'66 D40

[donnylang]

I was gonna do a "new guitar day" post, but I decided to sell this one. Thought you guys might wanna see the video demo though:



One thing really cool about this one is the super clean original case, and the unopened polishing cloth and SEALED case key envelope:



Biggest bummer is someone totally ripped out the paper label at some point in the past (remnants are visible). Serial remains intact on the back of the headstock however:

 

[twocorgis]

Is this guitar listed for sale anywhere (says the guy that needs another mahogany dread like a hole in the head)?

 

[donnylang]

Is this guitar listed for sale anywhere (says the guy that needs another mahogany dread like a hole in the head)?

Ha ...

I've got it on Reverb, but I priced it pretty high (I usually start high and lower every few days until it sells) ... mostly because it's been a bit of a holy grail for me so I'm not quite ready to let it go unless the price is right. I would of course sell for much less to LTG-ers (especially outside of Reverb).

Guild D-40 Bluegrass Jubilee | Reverb

Compare prices, make an offer, get a deal on a Guild D-40.

reverb.com

I also am closing a deal elsewhere on another Guild (more to come on that ha).

Donny

 

[twocorgis]

Ha ...

I've got it on Reverb, but I priced it pretty high (I usually start high and lower every few days until it sells) ... mostly because it's been a bit of a holy grail for me so I'm not quite ready to let it go unless the price is right. I would of course sell for much less to LTG-ers (especially outside of Reverb).

Guild D-40 Bluegrass Jubilee | Reverb

Compare prices, make an offer, get a deal on a Guild D-40.

reverb.com

I also am closing a deal elsewhere on another Guild (more to come on that ha).

Donny

Since Reverb started sucking even more than eBay, I try to never buy there anymore. My usual message is either "do you have it listed elsewhere?" or I find the brick and mortar sellers and call them directly to strike a deal.

 

[donnylang]

Since Reverb started sucking even more than eBay, I try to never buy there anymore. My usual message is either "do you have it listed elsewhere?" or I find the brick and mortar sellers and call them directly to strike a deal.

I’ve had mixed experiences with them but the fees are getting up there, and the sales tax for buyers really add up to a pretty big chunk. The one thing that’s pretty good is the shipping charges are at a pretty good discount. Pre-sales tax and when their fees were low were some pretty good days.

 

[D30Man]

Since Reverb started sucking even more than eBay, I try to never buy there anymore. My usual message is either "do you have it listed elsewhere?" or I find the brick and mortar sellers and call them directly to strike a deal.

I’ve had pretty good experiences with Reverb overall but I have been known to call the store directly to have a real deal discussion. That’s what I did for my F55. Talked directly to the guy at Chicago Music Exchange. Never hurts to try.

 

[Br1ck]

This is the kind of thread that just kills me. Whenever I can drive to where a guitar is, my skin gets all tingly. But like the OP, I have a D 35 I like that has had the neck reset already and sounds a lot like the D 40 video. Still that's a Hoboken, mine just has the label. Like dings in a guitar top, once you have a hole in your head, one more wouldn't be a problem.

 

[donnylang]

This is the kind of thread that just kills me. Whenever I can drive to where a guitar is, my skin gets all tingly. But like the OP, I have a D 35 I like that has had the neck reset already and sounds a lot like the D 40 video. Still that's a Hoboken, mine just has the label. Like dings in a guitar top, once you have a hole in your head, one more wouldn't be a problem.

I will say my favorite Guilds have been the Westerly w Hoboken stickers. Like my ‘68 D35, which beat this one out. I can’t say it’s “better”, but my songs work better on it.

So I also have a very early ‘72 (stamped ‘71 inside) G37 on the way. It’s been through the ringer but apparently fixed up and the price was cheap. Not planning on replacing the D35, but if I’m gonna have a second guitar, G37 makes more sense than a D40.

