Burst Pic of the Week: 59 Stinger Burst, employee guitar?

[Tom Wittrock]

Here's a couple of beautiful shots of the 59 Gruhn had a short while back. These are from Vic DaPra and as usual, they are stunning. This guitar has a stinger and no serial number, and is suspected of being an employee guitar.

Thanks Vic!
:dude

 

[lew81]

Beautiful. What does Stinger mean? And employee guitar??? Cheers.

 

[58burst]

I handled a darkburst with a stinger back in the early eighties- The only other one than this I've heard of.

Are there many more?

 

[DANELECTRO]

Beautiful. What does Stinger mean? And employee guitar??? Cheers.

The back of the headstock face is painted black and forms a point which is the result of the contour of the neck. It is said that that this was done to hide flaws in the grain of the wood. That has always sounded like a bogus explaination to me. Stingers were painted on L5s and Super 400s long before Les Pauls were around. I suspect it was done simply because somebody thought it looked good.

 

[Tom Wittrock]

Thanks for adding those Gruhn pics, DANELECTRO! :dude

 

[SirPsycho]

I suspect it was done simply because somebody thought it looked good.

Yes it looks good! IMO
Very nice Burst too!

 

[Pimmie]

Amazing guitar ... :salude

 

[Banker]

Wow, it looks much flamier in Vic's pictures. Handsome guitar.

 

[GeetarGoul]

Dave Carpenter's 59' in BOTB has a stinger too.

 

[Chef Greg]

:yay

 

[lew81]

The back of the headstock face is painted black and forms a point which is the result of the contour of the neck. It is said that that this was done to hide flaws in the grain of the wood. That has always sounded like a bogus explaination to me. Stingers were painted on L5s and Super 400s long before Les Pauls were around. I suspect it was done simply because somebody thought it looked good.

And what's an employee guitar???

Thanks.

 

[heinz57]

Vic DEFINITELY has photography skills !!!

 

[Joe Ganzler]

Vic DEFINITELY has photography skills !!!

No shit! Hard to believe it's the same guitar! Kinda like Gladys on the Gruhn website:

And then photographed by my pal Jim Gentry:

When George figures out that he should have a pro do his Burst shots, he'll MAKE 25-50% MORE on each one. . . :ahem

 

[Tom Wittrock]

And what's an employee guitar???

Thanks.

A guitar made by a Gibson employee, for himself.

 

[tvshooter]

:dude :drl

 

[Dishimyuh]

Could the "stinger" have been the result of a headstock repair possibly?

 

[Tom Wittrock]

Could the "stinger" have been the result of a headstock repair possibly?

There seems to be no evidence of a repair.
As stated, Gibson had used that for years before, on high end archtops, probably as a decorative thing.

 

[holygrail]

As stated, Gibson had used that for years before, on high end archtops, probably as a decorative thing.

My Johnny Smith has it.

 

[burstone]

A '63 SG that I used to own had the stinger too. It was very cool.

 

[gmann]

My Johnny Smith has it.

It's common on the upper end jazz type guitars, L5's, Super 400's, Byrdlands etc....My '50 ES5N as well as every ES5 I've seen for that matter have 'em. My '59 cherry Jr. has it with a white, now yellowed, ser. #.