1973 Guild F50 Rosewood - newbie to Guilds

adorshki

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Yes, luthier told me that he thought it was maple laminate. Sorry, if I got everyone all hot and bothered over a rosewood F-50. BTW, I sent this Hans fellow some info on it that he requested as apparently he has a data base he's building on the guitars.
HI GE, welcome aboard!
SO now you know all that high praise wasn't just "fanboy" hype. :friendly_wink:
"That fellow Hans" is actually the author of the Guild Guitar Book and we're proud and honored to have him as a member, in fact he actually helped found this forum.
Yes he keeps a database, in fact he was literally rescuing records out of the dumpster when Westerly was being closed down.
Your F50 was built during the era that the book covers, '53-'78, so you'd find more background on build details and Westerly's methods there.
That's the version of the F50 that got a Mahogany color stained body, technically an "F50M", IIRC.

There is hide glue drips around the bridge plate. Maybe a repair? Was Guild good about neat glue work? I'd bet money on a repair.
I'd bet money on repair too, Guild was very neat about workmanship both in- and outside the guitar, you could compare to the workmanship on the kerfing and braces for example.
That laminated back is a Guild hallmark, nobody does it better, and it's stronger than a flatback and virtually crack-proof too.
It enhances sustain and overtones which warms up the sound of maple tone wood.
Acts as a bit of a parabolic reflector as well, for a bit more volume out the soundhole. What engineers would call an "elegant" design.
The steam press that glued and stamped out those backs has been with Guild at least since yours was built, and in fact is still in use at Cordoba the new owners, today!
RE: "doesn't really start to ring until above 7th fret" :
I'm a big believer in stringing 'em up with what Guild delivered 'em with, and at that time the chances are high it was actually 80/20 mediums, PB hadn't quite hit the market yet, started in '74, but Guild was on-board with 'em right away.
So you might want to do a little experimentation.
Tough job but somebody's gotta do it.
I'm sure you could find plenty of volunteers here, in case you wanna farm it out.
:glee:

With shipping to and from, I've got $750 into this guitar. Not bad, I think. I won't sell it... and my friend doesn't want it back as he has moved on to his new $500 Martin D something or other.
"Better friend hath no man....".
A new $500.00 Martin?
That's gotta be the short end of that stick.
 
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txbumper57

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Absolutely Gorgeous GEFool! That is definitely a Maple F50 with what they referred to as a Mahogany Stain on the back and sides. I believe the designation for your guitar would have been F50M with the "M" standing for Mahogany colored Stain, Most folks confuse that thinking the "M" stood for Maple but it doesn't. The other finish option would have been F50BLD with the "BLD" standing for Blonde which would have had a Natural Finish on the Maple back and sides.

The Guild F50 Maple arched back Jumbo has been a Flagship and a Mainstay for Guilds over the years and next to their 12 string's probably what Guild is best known for with the Arched back. I have a newer version of your Guitar and I absolutely Love it. Mainly I have been a Rosewood player for 17 years and I have multiple Brazilian RW, Cocobolo, and East Indian Rosewood Guitars of all shapes and sizes. I got my Maple F50 to go with the F50R I have as I wanted one of Each. I have played Maple guitars in the past and never really took to them but once I strummed my F50 Maple I was seriously in love. I have a few Hog guitars but like I said mostly Rosewood variants and I was amazed at How much of a Rosewood Characteristic my Maple F50 actually had. Like you mentioned they just sing in the upper register but the Arched back seems to lend itself not only to a focused tone but also an Abundance of Overtones that I had not heard from a Maple guitar before. They really are extremely unique. All I can say is mine has turned into my Go to guitar to grab and start writing or just playing for the hell of it. If it came down to having to get rid of all but a few of my guitars the F50 Maple would definitely make the cut to stay.

I am glad you are enjoying yours and honestly I don't see how you could have gotten into one any better than you did. A $750 investment in that guitar is an all out steal in my book. Just wait until you get her played back in, The tone is only going to get better from here. Congrats man and be careful, A F50 Maple like that can be a gateway drug into the World of American made Guilds to which there is literally no end to!

Have a good one and look forward to hearing more in the future!

TX
 

Neal

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Eric Clapton and Pete Townshend have both used F-50's, among many others.

Real-deal professional instruments.
 

adorshki

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Fabulous red stain on the maple. Very typical for this era. Does the label say anything besides F-50 on it? Might be like "RS" or "TR" for transparent red stain or something.
'72 price list*** only shows 'em in "Sunburst" or "Blonde", in fact, the Blonde actually has the price premium, probably because of the old saw about hiding cosmetic imperfections under the 'burst?
Anyway at that time it looks like the only other color options on acoustics were "Cherry" and "Mahogany" as on the D25's.
That's why I'm thinking it's an early F50"M" as noted above, although I just realized realize I might be confusing that with the F40M that had the same color scheme. (edit: I see TX confirmed it now, thanks TX!)
And I'm guessing there weren't any radical changes in the color offerings in '74. It was the "malaise era", after all.

***
Price lists: http://westerlyguildguitars.com/pricelists.htm
'72 pg 4: http://westerlyguildguitars.com/files/pricelists/72-4.pdf
 
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adorshki

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Eric Clapton and Pete Townshend have both used F-50's, among many others.