 

[adorshki]

I will say my favorite Guilds have been the Westerly w Hoboken stickers. Like my ‘68 D35, which beat this one out. I can’t say it’s “better”, but my songs work better on it.

So I also have a very early ‘72 (stamped ‘71 inside) G37 on the way. It’s been through the ringer but apparently fixed up and the price was cheap. Not planning on replacing the D35, but if I’m gonna have a second guitar, G37 makes more sense than a D40.

The guitarist in my buddy's band had one of those, '74, owned from new. This would have been early '90's. To this day the single best sounding acoustic I've heard live in person. Sustain forever.

Had one of the early soundhole installed pu's (not factory) and was practicing a tune through his rig one night, lot of fingerpicking parts and he could either let certain strings ring continuously or mute 'em off. Was also positioning himself in just the right location to enhance or diminish the build towards feedback, always just keeping it in the region of continuous sustain. Amazing.

A few years later after I'd got my D25 I found out what it was at a Thanksgiving dinner bash.

 

[donnylang]

The guitarist in my buddy's band had one of those, '74, owned from new. This would have been early '90's. To this day the single best sounding acoustic I've heard live in person. Sustain forever.

Had one of the early soundhole installed pu's (not factory) and was practicing a tune through his rig one night, lot of fingerpicking parts and he could either let certain strings ring continuously or mute 'em off. Was also positioning himself in just the right location to enhance or diminish the build towards feedback, always just keeping it in the region of continuous sustain. Amazing.

A few years later after I'd got my D25 I found out what it was at a Thanksgiving dinner bash.

I was interested when I saw it was such an early one w/ the ‘71 stamp, old style G shield badge etc. One of my favorite guitars was a ‘72 D25 w/ a flower power decal on it.
One thing that struck me as unique is it has a rosewood fretboard w maple. I like rosewood boards a lot more than ebony boards I’ve found. Almost every old school Guild made from maple seems to have an ebony board.
The original G37 seems to be an arched maple version of a D40 (as opposed to the D44-M, which really seems more like a maple version of a D50).

 

[wileypickett]

With the proper restoration that '66 D40 would be amazing, I'm sure!

I have an amber-burst G37 (gorgeous!) which I quite like, but it's a way different cat from the D40s I've owned / own.

We've heard that the G37 was later replaced by the D30. Are they exactly the same instruments or did Guild make changes when they changed the model number?

Good luck wherever you land Donny!

 

[donnylang]

With the proper restoration that '66 D40 would be amazing, I'm sure!

I have an amber-burst G37 (gorgeous!) which I quite like, but it's a way different cat from the D40s I've owned / own.

We've heard that the G37 was later replaced by the D30. Are they exactly the same instruments or did Guild make changes when they changed the model number?

Good luck wherever you land Donny!

I don’t follow much about post-1972 models, so not sure.
I know the original G37 seems to be an arched maple D40 (same price point- more $$$ than the D25 or D35). I don’t doubt it sounds totally different than a D40 though. Interested to check it out.
At the moment, I’m looking for a bit of a new inspiration or variety for writing new songs.

 

[GardMan]

I know the original G37 seems to be an arched maple D40 (same price point- more $$$ than the D25 or D35). I don’t doubt it sounds totally different than a D40 though. Interested to check it out.

Pricewise, the early G-37s might be more comparable to the D-40 from the same era. However, trim-wise, they were more comparable to a D-25 or D-35 from that era, with a rosewood fretboards, dot markers, rosewood bridge, and silk-screened gold GUILD headstock logo. The earliest G-37 I have seen had open back tuners, but not the 3 on a plate tuners found on the D-25/35. By '74, the G-37 had the Japanese enclosed tuners more commonly found on the D-40.

Circa 1976, the G-37 got an "upgrade, to a multi-piece maple neck and Chesterfield head stock overlay, making their trim more similar to the D-40.

