and the sustain and harmonics are just incredible.

These are Pleked at the factory. Some sort of laser guided fret machine that makes them perfect. Normally, it costs about $200 but its just part of the factory set up with Heritage. Wolfe Guitars did the final set up on this one, after I told them what strings to use, what I play, preferred action, etc. Set up was perfect and needed absolutely no tweeking.
When I went to install strap locks, I found that the end pin was not centered in the hole in the bigsby and didnt really fit right. They tried to fix it at the factory with a fill and re-drill but did a very poor job. Once I did it right (drill, dowel, glue) it was fine. I should not have had to do this on a guitar at this price. My work was better than Heritages, which should be very embarrassing for them.
Having said that, this seems like a very minor complaint to me because I am so happy with this guitar.
Overall, the fit and finish is very good. A step below my Hamer, but in line with the price difference between the two.
This is the only factory guitar I've ever seen that has a properly cut nut right out of the box. I read the reviews on 2 or 3 thousand dollar Gibby's and I'm appalled that people do $300 worth of fret work on a brand new guitar.
The input jack is mounted on the side rather than the top, great feature. However, they really should use a metal plate like an LP instead of mounting it right in the wood as it constantly loosens up. Annoying, but once again, minor.

I waited until I did a couple of gigs with it before I wrote this review. I think this design has proven itself over the last 50 years or so. We played outdoors in 90 degree weather with high humidity. The nitro finish on the back of the neck did get a little sticky, but it held up great and looks good covered in sweat.

The warranty says one year, but I hear Heritage is the best.

I've been playing since the days when "vintage" guitars affordable. I'm not a pro, maybe gig once a month or so.
Every time I open the case, I just smile. I think that says it all.
I wanted a vintage guitar for playing, not displaying. I wouldnt bring a $5,000 guitar out of the house. I looked at Gibsons but I picked this up for about $400 less than the cheapest Gibson 335 (you know, the one with no finish, cheap tuners and pickups that need to be replaced?) with top quality components, old time workmanship, great woods and all the features I wanted. I don't know what a Gibson with these features would cost but its more than I want to spend. Check out wolfeguitars.com and talk to Graham or Jay. Graham talks funny, but he's a good guy. I looked at Gretsch but they're over priced and I couldnt get past the disgusting colors on the ones I liked (the Setzer Hot Rod models). I also thought about getting an Epiphone and upgrading it but when I started doing the math, I would have paid close to the same price as this one for a Korean guitar. Bottom line is that this had all the features I wanted, was 100% ready to go out of the box and the price was right. I was also very comfortable dealing with Wolfe. Unlike the feeling I get from the super dealers. Wolfe Guitar guys are guitar guys, not $8 an hour clerks.
Without question, Heritage is the best value in vintage style guitars. People say they lose value whereas Gibsons gain value. True, but I'm looking to play guitars, not to resell them.

I have a 2006 antique burst, AAA flamed, rosewood fretboard, made, of course, in Kalamazoo. It has schaller pickups, gover tuners, a 59 neck; two volume, two tone controls. The same type of set up as my 78 ES-335 - except this plays much better.

Im playing through an 83 fender super champ and the guitar sounds amazing. bright when i want it, bassy when i want it, mellow for jazz all at the twist of the controls.

The set up from the factory was perfect. I had it professionally set up at my local Sam Ash and when I asked the guitar tech (generally a pretty dour fellow) his opinion of the 535 he just smiled. I cant find any flaws in the finish and the matching pickguard really makes the guitar look good.

Its my everday guitar and the one I take to play with friends and I have had absolutely no problems with it. It stays in tune going from the home to the car and back inside. I would never gig without a backup, but if I had to I would trust the 535.

I havent had to contact customer service.

I have been playing since 1976. I have six other guitars and I would definitely replace the 535 if it were stolen, lost or destroyed. I like the 535 better than my 335 because the feel is better - the neck is a bit thinner and the plekked frets feel smoother.

By now you are familiar with the H535 features. Laminate Maple semi-hollow, mahogany neck, 17 degree headstock angle, 2 hums, 2 tone, 2 vol, three way switch, grover tuners, nitro finish. Do you need anything else?

I'll mention the upgrades on mine. Duncan '59 pickups, vintage style tuneOmatic and stop tail.

Neck is bulky but in a good way...more on this later.

Great guitar for Jazz to Classic rock and anywhere in between. The duncan 59' pickups are very strong compared to my tele. I was suprised at how much louder they are than singles (I usually use singles and p90s). They definitely push the amp, but somehow they don't distort as much. By that i mean that singles sound more distorted at these volumes. Maybe these pickups compress a little more and therefore sound louder yet less distorted.

The bridge pickups is shimmery clean with no harsh ice-pick sounds. When driven, the bridge pup rips like it should. Great for zep-ish or ac/dc ish stuff. The Neck pup is my fav. Very complex and fat with the tone up. No lack of highs, but gives a very beefy 3-D sound that i can't get enough of. Roll back the tone about half-way on the neck pup and you're starting to get into jazz territory. Very lush and muted jazz tones, but never muddy. Not as open as a full hollwo Jazz box, but that's ok. My fav setting is both pickups with the bridge tone up and the neck tone 3/4 down.