Real-deal professional instruments.

Bonnie Raitt also plays D-100 (for sure) and F-30("IIRC", ), but for sure the F50 pops up in the most photos.
:friendly_wink:
 

hansmoust

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txbumper57 said:
I believe the designation for your guitar would have been F50M with the "M" standing for Mahogany colored Stain, Most folks confuse that thinking the "M" stood for Maple but it doesn't. The other finish option would have been F50BLD with the "BLD" standing for Blonde which would have had a Natural Finish on the Maple back and sides.

adorshki said:
'72 price list only shows 'em in "Sunburst" or "Blonde", in fact, the Blonde actually has the price premium, probably because of the old saw about hiding cosmetic imperfections under the 'burst?
Anyway at that time it looks like the only other color options on acoustics were "Cherry" and "Mahogany" as on the D25's.
That's why I'm thinking it's an early F50"M" as noted above, although I just realized realize I might be confusing that with the F40M that had the same color scheme. (edit: I see TX confirmed it now, thanks TX!)

Actually, the correct finish designation was NT, which had been used since the '50s, but was not always mentioned as a suffix in the model designation written on the label. The 'M' suffix for the finish during the '70s meant a 'mahogany stained' top, but 'M' as a suffix was also used for the choice of wood like in D-44M, which had 'maple' back & sides.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl
 

adorshki

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Actually, the correct finish designation was NT, which had been used since the '50s, but was not always mentioned as a suffix in the model designation written on the label. The 'M' suffix for the finish during the '70s meant a 'mahogany stained' top, but 'M' as a suffix was also used for the choice of wood like in D-44M, which had 'maple' back & sides.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl

Thank you sir! But then is that "F40M" I'm thinking of from later era?
I could swear we had a new member with one of those in the last 6 months.
 

hansmoust

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Thank you sir! But then is that "F40M" I'm thinking of from later era?
I could swear we had a new member with one of those in the last 6 months.

It was around 1979 that the F-40 with a Natural top and tinted back & sides did get the F-40M designation; before that it had been called F-40NT.

All very confusing and not just for the consumer, but also for some of the workers in 'final assembly' who sometimes wrote down F-40MNT just to make sure that they had it all covered!

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl
 
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Well, Hans already knows this but the label reads "F50" in pencil and then below that the serial number which matches the number on the back of the headstock. So, if it is anything more than a F50 model (M, NT, or otherwise) I'll have to take y'all's word for it.

One other thing. I didn't say that it doesn't ring until above the seventh fret. I just said it really shines up the neck. I will be trying different strings on it. Played it quite a bit today. Sweet guitar.
 

adorshki

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Well, Hans already knows this but the label reads "F50" in pencil and then below that the serial number which matches the number on the back of the headstock. So, if it is anything more than a F50 model (M, NT, or otherwise) I'll have to take y'all's word for it.
Nope, take Hans' word for it, he is quite literally the world's foremost expert on vintage Guilds, at the very least, up through Corona years.
Most of us are anxiously waiting for Vol 2 of his book covering '78-???
Sometimes we get a little overzealous in "the rush to post", and there's more and more info building up here all the time so getting easier to get confused.


One other thing. I didn't say that it doesn't ring until above the seventh fret. I just said it really shines up the neck. I will be trying different strings on it. Played it quite a bit today. Sweet guitar.
Apologies for poor wording.
Keep us posted!
 

adorshki

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It was around 1979 that the F-40 with a Natural top and tinted back & sides did get the F-40M designation; before that it had been called F-40NT.

All very confusing and not just for the consumer, but also for some of the workers in 'final assembly' who sometimes wrote down F-40MNT just to make sure that they had it all covered!

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl
Bwah ah ah ah!!!! That's hilarious. Got a good chuckle on this one, thanks!
So that's not an "F40 Montana", then?
Oh wait, that's a different thread...
 

txbumper57

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Actually, the correct finish designation was NT, which had been used since the '50s, but was not always mentioned as a suffix in the model designation written on the label. The 'M' suffix for the finish during the '70s meant a 'mahogany stained' top, but 'M' as a suffix was also used for the choice of wood like in D-44M, which had 'maple' back & sides.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl

Thanks for that info and correction Hans! I can see from the Suffix/Prefix situation that things could get pretty confusing even for the Employees! One of the things I love about Guild is regardless of what they called the designations, the guitars still rang true. LOL!

TX
 

Christopher Cozad

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Congratulations on your acquisition, and welcome to the Wonderful World of Guild!

For a flat-picking competition, you would want to compare apples to apples. A Guild D-50 / D-55 would give you a better comparison to your D-28.

Your jumbo bodied F-50 is better compared to a Gibson J-200, but with a very well-designed pressed laminate arched back.

The dark tinted Maple back and sides on your guitar has a "Cabernet" finish. It is difficult to assess just what criteria were used to determine when this "hiding" tint was to be used, but it appears on many a Maple Guild. A few years ago, I refinished my old 1980 Guild F-412 (Maple 12 string) which had the same tinted lacquer. The Maple underneath is yummy, especially by todays standards.
 
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