Gibson Flying V Black, 1993

The Gibson Flying V was introduced in 1958 as part of an effort by Ted McCarty to modernize Gibson’s reputation with futuristic designs, along with the Explorer and the only-prototyped Moderne. While a few prominent players immediately picked up the Flying V, it was not popular and production ceased by 1959. During 1963, a few were built from leftover parts, but the two initial 1958 production batches totaled around 80 instruments.

While the design of the Gibson Flying V is radical, its construction is simple and straightforward. A two-piece Korina (really Limba wood) body (each side of the V is one piece) is paired with a Korina neck with a Rosewood fingerboard. On the original models, the standard tune-o-matic bridge was not accompanied by a stop tailpiece – the strings fed through the body from the back, like many Fender guitars, and a metal V shaped plate was mounted on the top. Initial models also had the individual volume and master tone controls mounted in a straight line, and the output jack was held on a round plate, separate from the pickguard.

When Gibson reissued the Flying V in 1966, the woods used were Gibson’s standard Mahogany, a stop tailpiece was added in place of the string-through design, the pickguard was enlarged to include the output jack, and the controls were grouped in a parallelogram rather than a straight line. The original layout is occasionally reissued, but as I write this, the Flying V is not a standard production model.

It wasn’t until the rise of more aggressive styles of Rock, especially Metal genres, that the Flying V really took off.

Here we’re looking at Gibson Flying V dressed in black with chrome hardware and dating to August 24th, 1993 at Gibson’s Nashville plant. It is in overall good condition, with a few minor dents and bumps, a small scratch on the lower back, and a small chip on the edge of the headstock at the G tuner. These are all honest wear from being used as intended. It plays quite well, and is certainly distinctive.

The original Gibson hard shell case is included.