Back to the Flying Vintage Home Page
Gibson's 1971 Medallion Flying VGibson's Limited Edition Model Flying V By Larry Meiners |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Gibson's 1971 Medallion Flying V was a limited production model guitar issued with a gold medallion screwed into the upper (left/bass) wing and only 350 guitars were made. My sources at Gibson didn't have any information as to why they placed these medallions on the Flying V as well as a Medallion Firebird model at the time. Certainly, Gibson needed to generate excitement for these models as they only sold 62 Flying V and 83 Firebird guitars since the end of 1968. They looked for a catalyst to boost sales and may have found the seeds of the medallion idea in the forthcoming 1972 Olympics games and their grand prize, the gold metal. But no one recalls the true reason. With the introduction of the Medallion guitars and the Les Paul Standard '58 model in 1971, Gibson began in earnest the 'Limited Edition' and 'Reissue' trend which is a significant driver of today's guitar market. Although the Les Paul was called 'Standard '58', it resembled a 1954 model with a combination bridge/tailpiece, one-piece body and neck, thin binding in the cutaway (which the 1968 Les Paul Standards did not have), P-90 pickups, and a gold-top finish. They weren't exact copies as the headstock logo was typical from the '71 period and Gibson added this logo style to the pickup covers. It did not have a volute but was stamped with a 'Made In U.S.A.' on the headstock. Initial success with these special production series added a tool to the manufacturers marketing departments bag, and they used it with ever increasing frequency between 1971 and 1983. Gibson followed these special issues in 1971 with the Les Paul '55 reissue (1973), Les Paul Custom 20th Anniversary limited edition (1974), The Les Paul very limited edition (1976), Explorer limited edition (1976), Les Paul 25/50 Anniversary (1979) and the Heritage series Les Paul, korina Flying V and Explorer (1980-1983). The Historic Series guitars from Gibson today represent high-end reissue offerings of their classic vintage models made with the best materials and made by highly skilled craftsman. Fender, Martin, Gretsch and other manufacturers have followed this trend as well and have numerous fine reissue models of their own. Newer makers such as PRS also have limited edition guitars including their Dragon and Santana models. Cherry RedMedallion Vs were finished in cherry red although a few had been rumored to be painted tobacco sunburst. Overall, the styling and dimensions were very close to the 1966-1970 model Flying V guitars but very different from the Korina versions from 1958. Mahogany wood with a two-piece body construction was the specification for this model. An exposed channel route between the pickups and the control cavities as well as circular routes to accommodate pickup screws were machined into the top (which is covered by the pickguard). Visually, the headstock of the Medallion V are less pointed than the '50s and '60s versions, were painted black and were installed with Gibson Deluxe metal button tulip tuners (some early units came with plastic tuner buttons). These guitars were built with a Tune-o-matic bridge, chrome hardware, black witch-hat knobs and patent number (sticker) humbucking pickups with braded wire. The massive pickguard is a three-ply (white/black/white) plastic, but the logo truss rod cover is four-ply with gold lettering. A volute and 'Made In U.S.A.' stamp are evident on the back of the headstock. Gibson instituted volutes beginning in 1970 and they were increased in size until they were dropped in 1981. It is interesting to note that guitar makers through the years have imitated the styling and features of competitors quite often. Guild used a volute on their archtop guitars during the 1960s. The volute is an added wood contour at the bottom and back of the guitar headstock. The idea was to strengthen the neck/headstock joint and reduce stress cracks. The illusion of more wood in this sensitive area may give comfort to some owners but in reality this design may have made the broken headstock problem worse. For comparison, Table 1 highlights the differences between Flying V guitars issued between 1958 and 1971. Table 1
The most unique feature of this Flying V is the medallion. These coin-like disks are 1 7/16" in diameter, a golden color and have a Gibson logo of the era with the 'plume explosion'. It is inscribed with 'LIMITED EDITION MODEL' and a number below the Gibson logo. While the number on the medallion represented the guitars' serial and production number, the earliest production guitars also had a regular stamped serial number on the back of the headstock. My guess is that Gibson built the first units as they would any other guitar and stamped a six-digit serial number according to their manufacturing instructions. Once they realized the duplicity, they eliminated the stamped serial number. The 'Made In U.S.A.' remained on the back of the headstock throughout. Original hard shell cases (OHSC) for these guitars also had a medallion riveted (not screwed) to the top (near the headstock end) but without any serial number. The case has purple lining and is more rounded at the bottom versus the more angled corners of later Flying V cases. A few Medallion Vs today are sold without their OHSC. Be careful when looking to buy a Medallion Flying V as case medallions can be removed and inscribed with a number. Then these disks are affixed to 70s era Flying V guitars. An interesting aside is that the Firebird's Medallion appears to use a slightly different style font than the Flying V. Market TimingDuring 1971 when the Medallion V was released, the guitar market was booming. The guitar market peaked in 1972 (in terms of units sold) and had not approached those levels until the late 1990s to now. However, acoustic guitars made up about 80% of sales in 1972 and today is about 55%. The total units of electric guitars sold since 1972 has remained fairly constant but acoustic guitar sales had declined for about twenty years. No doubt the baby-boomer generation drove demand for guitars and amplifiers higher. As that generation aged and moved into the workforce, demand subsided. Aging boomers wanting the guitars of their youth (and the money to spend), children of the baby boomers, MTV, new music and the reissue trend have boosted the guitar market in the modern-era. Also, MTV's unplugged series of the 1990s and the popularity of Bluegrass music sparked a revival for acoustic guitars which is reminiscent of the folk boom of the 1960s. Even though the market for guitars in general during 1971 was robust, Gibson did not see enough demand for the Flying V to continue the series beyond the 350 units planned. Gibson began building Flying Vs in production quantities again in 1975 as the heavy metal-era was reverberating throughout America. Bands including Wishbone Ash, Scorpions and UFO were flying their Vs in living color on TV rock concerts and playing in stadiums around the country. Expensive CoinsThe vintage guitar and used guitar markets are influenced by many of the same forces that govern other collectibles and commodities. Put simply, supply and demand rule the day. The supply of Medallion Flying V guitars is fixed and recent pricing reflects the demand for these instruments which is more than triple the market pricing for mid-1970 Flying Vs. Copyright © 2003 Larry Meiners All Rights Reserved |