According to my source, they were 100% built in NH. They were clownbursts and the jigs were set up wrong on the run, but Fender pushed them out the door anyway. I owned one briefly and the pups are jammed all the way to the side of the cavity, as well as the tailpiece being offset. In this guitar, the disparity in output between the neck and bridge was obvious and unpleasant. If the pups and tailpiece had been properly aligned, I would have kept it and had the bridge pup rewound or replaced. It played great, but for the price at the time, I couldn't justify keeping it.
I have a NS M-75, and it is inferior to the GSR in most aspects. A damn shame! I would have loved to keep it.
i'm not sure i'd call that a ringing endorsement, but its strangely intriguing just the same. for every good thing i hear about them, there's something about the materials, origins or "quirks" in the build quality to give one pause. and those facebook photos aren't really comforting, either. hard to tell if the tailpiece is crooked or the pickups and rings are off, or the tuners are askew or what.
i suppose that my next question is this: are they worth it? given that you can't get those specs anywhere anymore, and there are no current american made guild electrics, are they worth a dice roll? kind of a lot of money and hassle for a fixer upper, no? assuimng you can straighten out the quirks, you'd have a winner, right? are the pickups the same as what are currently available in other models?
still really curious, even though i'm deeply concerned about the build quality, origins and i'm not a huge fan of the finish. but the allue of a usa made guild with humbuckers that's sort of an archtop with a spruce top under 5 pounds... hard to shake. its almost everything i'd want on paper.