1971 D35 missing tuning peg

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Hello LTG! -- first time post here

The guitar is a 1971 Guild D35 - blonde - serial no 56958 which I recently acquired.

It is missing a tuning peg. These are the Guild pre-1972 style Japanese 3 on a plank tuners. I brought the guitar to a luthier for advice. He estimated $100 plus parts to put in new tuners. Then, it would have to be restrung and put tension on the neck to determine if it needed to be setup. He pointed to the shaved down bridge and said that was evidence that there was a bow in the neck when there is string tension and it would be about $500 dollars to set up the neck.

So, does anyone know of replacement tuners that can be "dropped in" (holes line up)? Or should I opt for individual tuner heads? I think Guild changed to Gotoh inidividual machines in the later years for this model.

Any input would be appreciated, about the tuners and/or the luthier's advice and prices. Thanks.
 

geoguy

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Welcome to LTG, mracky.

The bridge would have been shaved to delay the need for a neck reset. And $500 is maybe a bit on the high side to perform a neck reset, but that depends upon what is included (e.g. shimming the fretboard extension, replacing some worn frets, etc.).

I don't have any solid advice to offer re: the tuners, but assuming that you are in the US you might try contacting a fellow named Ken Nash in Connecticut. His shop is known as "the guitar mechanic", and my understanding is that he stocks some old Guild parts. Link here: http://www.theguitarmechanic.com/restore.html
 

Neal

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If it were mine (and I did exactly the same thing with my '73 D-35), I would log onto StewMac, buy the plate tuners that fit, and throw in a Bridge Doctor to reduce the belly and improve the playability.

Some consider the Bridge Doctor blasphemous, but it saved my D-35 a neck reset that I couldn't afford at the time, and improved the tone and sustain in the process.

Slow and steady is the key with the BD. I spent two weeks slowly applying tension under humid conditions to bring the top back down to spec. You may find after doing so that you will need to put a shim under the saddle to raise action just a bit.

If you want to do it the "right" way, a neck reset alone runs about $400. Depending on how much you paid for the D-35, you may or may not have room left to invest axditional cash, purely from a resale point of view. D-35's in decent shape go for around $700.

Of course, if you love the tone, and the guitar is otherwise a keeper, spend what you need to to get her right. Early Westerly's are light, lively, wonderful.

Neal
 

BJ_Toscano

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He pointed to the shaved down bridge and said that was evidence that there was a bow in the neck when there is string tension and it would be about $500 dollars to set up the neck.

So, does anyone know of replacement tuners that can be "dropped in" (holes line up)? Or should I opt for individual tuner heads? I think Guild changed to Gotoh inidividual machines in the later years for this model.

Post a picture of the bridge, if you don't mind. It may have had a thin bridge to begin with, and therefore wouldn't have to be replaced with a neck reset. Plus it's nice to retain the original bridge if possible. The plate tuners that were original occasionally pop up on Ebay, in case you wanted to keep it original.
 

Br1ck

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A lot of the old D 35s don't justify the work based on today's values, but as a luthier told me when I pulled the trigger on $1000 worth of work, what would you buy for $1000? Basically the 1970 I have sounds great, it just needed a new bridge, neck reset, refret, soundboard leveling, nut and saddle. Morally if not financially viable.
 

killdeer43

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Typical good advice already so I'll just add another WELCOME TO LTG!
My D35 has a Bridge Doctor installed and I've personally installed a couple, so you might follow Neal's thought to consider one.

Stick around,
Joe
 

wileypickett

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A 1971 production year means this would have have been one of the lighter body Guilds, yes?

I have a D40 from that period -- a beautiful guitar! Burgundy colored back and an almost orange top. The back had a lot of little cracks in the finish and two big cracks through the wood when I got it. I had Guild in New Hartford do the crack repair.

But it also needed a Bridge Doctor to flatten the top, and since installing it I've had absolutely no problem with it.

A few years ago I went to look at some Guilds for sale in Newport, RI. The guy selling them was arthritic and couldn't play anymore. He had a mid-'70s 6-string and 12-string for sale, but both were in poor shape and I didn't end up buying either.

But I ended up hanging out and having a long talk with the guy. It turned out he'd bought the guitars while employed by Guild (in Westerly) in the '70s.

I asked him what his job had been and he said, "Blowing up guitars!"

Because Guild offered a lifetime warranty and were getting a fair number of guitars back for repair, they'd hired this guy to "stress test" guitars -- trying out thicker tops and heavier bracing in order to find the "sweet spot" between best sound / responsiveness and durability.

I believe that's why Guild went to a heavier build in the later '70s -- to try to cut down on the guitars they were getting back in need of repair.

I don't remember the guy's name now, but I forwarded his contact info to Hans as I thought Hans might get some interesting background from him for Volume 2.

Anyway, upshot is, "Don't fear the Bridge Doctor -- they work!"

Glenn
 
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