The EB3 was first manufactured in 1961, and the model changed little by little throughout its years of manufacture. The 1961 model had a silvered bakelite cover on the EB neck pickup with a similarly silvered surround on the bridge pickup.
EB3 Photographs courtesy of Mark Headington. This fine bass sold for $4825 in August 2005.
The cherry finish on Gibson EB basses is prone to fading with sunlight, and handling. Only examples kept cased for the majority of their lives seem to escape this. This bass has browned to some extent - compare with a similar 1961 EB3 with more of it's cherry colouration intact here.
This example is otherwise complete, and it is quite unusual to see an early Gibson EB3 with so much metal plating still attached to the bridge pickup surround. The plating on the neck pickup is heavily worn, as is generally the case; it is no wonder Gibson moved to actual metal pickup covers for their EB basses fairly quickly. The EB3 timeline on this site details some of the changes that were introduced to the EB3 over the two decades of it's production.
Like all 1960s EB basses, this guitar has a scale length of 30 1/2", necessitating short scale strings. EB3s sound phenomenal when fitted with a set of flats. Compare this image of a 1961 Gibson EB3 with a later model - 1969 EB3, notice the difference in neck thickness. The early EB basses had much chunkier feeling necks, which many players prefer. The width at nut is a full 1/4" greater in the 1961 EB3. Notice also the yellowing on the back of the neck. Sweat/oils from the hands of players did have a significant effect on the cherry nitro finish of the earliest EB basses - although all Gibson Cherry finishes were prone to fading, only the earliest yellowed in the way shown here.
The hardcase accompanying this 1961 bass was suitable for an EB0 or EB3 bass guitar. It has the characteristic gold/yellow plush lining so associated with 1960s Gibson guitars. Two EB bass cases were available for the EB3 in 1961: case 540, plush-lined faultless case (1961 price $60), and 329 plush-lined archcraft case (1961 price $26.50).
Gibson EB-3 bass guitars for sale
Vintage Gibson EB3 Bass Guitar
Upper Sandusky, Ohio, 433**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$2477
... more
Gibson Slothead EB-3 1971 - Cherry Fretless Bass w / Original Gibson Case
Huntington, Indiana, 467**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$1500
This bass is an absolute monster and sounds incredible! I don't know for sure (I kinda doubt it) that this would have come from the Gibson factory as fretless. However, whoever did the job has done it professionally and it looks great!
The electronics work perfectly and it has that classic "double bass" tone in the first position!
There is some bow in the neck. The truss doesn't ... more
Gibson EB3 Bass Vintage
Edmonton, Kentucky, 421**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$1990
Gibson EB-3 Cherry Mod 1969 Electric Bass Guitar Original Case Slotted Head Art
El Segundo, California, 902**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$3500
... more
"1973" Vintage Cherry "GIBSON EB-3" with OHSC Serial #056076 in Great Condition
Riverside, California, 925**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$3795
1971 GIBSON EB 3 SLOTTED HEADSTOCK BASS CASE - made in USA
COLOGNE, GERMANY
€399
* CASE ONLY !
* interior has stains
* tolex has rips
* all latches are working fine
* worn but solid
* check all pics
PLENTY of PARTS for SALE
ATTENTION! OVER 1000 more
GUITARS-BASSES-AMPS-PARTS
in our OTHER AUCTIONS !!!
CHECK OUR SHOP OUT -------------->>>>>-------------->>>>>
... more
Gibson EB-3 bass (with slotted headstock) USA / 1971
Donisthorpe, DE12***, UNITED KINGDOM
£2250
EXPORT price is £2250. UK price is £2450, with FREE (mainland) DELIVERY
Rare "slotted headstock" variant of Gibson EB-3, only made twixt 1969-1972. Over 14, 000 EB-3s were hand-made by the Kalamazoo factory ( Michigan / USA), ending in 1979. With set necks (not woodscrews ), and top craftmanship from day one the EB-0 and EB-3 models were played all over the world. Prominent British players were... more
1971 Gibson EB 3 HÜLLE - passt NUR SCHLITZKOPF Version
COLOGNE, GERMANY
£399
* CASE ONLY !
* strap that holds case open=GONE
* bottom and top are loose =need reglueing
* tolex has rips
* all latches are working fine
* check all pics
* SOLD AS IS - NO RETURNS... more
1971 Gibson EB 3 SLOTTED HEADSTOCK BASS CASE - Made in USA
COLOGNE, GERMANY
£345
* CASE ONLY !
* interior has stains
* tolex has rips
* all latches are working fine
* worn but solid
* check all pics
... more
1971 GIBSON EB 3 SLOTTED HEADSTOCK BASS CASE - made in USA
COLOGNE, GERMANY
€444
* CASE ONLY !
* strap that holds case open=GONE
* bottom and top are loose =need reglueing
* tolex has rips
* all latches are working fine
* check all pics
Over 1000 more
GUITARS-BASSES-PARTS in our OTHER
AUCTIONS !!!!
TAKE A LOOK !!!... more
1971 GIBSON EB 3 SLOTTED HEADSTOCK BASS CASE - made in USA
COLOGNE, GERMANY
€399
* CASE ONLY !
* interior has stains
* tolex has rips
* all latches are working fine
* worn but solid
* check all pics
PLENTY of PARTS for SALE
ATTENTION! OVER 1000 more
GUITARS-BASSES-AMPS-PARTS
in our OTHER AUCTIONS !!!
CHECK OUR SHOP OUT -------------->>>>>-------------->>>>>
... more
Gibson EB-3 1965 - Cherry Red JACK BRUCE CREAM
Doncaster, DN6***, UNITED KINGDOM
£5499
Internally / Externally Original
Mahogany body / rosewood fretboard
Humbucking pickup in the neck and mini-humbucker in the bridge
Four-way rotary pickup selector switch
Condition 8 / 10
Case
ALL ... more
1963 Gibson EB-3 Bass ex Bob Daisley (Rainbow, Black Sabbath)
Doncaster, DN6***, UNITED KINGDOM
£7999
We are happy to offer the following from the personal Private Collection of The Blizzard Himself that Being Bob Daisley whom is Heavy Rocks most distinguished and respected of all Bass Players and Songwriters, details as follows
History
The history and career of Bob Daisley is Legendary and has been one of the main contributors to the sound, look, style of the following Iconic Hard Rock artists some of which are as follows:
Rainbow - Black Sabbath - ... more
Gibson EB-3 Bass Guitar 1967
Horncastle, LN9***, UNITED KINGDOM
£2950
Gibson EB-3L 1973 - Vintage Bass Guitar, Long Scale - Original Hard Case - Rare!
Meadow Heights, VIC, 3***, AUSTRALIA
AU $4895
Long Scale 1973 model bass guitar with original hard case
All pictures supplied with the auction are of the actual item for sale, and indicate its condition
This vintage Gibson is in good playable condition with a clean fingerboard and neck, good fretting and fully functional tuners. This model is fitted with a drop-D tuner (adjustable) which functions well. The pickups and wiring appear original, are operational, and it sounds superb. It has been fitted with a set... more