1963 Gibson Firebird
V ®
With its "reverse" body style, Gibson's
Firebird series of 1963 took conventional guitar
design on a 180-degree turn. Today's Firebird V
faithfully reproduces the neck-through-body construction
that made the originals legendary.
| Body |
Nine-ply
Mahogany and Walnut neck-through body, Mahogany
wings |
| Neck/Profile
|
Nine-ply
Mahogany and Walnut/1960 Slim-taper |
| Fingerboard/Inlay
|
Rosewood/Trapezoid |
|
Scale/Nut Width |
243/4"/111/16" |
| Binding |
Single-ply
fingerboard |
| Bridge/Tailpiece
|
ABR/Stop
bar |
| Hardware
|
Chrome |
| Pickups |
Two high-output
mini-humbuckers |
| Controls
|
Two volume,
two tone, three-way switch |
| Strings |
Brite Wires
.009-.042 |
Gibson Firebird® Vintage
Specs
Firebird
I, III, V, VII Electric Solidbody
Available: 1963 to present
Collectibility Rating: 1964-1965: B, 1965-1969:
D.
Fall
1963 to mid-1965 Reverse Firebird specs (all models):
"Reverse" body style with treble
horn larger than bass horn, neck thru body construction
with side wings glued on, raised middle section
of body, Firebird mini-humbucking pickups with metal
cover and metal mounting ring (no adjustable poles),
3 ply white pickguard with beveled edge that is
only on the treble side of the pickups, beveled
peghead edge, large Kluson banjo-style tuners all
on treble side of peghead with high E-string nearest
the nut (shortest string), nickel plated or gold
plated parts, sunburst finish (custom colors optional).
1963 models have no engraved Firebird on the pickguard.
1964 and later models have red engraved Firebird
on the pickguard. Note some transition Firebirds
during the summer of 1965 has mixed reverse and
non-reverse features.
Reverse
Firebird I:
1 pickup, no switch, 2 knobs, stud
tailpiece/bridge that the strings wrap around (though
a spring metal Firebird III vibrato could be special
ordered), unbound rosewood fingerboard, dot fingerboard
inlays.
Reverse
Firebird III:
2 pickups, 3 way toggle switch,
4 knobs, stud bridge/tailpiece, short flat-arm metal
spring vibrato, single bound fingerboard, dot fingerboard
inlays. The strings go over the bridge/tailpiece
and terminate at the spring metal vibrato. This
mean a lot of players just wrapped the strings around
the bridge (like a Firebird I), and do not use the
vibrato (a neat solution, which requires no modification
to the guitar, because the vibrato could be left
completely intact by unused).
Reverse
Firebird V:
2 pickups, 3 way toggle switch,
4 knobs, Tune-o-matic bridge, deluxe vibrato with
tubular lever arm with plastic end cap, metal tailpiece
cover engraved with "Gibson" and leaf and lyre,
single bound fingerboard, trapezoid fingerboard
inlays. Some very early introduction 1963 Firebird
V's do not have a tune-a-matic bridge, but instead
have a Firebird III bridge/tailpiece with a Firebird
V vibrato.
Reverse
Firebird VII:
3 pickups, 3 way toggle switch,
4 knobs, Tune-o-matic bridge, deluxe vibrato with
tubular lever arm with plastic end cap, metal tailpiece
cover engraved with "Gibson" and leaf and lyre,
single bound ebony fingerboard, block fingerboard
inlays, gold plated parts. Frets are finished like
a Les Paul Custom; small frets leveled flat. Because
of this, all Firebird VII's need a fret job when
then left the factory new! (by today's playing standards).
Reverse Firebirds discontinued mid
1965. Some reverse models have transition specs
combining reverse and non-reverse features. Reintroduced
1972 to 1979. Re-introduced again 1990 and still
available.
- 1965
to 1969 Non-Reverse Firebirds specs (all models):
-
- One-piece
neck-thru-body changed to a glue-in neck, bass
side cutaway horn now longer than treble side
horn, standard style right-angle tuners on same
side as a Fender (low-E shortest string), flat
peghead (no raised ledge), pickguard now wraps
completely around the pickups (enabling one pickup
routing style for all models), chrome or gold
plated parts, black sliding pickups switch, unbound
rosewood fingerboard with dot inlays, sunburst
finish (custom colors still available).