Tone-wise, the D-25, D-35, and G-37 were all unique... For several years I had a '74 D-25 (spruce top, arched mahogany back), '72 D-35 (spruce top, flat mahogany back), and '74 G-37 (spruce top and arched maple back). The D-25 was loud, brash, and a bit "dark" toned... more bass than the other two. Loved it in DADGAD! My '72 D-35 has a nice, folksy tone... decent warm, woody bass, good mids, and sparkling trebles. Handles strumming and fingerpicking well. The G-37 was bright, but a bit "smoother" than the D-35, with great clarity and note separation. I liked it for fingerpicking, not as much for strumming.

 

[GardMan]

We've heard that the G37 was later replaced by the D30. Are they exactly the same instruments or did Guild make changes when they changed the model number?

The G-37, discontinued in 1986, had straight braces. According to Beesely, the similarly-appointed D-30 was introduced in 1987 with scalloped braces (someone can check that?). I believe it also had the snake-head head stock introduced in the Gruhn era, as opposed to the older "center-raised" or "domed" head stock of the G-37.

 

[donnylang]

Pricewise, the early G-37s might be more comparable to the D-40 from the same era. However, trim-wise, they were more comparable to a D-25 or D-35 from that era, with a rosewood fretboards, dot markers, rosewood bridge, and silk-screened gold GUILD headstock logo. The earliest G-37 I have seen had open back tuners, but not the 3 on a plate tuners found on the D-25/35. By '74, the G-37 had the Japanese enclosed tuners more commonly found on the D-40.

Circa 1976, the G-37 got an "upgrade, to a multi-piece maple neck and Chesterfield head stock overlay, making their trim more similar to the D-40.

Tone-wise, the D-25, D-35, and G-37 were all unique... For several years I had a '74 D-25 (spruce top, arched mahogany back), '72 D-35 (spruce top, flat mahogany back), and '74 G-37 (spruce top and arched maple back). The D-25 was loud, brash, and a bit "dark" toned... more bass than the other two. Loved it in DADGAD! My '72 D-35 has a nice, folksy tone... decent warm, woody bass, good mids, and sparkling trebles. Handles strumming and fingerpicking well. The G-37 was bright, but a bit "smoother" than the D-35, with great clarity and note separation. I liked it for fingerpicking, not as much for strumming.

The Jan ‘73 price list shows the G37 and D-40, both priced at $400. Keeping in mind the D40 also had the silk-screened logo in ‘72. Another visual distinction is the G37 and D40 had white binding, whereas the D35 and D25 had black or shell. I think the “37” designation seems to place it somewhere between the D35 and D40 in the hierarchy. Not that any of it matters much at this point … I personally prefer my D35 over any D40 I’ve played so far.

But I think the idea that the G37 was a lower-end or budget dread is incorrect, at least for early models. No idea for sure, but to me it seems the idea was the archback maple and rosewood board being unique features in the lineup.

Thanks for the comparisons- so far I’ve owned two different ‘66 D40s, a ‘67 D44, a ‘68 D40, a ‘68 D35, a ‘69 D35, and a ‘72 D25. I would rank them as follows:

1. ‘68 D35
2. ‘68 D40
3. ‘67 D44
4. ‘72 D25
5. ‘69 D35
6. ‘66 D40
7. ‘66 D40

Oddly, these Hoboken D40s have been my least favorites. Interested to see where the G37 fits in. I played a later ‘70s D44 Maple in a shop once that I did not care for. My experience can only lead me to conclude that the model influences some particulars, but the individual guitar itself is more the determining factor for me.

And though I’ve ranked them in terms of my own preferences, I can also say that every one of those ‘66-‘72 Guild dreadnoughts were pretty great. I haven’t encountered one that wasn’t. Much unlike the other “G” brand- most ‘60s ones I’ve played from them were dogs.

 

[wileypickett]

I played a later ‘70s D44 Maple in a shop once that I did not care for.

Although we can and do generalize, what sounds best / what we like best may come down to one particular guitar vs. another, rather than one particular model vs. another, or the same model vs. same model from a different era.

