The Gibson Dickey Betts SG Aged and Signed is a Gibson Custom Shop-built guitar which has been aged and modified to reproduce the Allman Brothers Band guitarist's weapon of choice, an old battered '61 SG Standard.
One of the most fabled guitars in rock and roll history, the '61/62 Gibson SG Standard given to Duane Allman by Dickey Betts during their playing days together is a guitar of epic proportions. Dickey gave Duane Allman an SG so he didn’t have to wait while he re-tuned. Instead Allman could switch between the 1961/62 Gibson SG Standard and one of his Les Pauls. This classic tone machine has recreated a living slice of rock history in extremely limited numbers as the Dickey Betts “From One Brother to Another” SG.
SG Standards of the early ’60s carried some of the finest Gibson humbucking pickups ever made, units in transition between the "Patent Applied For" and "Patent Number" eras. To capture this amazing rich tone, Gibson Custom Shop has loaded the Dickey Betts SG with a pair of Custom humbuckers with aged nickel covers, wound and constructed to precise PAF specs, with rare Alnico III magnets and slightly mismatched and unpotted coils, two of the secrets to the articulate and slightly edgy tone for which great PAF and Patent No. pickups are famous. The guitar carries a genuine Nylon 6/6 nut, with slots cut on Gibson’s PLEK for optimum precision, which are matched by nylon saddles in the ABR-1 Tune-o-matic bridge. To mirror a popular modification of the time, as performed on the original guitar, this SG carries a stopbar tailpiece in place of the Lyre vibrola, an upgrade undertaken to improve sustain and stability, while a set of enclosed metal-button nickel tuners represent another common modification. All in all, this exclusive guitar presents a miraculous means of getting a realistic slice of Allman Brothers tone and history into your hands—but numbers are extremely limited, so check out the Dickey Betts “From One Brother to Another” SG at your authorized Gibson dealer today.
The body of the Gibson Dickey Betts SG, dubbed the “From One Brother to Another” SG, is constructed from one piece of genuine mahogany, carved to the historically accurate early ’60s SG shape with dual asymmetrical horns and beveled edges. A deep-set glued-in neck is carved from one piece of superior quarter-sawn mahogany and topped with a rosewood fingerboard with 22 banjo frets, just like the original. This Dickey Betts SG is finished in genuine hand-sprayed nitrocellulose lacquer in Vintage Red; one 75 built in the world that has been meticulously hand aged to match the look of the original SG guitar, and signed by Dickey Betts himself.
Produced in extremely limited numbers, with only 75 examples hand-aged by Gibson Custom and signed by Betts, and another 250 featuring Gibson Custom's VOS (Vintage Original Spec) finish process and appointments, this model is an exacting reproduction of a stand-out SG from a golden age of guitar production. It offers the sublime tone and playing feel that these guitars are known for, with the looks of a hard-working legend.
Each guitar includes a Gibson hardshell case; 75 hand-aged examples include a leather Certificate of Authenticity signed by Dickey Betts and a collage poster of the original guitar signed by the Custom Shop. The Gibson Dickey Betts SG Aged and Signed guitar is also covered by Gibson’s Limited Lifetime Warranty.
Main Features of the Gibson Dickey Betts SG Aged and Signed electric guitar include:
- One of only 75 guitars Aged & Signed by Dickey Betts
- Genuine one-piece Mahogany body with Vintage Red finish
- Rosewood fingerboard with Dickey Betts neck profile
- 22 "banjo frets", like the original
- Pair of rare Alnico III Custom humbucker neck and bridge pickups
- Add-on wraparound tailpiece and ABR-1 bridge with plastic saddles
- Chrome, classic style tuners with 12:1 tuning ratio
- Mother of Pearl "Gibson" Logo with Holly Veneer
- 1.695" nut width
- ABR-1 Bridge with Plastic Saddles
- Leather Certificate of Authenticity Signed by Dickey Betts
- Collage Poster of the Original Instrument signed and numbered by Custom Shop Management
- Gibson Custom Hardshell Case with Dickey Betts Signature
Gibson Dickey Betts SG Aged & Signed Electric Guitar (code 91656)
6-String Electric Guitar, Custom Shop SG, Mahogany Neck With Dickey Betts Profile, Aged Chrome Hardware, Aged Vintage Red Finish
£4,999.00 (inc vat)