GUITARTRASHORTREASURE
ZACHARY FJESTAD
Dear Guitar Trash or Treasure,
Can you help me with some information about this odd
guitar? Some people have told me it is called a Flying V, but
it does not look like any of the other Flying Vs I have seen.
Gibson appears on the top of the headstock along with a V2,
and the number 80700XXX appears on the back. What is this
thing, and what is it worth?
Todd in Chicago, IL
Hi Todd,
President Ted McCarty noticed
that Gibson’s solidbody guitars
were looking too old and traditional compared to Fender’s futuristic
designs. He assembled a team
to design three new instruments
and the Flying V was one of the
results of their research – this guitar was officially unveiled in 1958,
along with another futuristic-look-ing guitar called the Explorer.
Very few people caught onto the
design and less than 100 Flying
Vs were produced during their
initial run between 1958 and 1959.
However, Gibson never let the project die completely, releasing
three variations based on the original design during the late 1960s
and into the 1970s.
This question could not have
come at a better time, considering I just finished a book called
Gibson Flying V. Not only do I
have all the information at my fingertips, but most of it is still fresh
in my brain. First I’ll give you a
little history about this guitar.
(check out the October 2007 Trash or Treasure for more information on brass hardware).
Despite all of these design changes, the pickups are what really
make this guitar stick out. These V-shaped “boomerang” pickups
were designed to produce single coil pickup tone with the noise
reduction provided by humbuckers. The design of these pickups
is quite complex, and there isn’t
room in this article to offer up all
of the details. Note the notch at
the end of the fingerboard, need-
ed due to the pickups’ unusual
shape.
There is no doubt that this Flying
V came into existence during one
of Gibson’s bleakest times, but
based on uniqueness and originality, the V2 is one of the few bright
spots during this era and collectors are beginning to take notice
of this unusual V. Natural finish V2s
like yours are currently going for
between $2000 and $2250, with
custom color V2s commanding an
additional 20-40% premium. You
definitely have a treasure!
For more information on these
unusual V-shaped guitars, check
out my new book, Gibson Flying
V. This is a revised edition with
new chapters covering all Flying
Vs models through 2007 as well
as information on Epiphone and
other manufacturers’ V designs.
Tim Shaw began working at Gibson in late 1978 and one of his
first projects was to design an entirely new Flying V that would
be a companion to the new E2 Explorer. The guitar you have is a
1980 Gibson V2, the result of Shaw’s work in the late ‘70s. This
guitar has several unique features that set it apart from earlier
Flying V designs. The body is constructed out of a five-piece sandwich design; the contoured edges allow the different layers from
the front and the sides to be visible. Brass studs for the bridge,
a brass nut, and a brass tailpiece were used to increase sustain
Zachary R. Fjestad
is the author of the Blue Book of Acoustic Guitars, Blue Book
of Electric Guitars, and the Blue Book of Guitar Amplifiers.
Guitar Trash or Treasure Questions can be submitted to:
Blue Book Publications
Attn: Guitar Trash or Treasure
8009 34th Ave. S. Ste #175
Minneapolis, MN 55425
800-877-4867
www.bluebookinc.com
guitars@bluebookinc.com
