# NGD: HB-35Plus Harley Benton



## Tarbender (Apr 7, 2006)

I sold my Gibson ES-335 about a month or two ago because I rarely played it. But the last couple of weeks I’ve been missing it a bit, so I decided to see what was out there for not too much $$$ so I could justify it. Well, I’d was starting to hear a lot about Harley Benton guitars every where I looked and decided to look into it a little closer.

I couldn’t find anyone who really didn’t like them so I went to their website and couldn’t believe the price. It was a no brainer for me, if I didn’t like it, there was a 30 day money back guarantee, or I could throw it on Kijiji. Anyway it arrived today and wow, pleasantly surprised.










I was expecting a striped down Asian 335 copy with the usual blems and setup issues and cheap parts. This guitar was the complete opposite. It was if it was setup at a store before being put out on the shop floor for consumers to check out.










I checked out the electronics – full size Alpha pots – not bad. Three way pickup selector was nice and solid. The pickups are Harley Benton’s own “Roswell LAF 5 Humbuckers” which are very passible all things considered, although when split seemed to loose more than a bit of volume, once I plugged the guitar in.

The action was nice and could probably be lowered a touch if you wanted, but it was fine for me. The intonation was remarkable good with the Tune-o-matic style bridge and stopbar setup. The 13” radius was great to bend notes on and I had fun playing this guitar.










Now the negative. The top was advertised as AAAA Maple. Not even Donald Trump could call this AAAA with a straight face. It’s a nice top but maybe an “A”? But for the money, no one is going to complain.

The nut holding the jack plug was very loose and it did require me to get a wrench and tighten it up.

The fret work is very nice, BUT, were covered with some king of dirty buffing compound which really should have been caught by quality control.

At the end of the day, this is an absolutely awesome guitar for the money, and while I would never dare to compare it to my 335, for the money, it’s the best bang for the buck I’ve ever come across in a long time.


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## Grab n Go (May 1, 2013)

Nice! I've been eyeing their headless guitar options for a while.

if you don't mind me asking, how much was shipping from Thomann?


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

If that beats a dot and comes in black, i may be in trouble.


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## Tarbender (Apr 7, 2006)

Shipping was @ $90.00. They shipped it on Tuesday and I got it this morning, so worth the money.


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## Tarbender (Apr 7, 2006)

Budda said:


> If that beats a dot and comes in black, i may be in trouble.


Sorry to tell you it comes in Lemon, Cherry, Tobaco Burst, and.... wait for it....Black! You're in trouble!


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## Dan Caldwell (Feb 26, 2017)

Did you order from the USA store or the Germany one?


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## Tarbender (Apr 7, 2006)

I didn't know that there was a U.S. store. I was under the impression that Thomann in Burgebrach was the only place you could order from.


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## Dan Caldwell (Feb 26, 2017)

Tarbender said:


> I didn't know that there was a U.S. store. I was under the impression that Thomann in Burgebrach was the only place you could order from.


I think it’s newer. Reason I asked is I order from the German site before bit it took 3 months to get them. I might buy a 335 to have while I look for my forever 345. These are certainly on the list....


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## tomee2 (Feb 27, 2017)

So I'm now asking myself why am I scouring kijiji for a used Epiphone 335 when I can buy this?
Was there duty or broker fees or taxes added on?


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## Tarbender (Apr 7, 2006)

The reason I got mine in only 3 days was because they had just finished a production run. The wait time is now 5-6 weeks. I'm thinking about getting another one, this one is so good, but it would be a LP Jr. DC. Just great bang for the buck!


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## Jim Soloway (Sep 27, 2013)

Grab n Go said:


> Nice! I've been eyeing their headless guitar options for a while.
> 
> if you don't mind me asking, how much was shipping from Thomann?


I just got the new Dullahan with roasted maple neck and fingerboard. It's an amazing guitar for the price. Really well designed and a solid build.


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## Grab n Go (May 1, 2013)

Jim Soloway said:


> I just got the new Dullahan with roasted maple neck and fingerboard. It's an amazing guitar for the price. Really well designed and a solid build.


Congrats! That's the one that caught my eye. Good to hear that it's a quality build.


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## Jim Soloway (Sep 27, 2013)

Grab n Go said:


> Congrats! That's the one that caught my eye. Good to hear that it's a quality build.


I just posted a short video and some details if you're interested.


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