wileypickett
Enlightened Member
Several folks have posted comments, but I thought I'd add my two cents.
Folks, the tour was terrific! Not only did Guild treat us all like kings and queens (no one's mentioned how good the food was!) but they spent the better part of the day humoring us, showing us the grounds, answering questions, offering opinions, and letting us bang the hell out of some 30 or so different model guitars, all made in the new factory.
There was also swag galore, and everyone left with cool stuff. (I won an all-leather Guild logo laptop bag.)
Even Nora, my much better half, and certainly not the guitar techno-dweeb I am, was fascinated by the process.
I was especially chuffed to learn that new heads at Fender are rethinking their philosophy (make a zillion guitars and flood the market with them) -- at least as applies to Guild -- and are, instead, heavily investing in a class operation, VERY experienced craftspeople (many of the folks there have been in the guitar making biz for decades), the best tools, world class tone woods, a state-of-the-art factory, etc.
Someone seems to have convinced Fender to take the long view, and they have committed to letting the new heads at Guild devise their own strategy for success, which I'd characterize as, "Let us make quality guitars, let us take our time, let us grow organically, let us innovate, and hopefully the world will take notice."
They have a long way to go. The marketplace is hard to penetrate, the economy sucks, and they need to re-establish the Guild reputation.
But they're starting in the right place -- by making world-class guitars.
Being a 12-string guy, I was impressed at just how many 12-strings I saw being worked on at every step of production. The top-of-the-line JF-412 and JF-512 are in construction, of course, but they've also reintroduced (correct me if I've got the model number wrong, Charlie) the F-212XL as well, which was a surprise.
I was also impressed at just how much work is done by hand. Like Taylor and Martin, Guild uses CNC milling machinery for cutting out tops and sides and that sort of thing, but processes like applying the binding, carving the heel, adding the inlay, doing the bridge construction, and much more, are still being done by hand. Amazing!
A big thank-you to Chazmo for putting this thing together -- it was not only eye-opening, it was an absolute blast. I hope it becomes an annual event.
Glenn Jones
Cambridge, MA
Folks, the tour was terrific! Not only did Guild treat us all like kings and queens (no one's mentioned how good the food was!) but they spent the better part of the day humoring us, showing us the grounds, answering questions, offering opinions, and letting us bang the hell out of some 30 or so different model guitars, all made in the new factory.
There was also swag galore, and everyone left with cool stuff. (I won an all-leather Guild logo laptop bag.)
Even Nora, my much better half, and certainly not the guitar techno-dweeb I am, was fascinated by the process.
I was especially chuffed to learn that new heads at Fender are rethinking their philosophy (make a zillion guitars and flood the market with them) -- at least as applies to Guild -- and are, instead, heavily investing in a class operation, VERY experienced craftspeople (many of the folks there have been in the guitar making biz for decades), the best tools, world class tone woods, a state-of-the-art factory, etc.
Someone seems to have convinced Fender to take the long view, and they have committed to letting the new heads at Guild devise their own strategy for success, which I'd characterize as, "Let us make quality guitars, let us take our time, let us grow organically, let us innovate, and hopefully the world will take notice."
They have a long way to go. The marketplace is hard to penetrate, the economy sucks, and they need to re-establish the Guild reputation.
But they're starting in the right place -- by making world-class guitars.
Being a 12-string guy, I was impressed at just how many 12-strings I saw being worked on at every step of production. The top-of-the-line JF-412 and JF-512 are in construction, of course, but they've also reintroduced (correct me if I've got the model number wrong, Charlie) the F-212XL as well, which was a surprise.
I was also impressed at just how much work is done by hand. Like Taylor and Martin, Guild uses CNC milling machinery for cutting out tops and sides and that sort of thing, but processes like applying the binding, carving the heel, adding the inlay, doing the bridge construction, and much more, are still being done by hand. Amazing!
A big thank-you to Chazmo for putting this thing together -- it was not only eye-opening, it was an absolute blast. I hope it becomes an annual event.
Glenn Jones
Cambridge, MA
