Mid-1965 saw a total redesign of the entire Gibson Firebird series of guitars, switching to a more traditional "non-reverse" body shape, much simpler construction, some pickup and hardware changes, and the introduction of far more custom colors than were available on the original run.

The early Firebirds used a complex neck-through-body design, but the new models went with a more traditional set-neck and were significantly lighter, easier to build, and came in at a lower price than the first Firebird design.

The "Non-Reverse" Firebird VII saw perhaps the biggest changes with a switch from Ebony to Rosewood fretboard, and features a trio of rail-type Firebird pickups (not to be confused with the mini-humbuckers found on a Les Paul Deluxe), gold hardware, long vibrola tailpiece, and an unbound neck with dot inlays. While Sunburst was the standard, most common finish, vibrant custom colors can be had for a premium price.

Note: A large number of Firebirds have had broken headstocks repaired -- for pricing purposes, we encourage all sellers (and edit when necessary) to use "Good" condition or below when these guitars have had repaired headstock cracks or breaks.