Gibson Hummingbird Custom

The Gibson Hummingbird Custom at a glance

With the Gibson Hummingbird Custom Dreadnought, the traditional manufacturer from Bozeman in Montana presents a premium Custom Shop western guitar that impresses with select tonewoods, elaborate inlays, refined bindings and, not least, a distinctive and characterful sound. Thanks to its flat bracing, the sound develops quickly and broadly even with light strumming, making the instrument ideal for expressive rhythm playing and delicate picking. As the name suggests, the hummingbird plays a central role and has been lovingly incorporated by hand into the detailed design. The scope of delivery includes a sturdy case and a Gibson accessory kit.

The structure of the top

To achieve clear and well defined mid and treble frequencies, Gibson uses North American Sitka spruce for the top. Supported by hand finished scalloped X bracing, the top vibrates with great ease, allowing every note to respond quickly and clearly. To highlight the even grain of the tonewood, the top is framed by an elaborate multi ply abalone binding that perfectly complements the multi stripe soundhole rosette. The visual centerpiece of the top is the large tortoise style pickguard, decorated with flowers, a butterfly and, of course, the iconic hummingbird crafted from abalone and mother of pearl.

Back and sides

Another defining feature of the Gibson Hummingbird Custom is the richly figured koa used for the back and sides. This Hawaiian tonewood is often chosen for Custom Shop instruments due to its striking visual character and natural color variations, while also delivering a warm and full bodied tonal response. The back is bordered with delicate abalone binding, creating an elegant contrast to the koa. In addition, the two piece back is separated by a color matched center strip that breaks up the opposing grain patterns and blends seamlessly with the darker accents of the wood.

Neck, Hardware & design

With its rounded profile, the mahogany neck paired with an ebony fingerboard ensures comfortable playability across all 20 frets. To guarantee clean and accurate intonation, the 43.8 mm wide nut and the compensated bridge inlay are crafted from bone. This results in exceptional precision across the entire scale length of approximately 629 mm. Gold colored Grover tuners allow smooth and reliable tuning, while the strings are anchored with bone bridge pins in the classic ebony belly up bridge, which also features hummingbird inlays. Detailed mother of pearl Hummingbird Custom inlays extend across the entire fingerboard and are complemented by a generous inlay on the headstock. A wafer thin nitrocellulose lacquer finish completes this thoroughly refined and visually striking instrument.