Bought from Wolfe guitars and they had Plekked it. I don't know if the Plekk is responsible for the killer setup, but the setup is just that. PERFECT. The action was set at an average height (I like my action on the low side), but even at this height it was effortless to play. Eventually I lowered the action to my preferences with no trouble at all. I actually considered leaving the action higher as it played so well and i didn't want to fiddle with it. I'm glad i lowered it in the end though.

The neck is slightly fatter than I'm accustomed to, but definitely not a baseball bat. I found that I really like the substantial neck. It seems to just place my hand perfectly to reach everthing without straining. Great high fret access.

No flaws in any regard. The nut is cut as well as any guitar i've ever seen or played (not sure of nut material). The finish is beautiful shiny nitro. Glassy and flawless without being thick or gummy. A work of art.

It's a semi-hollow, so I tend to be more careful with it. I'm not hard on my guitars to begin with though. Hardware is all high quality and should last. I would happily gig w/o a backup.

N/A. Never had to deal with them.

Been playing 12 years. If stolen, I'd buy another in a heartbeat. I may buy another eventually anyway just because I like it so much. I love the beefy neck, the excellent pickups. I compared it to both old and new Gibson ES335s, epiphone dot, and Epiphone Sheratons. The epiphone dot was a fine guitar, solid, but I wanted something more high end. The new 335's were nice, but didn't really click with me. The few sheratons I played were very good and comparable to new 335's if you changed the pickups/pots and gave it a good setup. Played two 70s ES335s and those were great. They felt hefty yet alive...they just had the magic. The heritage 535 has that same magic in spades. I never played it before I bought it over the phone and luckily my expectatins were exceeded. The H535 seemed like the best choice for me because I didn't really connect with the new 335s or Sheratons, and I could not afford a vintage 335. If my H535 had been equal to the new 335 I would have been happy because it cost around a thousand less, and was even priced a little lower than some late 90s used 335s I tried out. Lucky me, the H535 delivers above and beyond what i'd hoped for at a reasonable price. I'm very happy with my purchase.

I bought my Almond burst 535 in 1996 thru' Ed Roman. This is, in effect, my 10 year review ! I picked it up today after having some minor repairs done to it by John Diggins, the british luthier. I dropped it on the jack socket a month ago and damaged the side panel. John did his customary excellent work to strengthen and repair the problem. Mine has Schaller machines and pups and the nice tailpiece with the wobbly bits in.
I cannot begin to describe the pleasure this guitar gives me. Feature wise, this guitar doesn't have much, just a great flame finish and reliable hardware.

This guitar does most of what I require, good blues,jazz, R&r, reggae, country, britpop - I don't do shred or metal. It can distort, feedback and do good clean - definitely with a rich full sound. I use it through a mesa tremoverb combo or a nomad 1x12 combo. I've still got my old peavey heritage 2x12vtx as well. However, it took me until 2002 to make this my main axe.What you get from this guitar is tone, tone and more tone. My oppo has 2 Gibson 335's, both with different characteristics ,but, for me, the heritage leaves them in its jestream.

This guitar was cock on from the moment it arrived apart from me slightly lowering the action and realigning the string spacing at the bridge.

This guitar plays out around 50+ gigs a year - and I take it out without a back up, rarely get any breaks or problems.

Never needed them.

Been playing for 40 years, I also own an 80's schecter strat which I've had to use whilst the 535's been laid up, a tele plus deluxe with tremolo (it keeps playing better and better), a black standard tele (1989) with the centred tone control. This was my main axe for years. A Gibson 346 Paul jackson Jr custom shop. I'm getting my head round this one the moment, the '57's don't have much poke. All of these guitars have their good qualities - the heritage shades them all comfortably. 10 years on and its still taking care of business.

you know them well.

es-335 all the way. woody, honk, suave. I have played several, and they all had "it". I was severly dissapointed after having recently gone through 3 es-335 dots (figured) via musicians buddy mail order- all of which had some sort of defect... real obvious stuff that shouldn't have gotten past Gibson's QC. shame. my 61 re-issue SG is light years above the memphis 335's they were sending me. so i gave up and went in search for a heritage h-535, so as to give it a whirl. let me tell you, these things are more 335 than any modern production gibson es-335.

superb! just be careful as they are hard to find... and when you find one it's usually been sitting in some shop, having been molested by men who neglect to remove the wedding ring before they jingle jangle about the neck. Fit and finish are as you would expect from a guitar twice the price (but you won't find on a gibson es-335). Lovely tops, great fret work... all top notch stuff.

solid.

have e-mailed back and forth with Heritage, and they're quick to answer any questions. They seem willing to do whatever it takes to make a customer happy.

save some money, and buy the Heritage. It may not say Gibson on the headstock, but it's heart oozes authentic 335 mojo.