My D44 has the best bass response of any Guild dreadnaught I've played, and that's saying something. (At least that's my recollection -- it's in the queue for repair so I haven't actually been able to play it for a while!)

I discovered the Guild brand via a Westerly JF30 12-string, however many years ago now (I still have it). A few years later I checked out another JF30 12, also Westerly, that came up for sale on my local Craigslist. Given what I knew, I had high expectations.

It was one of the most "blah" Guilds I've ever played.

They're not all created equal.

 

[Br1ck]

And though I’ve ranked them in terms of my own preferences, I can also say that every one of those ‘66-‘72 Guild dreadnoughts were pretty great. I haven’t encountered one that wasn’t. Much unlike the other “G” brand- most ‘60s ones I’ve played from them were dogs.
[/QUOTE]

I can relate to your 60s "G" brand experience. I'd say it's been eight or more years since I went looking for a J 45. I'd made the mistake of picking up what I thought was a very beat up J 45 and I was hooked. Turned out to be a 39 J 35 that had not yet been put in the glass case.
I played a lot of new J 45s, but only the J 45 vintage came anywhere close, so since that was $4500, I decided to see what that or less would get me in a J 45. 50s were more, 60s were less, so I focused on sixties. Played two or three uninspiring guitars when I waundered into Sylvan in Santa Cruz. They had four. I thought I'd hit the mother load. I believe they ranged from 62 to 68. Only the 62 was any good, but it wasnt take me home now good. Over on the wall with the lessor brands was the uglyest sunburst Epiphone I'd ever seen. What's that? What's a Texan? Heck it's a 65 and priced more than the Gibsons. I soon found out why, and I've since had the burst grow on me, but it took eight guitars to find the one. Later I played a 68 that may have been the worst of the bunch. NEVER buy a 60s J 45 sight unseen. For those not in the know, my Texan was built in the Kalamazoo factory with a J45-J 50 body, but long scale.

 

[adorshki]

NEVER buy a 60s J 45 sight unseen. For those not in the know, my Texan was built in the Kalamazoo factory with a J45-J 50 body, but long scale.

Br1ck, I thought you'd mentioned once the Texan was shortscale, way back when I started mentioning my own desire for a 16" F-body with a (24-3/4) shortscale?

 

[Br1ck]

Nope, not me. The Texan had it's origins in a few hundred Epiphone necks left over from the sale to Gibson in 56 (or was it 58?) . Someone had the idea to just make a model with the Gibson slope shape. They proved so popular, they continued making them, with the same nut width that Gibsons were. So by the time my 65 was made, it got the same 1 5/8 neck as the Gibsons of the day. I've never come across an earlier Texan with the wider neck. I have come across a 70s MIJ Texan that was an OK guitar. I think they didn't want to tread on the J 45 at the time. The neck just felt right in my smallish hands. I was really hooked in five minutes, and that is a once a decade experience. Like that 39 J 35, most have been unaffordable.

 

[adorshki]

Nope, not me. The Texan had it's origins in a few hundred Epiphone necks left over from the sale to Gibson in 56 (or was it 58?) . Someone had the idea to just make a model with the Gibson slope shape. They proved so popular, they continued making them, with the same nut width that Gibsons were. So by the time my 65 was made, it got the same 1 5/8 neck as the Gibsons of the day. I've never come across an earlier Texan with the wider neck. I have come across a 70s MIJ Texan that was an OK guitar. I think they didn't want to tread on the J 45 at the time. The neck just felt right in my smallish hands. I was really hooked in five minutes, and that is a once a decade experience. Like that 39 J 35, most have been unaffordable.

Thanks buddy, also answers whether I confused it with the nut width. I have failry small hands myself and the F65ce's 1-5/8 nut is just a tad tight for me, leading to my desire for a 24-3/4 scale with a 1-11/6 nut, which I can't find that Guild ever made, on an F40 shape body, anyway.