When Gibson designed a new trio of futuristic-looking guitars in 1957 to bring fresh, modern-looking designs to the product lineup, one of them was the Futura, which was designed alongside the Flying V and Moderne. While many guitarists may have never heard of the Futura, most are no doubt familiar with its direct descendant, the guitar it evolved into: the Explorer. The Futura closely resembles the modern Explorer, but had a somewhat different, more angular body shape and a split V headstock design that was used on only a handful of the earliest Explorers before they transitioned to the scimitar-shaped headstock that the model is known for today. The Futura was never actually released in the late 1950s, with only a handful of prototypes made in that era, and only a few ever making it out into the wild, making them exceptionally rare, surpassed in rarity only by the Moderne, of which no authentic '50s era examples have ever been located and authenticated.
While the earliest Flying V and Explorer models that were released in 1958 featured Korina bodies, the earliest Futura prototypes were made from mahogany. Mahogany has a somewhat warmer sound than the brighter Korina. Mahogany is also a more readily available wood than the scarcer Korina, and an ideal choice for modern players who prefer a denser, all-mahogany tone for rock and metal.
Now, Gibson Custom is very proud to introduce the 1957 Mahogany Futura Reissue, a faithful reproduction of those rare '50s era Futura prototypes. It features a mahogany body with the original Futura shape made to vintage specifications, a mahogany neck with a '50s Vintage profile, and the original Futura split V headstock design, complete with reissue Kluson single-ring tuners. The unbound Indian rosewood fretboard is equipped with 22 reissue frets and cellulose dot inlays.
The 1957 Mahogany Futura Reissue is powered by two unpotted Custombucker humbucker pickups with Alnico 3 magnets that are hand-wired to two volume and one tone control with CTS potentiometers and a phone book tone capacitor. The Antique Natural nitrocellulose lacquer and gold hardware are VOS-finished, giving it the look of a new-old-stock guitar from the late 1950s. A Lifton historic reissue brown and pink hardshell case is also included. Here’s your chance to own an authentic recreation of one of the rarest models in Gibson history.
