Guild DV6 NT HG

adorshki said:

adorshki said:

West R Lee said:

Was that out of a Guild Guitar catalog or was it out of a Guild Gallery Magazine?
West

Click to expand...

'96 catalog. I still have it. I'll double check it tonight.

Click to expand...

OK, having checked, it WAS the first Guild Gallery (Richie Havens cover). I forgot there was a catalog in there and was visualizing that page in my head. Here's the real goods:
The '96 catalog lists a "DV"6 and a "D"52 but picture is labeled "DV"52, and shows abalone rosette. Bracing is described as shaved on DV6 and scalloped on "D"52. Methinks the listing is a misprint and should be "DV"52. I remember always puzzling over that but I finally think that's the problem. '96 catalog also shows D4 but no D6 and no "DV"4. Neither does '98 Guild Gallery #1 or 2001 Fender Frontline (Full line catalog). Westerlyguildguitars DOES show a DV4 and cites '99 catalog as the source for specs. What's in question now is whether it was an archback or not? They state the back structure design "reduces a siginificant amount of weight"- and "allows for greater diversity of tone color..." Those two details are supposed to be a hallmark of archbacks... And while Westerlyguildguitars does not show a "D6 a quick search here yields many references including one citing an '83 model.
Is anybody still here? :lol:

Click to expand...

The Westerly DV4/DV25 had solid "A" tops, solid mahogany back and sides, rosewood (or morado) fretboards, and straight X bracing. The DV4s are (mostly) satin finish with a plain headstock and silkscreened logo. The DV25s (often) had a black headstock overlay with white lettering

To add to the confusion, both the DV4/DV25 are both in essence the same as what was previously called the D35.

The short breakdown:

DV4 - "A' grade spruce top, solid mahogany back and sides, rosewood fretboard. Straight "X" bracing, plain headstock. hand-rubbed finish
DV25 - "A' grade spruce top, solid mahogany back and sides, rosewood fretboard. Straight "X" bracing, black headstock. Gloss finish
DV6 - "AA" grade spruce top, solid mahogany back and sides, rosewood fretboard. Shaved "X" bracing, chesterfield overlay, Gloss or Satin finish. Also available with a cedar top.
DV52 - "AA" grade spruce top, solid rosewood back and sides, ebony fretboard, Scalloped "X" bracing, chesterfield overlay, gloss or satin finish

Don't ask me about the DV62, DV72, etc . . . thems too fancy for me.


-Chris

West R Lee said:

Here we go Al.....on the DV6. (Guild Gallery Summer '98, page 10). "The DV6 features a solid mahogany back and sides that have been specially selected for grain, weight and tone. The mahogany neck and end blocks provide the DV6 superior strength but add little weight. The top is double A graded sitka spruce and has shaved braces that provide strength while keeping the guitar light and playable. The bridge and fretboard are rosewood with pearl dot markers on the fretboard. . The DV6HR features all of the DV6 specifications but is finished in hand rubbed lacquer."

So maybe it would not be considered to have scalloped bracing? In fact, on the back page, under specifications, it says the DV6 has "shaved" bracing. Just above that is the D30 which shows to have "scalloped". There is a differentiation between the two. I sit corrected.

I'd still like to know where I got the theory behind the DV series..................it's laying around here somewhere.

West

Click to expand...

Here's the best I can come up with on the DV series in general.............

" The DV series guitars are the product of years of research into how to tune the body and top of a new dreadnought to sound as rich and seasoned as a vintage equivalent. A vintage guitar has had years of additional drying time and many hours of music played on it, and these forces help to create a beautiful tone, but age isn't the only way to achieve vintage tone. The proper combination of design, materials and construction can achieve the same results. With the assistance of many players and vintage instrument dealers, Guild has tuned these future collector's items to sound mature beyond their years.".......Guild Gallery Summer '98, page 10.

West

West R Lee said:

.......Guild Gallery Summer '98, page 10.
West

Click to expand...

Well it's easy if you're right there at home with all your reference materials! :lol:

adorshki said:

West R Lee said:

.......Guild Gallery Summer '98, page 10.
West

Click to expand...

Well it's easy if you're right there at home with all your reference materials! :lol:

Click to expand...

:lol: Yep, too easy Al..........................never thought I'd be looking forward to going back to work.

West

plaidseason said:

Can someone comment on the actual bracing in his/her DV6?

Click to expand...

This was clarified later in the thread already, but I was always under the impression my '98 DV6 has shaved bracing... even though I never knew exactly what that means especially vs. the DV52's scalloped bracing.

I'll snap some photos within the next couple days once I get back up to CT & can take a crack at it.

Disclaimer: My gut shot photos will not compare with ANY of those that Chazmo's posted here of his various Guilds over the years.

fungusyoung said:

plaidseason said:

Can someone comment on the actual bracing in his/her DV6?

Click to expand...

This was clarified later in the thread already, but I was always under the impression my '98 DV6 has shaved bracing... even though I never knew exactly what that means especially vs. the DV52's scalloped bracing.

I'll snap some photos within the next couple days once I get back up to CT & can take a crack at it.

Disclaimer: My gut shot photos will not compare with ANY of those that Chazmo's posted here of his various Guilds over the years.

Click to expand...

Yes, that is true Fungus. And to me the difference is that "shaved" means they took some of the meat off of the bracing off by shaving it to enhance the tone (vibration). "Scalloped" means those braces were designed to facilitate the optimim vibration from the top by making those braces as thin as possible except for critical bracing areas or those necassary to maintain the strength of the brace.

West

West R Lee said:

Yes, that is true Fungus. And to me the difference is that "shaved" means they took some of the meat off of the bracing off by shaving it to enhance the tone (vibration). "Scalloped" means those braces were designed to facilitate the optimim vibration from the top by making those braces as thin as possible except for critical bracing areas or those necassary to maintain the strength of the brace.
West

Click to expand...

