Gibson Flying V archive

Other 1983 Flying V Examples

These photographs document 1983-era Flying Vs shown on the archive’s earlier Designer page, apart from the images now displayed on the Designer Series page. The examples include more than one configuration, so the specifications below describe the cataloged Flying V 83 where the evidence supports it; they should not be assumed to apply to every guitar pictured. Each image opens at its original size.

Specification	Details
Model / year	Gibson Flying V 83, listed in 1983; the model name later reverted to Flying V. Individual guitars pictured on this page may be other period configurations.
Body / neck / fingerboard	The Flying V 83 is described with an alder body and maple neck. Period examples are reported with rosewood or ebony fingerboards; the 1983 Flying V 83 is specifically associated with an ebony board. A later regular Flying V run used mahogany bodies.
Pickups	Two exposed-coverless humbuckers on the revised 1983–era Flying V. Pickup types can differ between individual examples; the archive photos alone do not verify exact pickup models.
Controls / layout	Two volume controls, one tone control, and a three-way pickup selector. On the Flying V 83, the controls are in an offset arrangement, with the selector between two knobs; later revised Flying Vs used the three controls in an arc, with the selector above and output jack below. They are not all arranged in one straight line.
Bridge / hardware	Tune-o-matic bridge and stopbar are typical; some 1983 examples used a wraparound bridge/tailpiece. Vibrato units, including Kahler-equipped examples, are also documented. Chrome hardware.
Catalog finishes / price	The June 1983 price list names Ebony and Ivory and lists the Flying V 83 at $599. Red appears in the January 1984 list. Other colors and hardware seen in later examples should not be read as 1983 catalog specifications.

Natural-finish Gibson Flying V, archive photograph 1 — Natural-finish Flying V

Natural-finish Gibson Flying V, archive photograph 2 — Natural-finish Flying V

Natural-finish Gibson Flying V, archive photograph 3 — Natural-finish Flying V

1983 Gibson Flying V with Kahler flatmount bridge — Flying V with Kahler flatmount

Black Gibson Flying V with truss-rod cover plate — Black Flying V with truss-rod cover plate

Gibson Flying V archive photograph, 1983-era example 1 — 1983-era Flying V example

Gibson Flying V archive photograph, 1983-era example 2 — 1983-era Flying V example

Gibson Flying V archive photograph, 1983-era example 3 — 1983-era Flying V example

Gibson Flying V archive photograph, red 1983-era example — 1983-era Flying V example

Model-year labels for individual photographs follow the old archive captions where available. The 1983 catalog calls the standard model Flying V 83; the control and hardware variations above are kept separate because they are not uniform across every photographed guitar.

Sources cited

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