Mick Mars Gibson Flying V Guitar

Lore & Background

The instrument played a crucial role in shaping the band's sonic identity during their golden era. Its single-coil pickups delivered a biting, high-gain tone that cut through the wall of sound created by Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee. While other bands might have swapped guitars frequently, Mars's commitment to this specific shape created a visual continuity for fans. It became an icon of 1980s excess, often seen drenched in sweat, stage lights, and the haze of pyrotechnics that accompanied their legendary live shows.

In Their Own Story

The backstage air was thick with cigarette smoke and the smell of hairspray as Mick adjusted his strap. He ran a calloused hand over the cold metal of the Flying V, feeling the familiar weight settle against his ribs. The crowd outside was screaming, a deafening roar that vibrated through the floorboards. Tonight required everything he had. As the stage lights flared to life, blinding and hot, he lifted the guitar, its sharp wings catching the glare. With a single, distorted chord that rang out like a church bell in a war zone, the night's chaos began.

Reader's Guide

The Gibson Flying V associated with Mick Mars is characterized by its radical asymmetrical body shape, designed to be visually striking and sonically aggressive. Unlike standard stratocasters or les pauls, this instrument features no lower bout, creating a silhouette that points forward like an arrow or a fighter jet. Mars has utilized various iterations of the Flying V throughout his career, often favoring models with high-output pickups capable of sustaining long, screaming notes essential for hard rock solos. The finish is frequently black or sunburst, though stage lighting often obscures the specific paint job in live footage. Culturally, this guitar represents the pinnacle of 1980s heavy metal aesthetics. It signifies a departure from traditional blues instruments into something more futuristic and dangerous. For fans, seeing Mars with his V is as iconic as seeing him with his signature sunglasses or leather jacket, cementing its place in rock history.

Did You Know?

• Mick Mars often played the Flying V while battling severe back pain caused by ankylosing spondylitis, making his stage presence even more impressive.
• The angular design of the Flying V was originally intended to be a futuristic statement in the late 1950s but found its true home in heavy metal.
• Mars has been known to use multiple Flying Vs during tours to ensure he always has a backup ready for his high-energy performances.

Origins and Aluminum Innovation

The genesis of Kramer Guitars traces back to a partnership between luthier Travis Bean and Gary Kramer in Sun Valley, Los Angeles. While their initial venture produced aluminum-necked instruments, Bean eventually departed, leaving Kramer to refine the concept alone. Dissatisfied with the cold feel and excessive weight of pure aluminum necks, Kramer engineered a significant improvement by embedding wooden inserts into the back of the metal structure. This hybrid approach defined the brand's early identity in the mid-1970s. As the company evolved into BK International alongside partners like Dennis Berardi, they began utilizing high-grade exotic tonewoods such as Koa and Bubinga for bodies, paired with Schaller hardware and DiMarzio pickups. The distinctive 'tuning fork' headstock became a visual trademark of this era. Although production ratios favored basses due to players' willingness to experiment, the aluminum-neck line laid the technical groundwork for the brand's future dominance in the heavy metal genre before transitioning toward wooden necks by 1982.

The Transition to Wooden Necks and Offshoring

By late 1981, Kramer strategically pivoted from aluminum to wooden-necked instruments, a move driven by both cost-efficiency and the desire to appeal to traditionalists. This shift coincided with an initial attempt to mimic Fender's Stratocaster headstock, which quickly resulted in a cease-and-desist order from Fender due to trademark violations. In response, Kramer adopted a unique 'beak' design reminiscent of 1960s Kent guitars before eventually settling on other shapes. This period also marked the company's first major foray into global manufacturing, offshoring component production to Eastern Asia. Necks were crafted by Japan's ESP Guitars and shipped to New Jersey for final assembly, while Japanese manufacturer Gotoh supplied tuning keys and tremolos. Recognizing the evolving demands of 1980s guitar techniques, Kramer partnered with German inventor Helmut Rockinger to install advanced tremolo systems that offered superior stability, setting the stage for their eventual collaboration with Floyd Rose.

The Van Halen Connection and Superstrat Dominance

Kramer's meteoric rise in the mid-1980s was catalyzed by a chance meeting between executive Dennis Berardi and Eddie Van Halen's representative aboard an airplane. Intrigued by Kramer's Rockinger tremolo system, which addressed his need for tuning stability during aggressive playing, Van Halen endorsed the brand with enthusiasm. Although the Rockinger system was soon superseded by the Floyd Rose design, Kramer secured an exclusive deal to fit these revolutionary locking tremolos on their instruments in early 1983. This partnership provided a decisive competitive edge over rival manufacturers. The resulting 'Baretta' model, a single-humbucker instrument inspired by Van Halen's stage rig, became the flagship of the lineup and popularized the single-pickup superstrat aesthetic. By integrating Seymour Duncan pickups and adopting distinctive headstock designs like the 'hockey stick' and later the drooped pointy style, Kramer leveraged these innovations to become the best-selling guitar brand in both 1985 and 1986.

Glam Metal Era and Corporate Evolution

Throughout the late 1980s, Kramer solidified its status as the premier choice for hard rock and glam metal musicians. The brand's marketing effectively aligned with high-profile artists like Mick Mars of Mötley Crüe and members of Whitesnake, whose visibility on stage further cemented the guitars' cool factor. Visually, the instruments were enhanced by bold graphics created by factory artists such as Dennis Kline, which complemented the aggressive hardware configurations including Schaller tuners and Floyd Rose bridges. This era represented the peak of Kramer's commercial success before a significant corporate shift occurred in 1997 when Gibson Guitar Corporation acquired Kramer as a division. Despite this acquisition, the legacy of the 1980s remains defined by the brand's ability to merge high-performance engineering with the flamboyant aesthetic demands of the heavy metal explosion, leaving an indelible mark on electric guitar history.