❌SOLD❌ Gibson Nighthawk ST Standard 2-pickup Sunburst, 1998

The Gibson Nighthawk was produced in three versions, the Custom (CST or CST-3) the Standard (ST or ST-3) and the Special (SP or SP-3). In all cases, the -3 indicates that the guitar has three pickups. The model was originally built from 1993 to 1998, and again from 2009 to 2020. Unusually for Gibson models, the Nighthawk has a fixed bridge but it’s a string-through model with fully adjustable saddles.

Here we’re looking at a Gibson Nighthawk ST – a Standard with 2 pickups, in a very nice cherry Sunburst on a bookmatched Flame maple cap. This fine example dates to March 26 1998 and was built at Gibson Nashville. As a two pickup ST model, it has gold Grover Deluxe tuners with plastic Keystone buttons, the fixed bridge with six saddles adjustable for length, height and angle. Schaller style locking strap buttons are installed. The two pickups, and angled M-series open coil model and a covered mini-humbucker at the neck, are controlled by Master Volume and Tone controls, and a five-way switch which offers a combination of split and dual coil combinations. In positions one, three and five the pickups are split, and position 3 is a combination of a coil from each pickup. Position two and four provide both coils of one pickup.

Using Gibson’s usual Set-neck construction, the Gibson Nighthawk body features a compact, single-cutaway Mahogany back with a rear comfort contour, and a bound bookmatched flame maple cap. The ST neck is also Mahogany with a bound Indian Rosewood fingerboard sporting split-parallelogram position markers. The headstock is unbound – one of the clues that this is not a Custom model – but carries the characteristic Gibson ‘holly’ crest below the Mother of Pearl Gibson logo.

This Gibson Nighthawk example, built towards the end of the initial production run, is in good clean condition with most of its light play wear to the back, in the form of a bit of jean-rivet rash. There are a few other small pressure marks on the top and back, but overall the finish is in good shape. The gold color on the metal parts has a bit of tarnish. Fret wear is light

The original brown, Gibson-logo Gibson Nighthawk case is included. The upper part from the combination lock has separated from the case, but is included in the neck box.