Epiphone | 1958 Korina Flying V & Explorer
Get recreations of the models that launched the Golden Era of electric guitar design into the Space Age!
Epiphone has announced the launch of a new Limited Edition run of instruments recreating two of the most recognizable and valuable vintage guitars ever produced! Made in partnership with the Gibson Custom Shop, the new Limited Edition 1958 Korina Flying V and 1958 Korina Explorer bring the authentic details of each original model to today’s guitarists!
Blasting off into the electric guitar stratosphere!
Although Gibson's first solidbody electric guitar—the Les Paul Standard—has come to represent the pinnacle achievement of design in the instrument category today, by 1957, sales of the company’s flagship solidbody guitar were not as high as Gibson President Ted McCarty had hoped. So, ahead of the NAMM show that same year, he put together a team of employees at Gibson to design the what would come to be known as the “Modernistic” series, with an aim to shake things up at the show, by coming up with guitar shapes that were different from anything else on the market.
Far ahead of their time, the resulting futuristic designs—which included the Flying V and Explorer—achieved McCarty’s goal, shocking the guitar world with Modernistic series’ sharply-angled shapes and supremely resonant Korina bodies.
While the Flying V was adopted by a few players from the start, like bluesman Albert King, the Modernistic series models produced from 1958-’59 were seen largely as novelties, with only an estimated 98 Flying Vs having shipped, overall, while just a mere 22 Explorers are known to have been produced—making the surviving instruments from both models’ initial production run even rarer (and more valuable) finds on the vintage market than even the fabled Burst Les Paul Standards from the same years!
Limited Edition 1958 Korina Flying V
Recreating what is arguably one of the most distinctive and beloved guitar shapes ever produced, the Epiphone Limited Edition 1958 Flying V features a Korina body and neck with a long neck tenon and 1958 Flying V neck profile. Equipped with an Indian laurel fretboard and gold hardware, it also features Gibson Burstbucker 2 and Burstbucker 3 pickups wired to individual volume controls and a master tone control with CTS potentiometers and a Mallory capacitor. An Epiphone x Gibson Custom logo is proudly displayed on the back of the headstock, and a hardshell case is also included.
Limited Edition 1958 Korina Explorer
Named after the first American satellite launched into orbit, the space-age design of the original Explorers proved to be decades ahead of their time. Like the ultra-rare original Gibson models from 1958, the Epiphone Limited Edition 1958 Explorer features a Korina body and neck, with a long tenon and 1958 Explorer neck profile. It’s equipped with an Indian laurel fretboard and gold hardware, with Gibson Burstbucker 2 and Burstbucker 3 pickups wired to individual volume controls and a master tone control, outfitted with CTS potentiometers and a Mallory capacitors, as well as an Epiphone x Gibson Custom logo on the back of the headstock. A hardshell case is also included.
Capture the mystique of these recreations today by pre-ordering yours at Chicago Music Exchange!
SHOP EPIPHONE
Related Posts
Universal Audio | SD-3 SD-5 SD-7 Dynamic Microphones
Did you know that you can find an assortment of some of the best-sounding pro audio and microphone brands available anywhere at Chicago Music Exchange? Now, you can get studio-quality recordings with some of the most highly sought-after microphones used in professional recording studios today—plus, some of their most sought-after vintage predecessors—with the Universal Audio SD-3, SD-5, SD-7 dynamic modeling microphones available at CME!
Read more
Veillette Guitars | Avante Gryphon
Back by popular demand, Veillette Guitars’ Avante Gryphon acoustic-electric guitars have landed once again in the Acoustic Room at Chicago Music Exchange! To learn more call CME, chat with us online or in the app, or stop into our Lincoln Avenue showroom to hear how it sounds yourself!
Read more
Introducing | Chapman Guitars
Founded by Dorje frontman and YouTube guitar-playing extraordinaire Rob Chapman, Chapman Guitars are designed in collaboration with musicians to inspire the artists who use them! Call Chicago Music Exchange today, chat us, or stop into our showroom to get your hands on new Chapman Guitars!
Read more