IF you go back and look at the pics of Chazmo's F12 bracing you'll see there's an arc between the tapering at the ends, that's the "scallop". Shaved are still "straight" between the tapers.

Yes, I'm pretty familiar with scalloped bracing Al, it's the shaved I need a picture of.

West

West R Lee said:

Yes, I'm pretty familiar with scalloped bracing Al, it's the shaved I need a picture of.

Click to expand...

Using Chazmo's pic, I think this is supposed to be the 'shaved' version although 'tapered' might be a better word. Not so sure it's a tone thing though ... the thickness is needed in the middle ... getting rid of some mass would add some action to the top and save a little weight too ... and you could use the left-overs for coasters .. :wink:

capnjuan said:

West R Lee said:

Yes, I'm pretty familiar with scalloped bracing Al, it's the shaved I need a picture of.

Click to expand...

Using Chazmo's pic, I think this is supposed to be the 'shaved' version although 'tapered' might be a better word. Not so sure it's a tone thing though ... the thickness is needed in the middle ... getting rid of some mass would add some action to the top and save a little weight too ... and you could use the left-overs for coasters .. :wink:

Click to expand...

Yeah. Coasters that are too nice to use. :lol:

capnjuan said:

West R Lee said:

Yes, I'm pretty familiar with scalloped bracing Al, it's the shaved I need a picture of.

Click to expand...

Using Chazmo's pic, I think this is supposed to be the 'shaved' version although 'tapered' might be a better word. Not so sure it's a tone thing though ... the thickness is needed in the middle ... getting rid of some mass would add some action to the top and save a little weight too ... and you could use the left-overs for coasters .. :wink:

Click to expand...

Thank you!

Yes, than you Cappy.

West

These are from my DV6. Do they give you a good enough idea?

First 3 are from the top side, last 3 from the back side...

West R Lee said:

Yes, I'm pretty familiar with scalloped bracing Al, it's the shaved I need a picture of.
West

Click to expand...

Sorry. Just wake me up when we get there, please?

adorshki said:

West R Lee said:

Yes, I'm pretty familiar with scalloped bracing Al, it's the shaved I need a picture of.
West

Click to expand...

Sorry. Just wake me up when we get there, please?

Click to expand...

:lol: I think I've got it now. I don't think I've got a guitar with what would be considered "shaved" bracing. Got a few standard braced models and a few scalloped.

West

West R Lee said:

adorshki said:

[quote="West R Lee":nh86as6m]Yes, I'm pretty familiar with scalloped bracing Al, it's the shaved I need a picture of.
West

Click to expand...

Sorry. Just wake me up when we get there, please?

Click to expand...

:lol: I think I've got it now. I don't think I've got a guitar with what would be considered "shaved" bracing. Got a few standard braced models and a few scalloped.
West[/quote:nh86as6m]
I bet Coastie could provide some pictures of shaved models. :wink:

I am not sure these images will show the DV6 bracing any better than Fungus's, but as I finally got to see, hold...and change strings... on the one I mentioned previously so I thought I would put them up, with contrast to my D55:



DV6:





I do have to say, what a nice piece! Very lightweight feeling dreadnaught, very thin top made of the most perfectly bookmatched spruce I have ever seen...its really much better than my D55. Overall workmanship is excellent. Gold Grover tuners. I must say that the bridge saddle looks like a rough afterthought (it is original). This "hand rubbed" finish almost might get me to like a matt finish. Originally strung with .010 to .0475 strings, I put on GHS VB Ultralights so the long idle neck didn't do a dixie with increased tension. Sadly the corners of the bridge look like they are starting to raise, not sure if the top is arched or whether a hump is developing; in any case, she felt solid with no rattles. Sounds real nice, not quite the bark of the D55, but I bet it would be a lot better with heavier strings.

A nice guitar for my buddy to start out on, better then the cheese-cutters us 'geezers had to deal with back in the day

Bill Ashton said:

Sadly the corners of the bridge look like they are starting to raise, not sure if the top is arched or whether a hump is developing; in any case, she felt solid with no rattles.

Click to expand...

Top's s'posed to be "flat".
Don't know if you've seen any of the threads discussing bridge lift vs simple "minimal glue-spot syndrome" which can look like bridge lift but remains quite stable. It supposedl;y stems from the fact that tops were finished with a bare spot for the bridge and: a) glue doesn't adhere too well to the finish which might be encroaching into the bridge's "footprint", eventually separating from top, and/or b) only enough glue is used to hold the bridge, leaving some unglued area around the edges rather that risk getting glue seepage onto the top from under the brigde. I've got it on my F65ce. I can slip a piece of copier paper under the back of the bridge from about an 1/8th" up to about 1/4" across the corners. I traced the outline onto a piece of notepaper last year, and check it once in a while. It hasn't gotten any deeper. The top IS pretty thin and IS developing a bit of a hump though.
So might just be normal "settling in".

I left my D25 for a weekend in the trunk of a car in the 100 plus Texas heat....probably 140 degrees in the trunk. The back of the bridge pulled up slightly almost 30 years ago.....it hasn't budged since.

West

West R Lee said:

I left my D25 for a weekend in the trunk of a car in the 100 plus Texas heat....probably 140 degrees in the trunk. The back of the bridge pulled up slightly almost 30 years ago.....it hasn't budged since.
West

Click to expand...

Yep, another possibility, at least for guitars with unknown history. You've heard me say it before: "Why I like to buy 'em new". I know that wasn't the problem with the F65ce, and it's got a warranty if I decide to pursue getting it reglued. It was probably there when I bought it and I didn't even realize it 'til a couple of years ago when I was really "bonding" with it during a cleaning.