The Strangest Standard Edition Electric Guitars For Sale

One of the most unique aspects of guitars is that they are not only a musical instrument but also a conduit for self-expression, with the guitars and accessories for guitar we own saying a lot about what we prioritise in art, music and life itself.

The strangest guitars of all tend to be exceptionally limited editions or one-off models, such as the infamous Michael Angelo Batio Quad Guitar or the Rick Nielsen quint-neck.

However, there have also been some very uniquely bizarre production guitars available for wider release, albeit often not much wider.

ESP E-11 MF-9 BabyMetal

There has been some debate about whether this counts instead as a limited edition, but the existence of a nine-string guitar in collaboration with the most metal J-Pop band alive certainly makes it worthy of note.

The kawaii metal duo and their exceptionally talented musical entourage are a unique experience to listen to, particularly given how intensely reliant on distortion their music.

With that said, nine strings are just one away from a Chapman Stick or a Warr Guitar, so it is a very strange and exceptionally heavy addition to a musician's collection.

Ibanez IMG2010 X-Ing

Today, Ibanez is known almost exclusively for shred-friendly guitars, working closely with lightning-fingered performers such as Paul Gilbert. However, in the 1980s Ibanez would almost always surprise you with their ambitious, often surreal designs.

Take for example the IMG2010 made by FujiGen that became a cult classic in the world of guitar synthesisers, being both a high quality, oddly designed solid-body guitar and an effective MIDI controller.

Unfortunately, it only lasted a year, so between 500 and 2000 were ever made.

Gibson Firebird X

Much has been written about Gibson’s late 2000s attempt to revolutionise the guitar world and its own image, mostly because it became the legendary manufacturer’s most notable misfire.

Featuring a wealth of gizmos and gadgets from the Robot Guitar self-tuning pegs that made their way onto the higher-end Les Paul models to the ability to apply different sound patches to the guitar akin to a built-in effects processor.

Unfortunately, its atrocious launch and high price meant that the guitar did not become the wave of the future but a bizarre novelty from a road not travelled.

Gibson Reverse V

A far less prominent oddity for Gibson was the inversion of its ambitious and extroverted Flying V guitar design, which very much takes the V-shaped design inward, which in practice makes it look more like a double-cutaway guitar with an exceptionally tiny back that tapered to a point.

It was initially meant to be a limited edition as part of Gibson’s 2007 Guitar of the Week promotion, but the initial run of 400 sold so quickly that another 900 were produced a few months later in 2008.

Whilst it has not had the same cultural impact as the traditional Flying V, which has been the guitar of choice for a wide variety of shredders, the Reverse V has certainly proven to be a most curious and strange instrument indeed.