Vintage 1960/61 Epiphone Sorrento E452T Shaded Sunburst With HSC

We just took in a special and rarely seen guitar - an early '60's Epiphone Sorrento.  We immediately fell in love with the acoustic resonance, easy to play slim neck, and overall vibe.  This is a great find that falls under the "rare and affordable vintage" category.

First, some history....

The Epiphone Sorrento (1960-69) was a thinline electric acoustic guitar produced by Gibson, manufactured at their Kalamazoo factory in the 1960s. It was essentially comparable to the Gibson ES-125TC and ES-125 TDC models, as many Gibson instruments had an Epiphone counterpart. The Sorrento was also stylistically similar to the Epiphone Windsor, which debuted in 1959, but lacked the Windsor's gold-plated hardware.  During its time, the Sorrento only had moderate sales, especially compared to the ES-125TC and TDC models. According to published shipping records, a total of 2,651 Sorrentos were shipped throughout the entire 1960s, with the highest number being shipped in 1966.  This is an early version, in a beautiful Shaded Sunburst finish.

Now, about the guitar.....

The body features maple back and sides with a maple top, a rosewood fretboard (dot inlays 1960-61 and pearl oval inlays 1961-69) and a mahogany neck. This era Sorrento also has the traditional Epiphone headstock (changed in 1964 to the ‘cola-bottle’ headstock) with an inlaid Epiphone logo and the free floating Tune-o-matic bridge.  The neck is quite slim, especially compared to other guitars of that era.  It encourages fast playing.  This one has frets that are in great shape. 

The guitar is in good shape, especially considering its age.  The finish is original, as is all of the hardware/parts, except for the tuners (swapped out long ago).  We found that there was a crack on the headstock in the high E tuner area, which was expertly fixed by Truetone's own Pharaoh in the repair shop.   Most importantly, the pickups are original.  Also, the original case is long gone; the guitar does come with a nice aftermarket case.

No serial number is visible; based on our research on the features, we've determined the guitar was built in 1960 or 1961, making it one of the earliest Sorrento's out there.

It's a relatively unknown model but a cult favorite and sleeper hit.  If you're into super cool vintage guitars like this that don't cost an arm and a leg, you've found a great one to grab right here!