1972 Gibson SG III Cherry Sunburst

Very good condition featuring asymmetrical double cutaway alder body, two mini-humbucking pickups with black pickup covers and black plastic pickup surrounds, one volume control and one tone control with black plastic “witch hat” knobs with two sliding pickup selector switches and output jack mounted to a single ply black plastic control plate, single ply black plastic elevated pickguard, Bigsby tailpiece, fully adjustable bridge, set maple neck, rosewood fingerboard with pearloid dot inlays starting at the third fret, bone nut, large Gibson open book peghead, black peghead face with gold Gibson logo, multi-ply black and white plastic bell shaped truss rod cover, three on a plate Gibson Deluxe tuning machines with metal tulip shaped tuning buttons, serial number and Made In USA impressed into the back of the peghead, two metal strap buttons, Cherry Sunburst finish and TKL hard shell case.

This 1972 Gibson SG III is in very good vintage cosmetic condition. This instrument shows signs of play wear and age throughout including some small finish dings and small scratches on the body and peghead edges and some pick scratches on the pickguard. A Bigsby tailpiece and adjustable bridge have been professionally installed and. The strap buttons are replacements and there two small holes in the butt end of the instrument where it appears that a different tailpiece was installed at some point. The truss rod cover is a later replacement (see photos). This guitar has a small rounded neck profile with a 1 9/16” nut width. This neck feels nice in the hand and is very comfortable and easy to play. The original fret wire shows some wear but is overall in very good shape and has plenty of life left. This SG plays excellent up and down the rosewood fingerboard with low smooth action and great intonation. The original tuning machines are in great working order and the truss rod is fully operational. The electronics in this SG are all fully original and are working properly. There are visible potentiometer codes that read 1377227 dating these components to the 27th week of 1972. The original “tar back” mini-humbuckers sound exceptional and deliver some outstanding midrange biting tones that excel with overdrive and really have a unique vibe and attack. These models were introduced by Gibson in 1972 and were discontinued in 1977. The SG III has the same specs as the SG II except that it was offered in a Cherry Sunburst finish. These models originally came with a wraparound tailpiece and this one could be converted back to that configuration without much effort. The Bigsby and adjustable bridge really add a level of functionality, intonation and inspiration to this already cool SG, in my opinion. This guitar is housed in an older TKL SG case for safe travels and the guitar weighs 6lb 9oz.