Built on the concept of the thin bodied yet fully hollow archtop electric guitar, the Eastman T64/V-RD Electric Guitar delivers the tone, feel and look of early 1960s models. Gibson produced the first of these in 1959 with the ES-330, and in 1961 extended the design to their Epiphone line as the ES-230 Casino. That model was quickly picked up by British players including Paul McCartney, John Lennon and George Harrison who used theirs on many hits.
Keith Richards also used one on the Stone’s first US tour, including the Dean Martin show at the Hollywood Palace in June 1964. The last time Richards used the Casino was in Sacramento on December 3 1965, when he was electrocuted on stage, an event that damaged the guitar as well as injuring Richards.
The Eastman T64V follows the design of these guitars, with Laminate Maple for the top, back and sides, and solid Maple for the neck. The 12-inch radius fingerboard is Ebony with Mother of Pearl Parallelogram position markers. The top, back, F-holes and fingerboard are bound – only the headstock is not.
Hardware on the Eastman T64V is top notch. The tuners are Gotoh Relic Series SD90, reproducing the classic Kluson Deluxe keystone models, and the ‘tune-o-matic’ type bridge is a Gotoh Relic Series GE104B model. The tailpiece is a US-made Bigsby B7 dual roller model.
As a side note, these US made Bigsby parts as used on the Eastman T64v are functionally identical to the less expensive Bigsby models that say ‘licensed’. However, they are made by Bigsby in the USA and are measured inches, while the ‘licensed’ models are made offshore and have metric measurements. Additionally, screw or bolt locations can be in different places, so 3rd part accessories made by folks like VibraMate only fit US made models. The US made string bar accessories, such as the Chet Atkins arm and bracket, only fit on US made string bars.
The electronics are also top shelf, with a pair of Lollar Dog Ear P-90 pickups, Switchcraft switch and output jack, 250K Audio taper pots for the individual volumes and Linear taper for the tones.
DETAILS:
- Neck Material: Maple
- Fingerboard: Ebony
- Fingerboard Radius: 12"
- Neck Profile: Traditional Even "C"
- Nut: Bone 1 3/4"
- 1st Fret String Height: .022"
- 12th Fret String Height: Bass .078" and Treble .062"
- Fretwire: 22 Medium Jumbo Jescar 47104
- Scale Length: 24.75"
- Body Style: 16" Hollowbody Thinline
- Body Dimensions: 16" x 1 3/4"
- Body Top: Deluxe Maple Laminate
- Body Back/Sides: Deluxe Maple Laminate
- Truss Rod: Single Acting
- Binding: Neck, Body,
- Binding Material: Ivoroid
- Logo: Pearl Headstock
- Inlay: Pearl Split Blocks
- Finish: Antique Varnish
- Hardware Color: Aged Nickel
- Pickguard: Black Plastic with Ivoroid Binding (/v-RD only)
- Tailpiece: US Bigsby B7 0495-B7
- Bridge: Gotoh Relic Series GE103B
- Tuners: Gotoh Relic Series SD90
- Knobs: Black Top Hats
- Neck Pickup: Lollar Dog Ear P-90
- Bridge Pickup: Lollar Dog Ear P-90
- Pickup Height: 3/32" bass side, 3/32" treble side
- Pickup Frame: Black Plastic
- Switch: 3 Way Switch
- Capacitors: 0.022μF
- Potentiometers: 250k Audio Linear
- Output Jack: Switchcraft
- Case: Hardshell Case
