The Gibson Flying V, seen by many as a metal guitar but loved by those in the know because it is a rock n’ roll machine. Don’t forget Hendrix used a V, he had a few of them, the king of UK glam rock Marc Bolan used to spank one and blues legend Albert King loved his V so much that it is etched onto his tombstone. Apart from the great tone that can be coaxed out of these guitars the prices are usually pretty good, due partly to people thinking they are not cool, for me it’s about the tone and feel of that v profile neck that got me into them, a greatly underestimated guitar. This Flying V was doing the rounds on eBay.
From a distance all seems good, a late 70’s or 80’s style headstock, (over the skinnier ‘67 reissues that are currently produced), 70’s style knobs, a nice heritage red finish (sadly not available at the moment) and what appears to be a much older style case. All appears to be pointing to a 70’s model.
A look at the truss rod cover starts to show signs that all is not well. The Gibson logo is not correct, the logo should be the usual one you see on nearly all Gibson guitars. On the back another pointer to this being a fake, this Flying V has a bolt on neck, now contrary to popular belief there have been some Gibson guitars with bolt on necks, the Marauder (with Flying V style headstock) and the Challenger spring to mind but the Flying V has never had this configuration so it’s easy to tell that this is a fake. For lots of great information on the Gibson Flying V check out The Gibson Flying V Website.
