NGD (Almost) 1959 T-100DP

ClaytonS15

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I will soon be the owner of a 1959 Guild T-100DP in sunburst with two Franz pickups! I somewhat impulsively bought this on Ebay last night and am very excited to get my hands on it soon. I've always wanted a single coil Guild and I am realizing that I prefer the feel of vintage Guilds over the 1990s and 2000s models. I'm super excited about this one! Here are a few pictures from the seller:

Guild%20T-100DP%202_zpsa2m2wsgj.jpg


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jp

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Super cool, Clayton. I've had two '59s, and I still own one. I'm a huge fan of T-100s, especially with the Franz PUs. It's my go-to guitar! Congratulations, and have fun playing!
 

txbumper57

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Congrats Clayton! I think you'll like it a lot. I am a Huge fan of the Hoboken Hollowbody guitars from the late 50's and early 60's especially the Ghost Label models like yours. I recently acquired a 1960 dual Franz Guild and it is one of my Favorites of all time! Looking forward to the report when it gets here!

TX
 

AcornHouse

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Nice! It looks like any binding issues (very common with this vintage Guilds) has already been dealt with.
 

ClaytonS15

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Thanks everybody. I will be sure to report back once it's in my hands. It should be here next Tuesday. I can't wait!
 

ClaytonS15

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The T-100DP arrived safely and is a great player. The pickups sound great and the neck is great as well; it's even better to play than I had hoped. There is a lot of checking of finish on the front of the guitar and the headstock face has shrunk a bit with some of the inlay popping up. It's possible it may have been refretted because there is no fret wear, but if so, it's one of the best I've ever seen.

The only thing I need to work out though is that the bridge pickup is just a bit too high on the bass side, even with the polepieces all the way down. Maybe I can remove a little material on the bottom of the pickup? I will post up some pictures later on. Overall I'm very happy!
 

txbumper57

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Congrats Clayton! Looking forward to the pics, You might take a few of that Bridge pickup where you say it is too high. That way the folks here that are well versed in Franz mountings can give you an idea of what is going on, What to do, and What not to do. It never hurts to have a bunch of info before you start. Regardless Congrats and I am Glad you are enjoying it! When I bought mine I had an expectation of what I was getting and when it arrived it blew those expectations out of the water. Happy New Year!

TX
 

ClaytonS15

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So, first of all, I really love this T-100D! The neck is perfect for me and the fretboard is nice and level with no buzz or fretwear to speak of. The pickups have great tone and output- honestly it's a tone I've been looking for for years. The bridge is adjusted all the way down, but the action is perfect as is, so I'm not considering a neck reset. The binding is fine, but there is some shrinkage on the headstock face I might have someone deal with at some point since the Chesterfield inlay is actually starting to pop out. I do want to find a way to lower the bridge pickup a little bit though, because it can sound a bit harsh when you lay into it on the low E string. What do you guys think? Should I just grind a little material off the bottom edges of the pickup housing? If I do anything, I'll probably take it to a pro. Here are some (iPhone) pics of the T-100D.

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xilef regnu

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Beautiful guitar! The T-100 is a great Guild model. To my eye, it's not that the bridge pickup is too high, it is that the bridge is too low. It is completely bottomed out in it's up/down travel and you would either have to raise the action, try a truss rod adjustment or consider a neck reset.
 

ClaytonS15

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Update: The guitar had 10s on it when it arrived. I'm pretty sure they were Daddario half rounds and I loved the sound and feel but couldn't get them to intonate right with an unwound G. Then I put on some 12 gauge roundwounds for a week and a half and felt like I lost some of the magic. Tonight I put on what I think will become my goto string for archtop guitars as an experiment: GHS nickel rockers compound wound set 1800 11-52 with a wound G. I'm blown away! Perfect warm tone but with more highs than something like Daddario Chromeso. This is quickly becoming my favorite guitar for just about everything.
 

Quantum Strummer

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I like those GHS 1800 strings too. Got a set on my 335. That guitar really takes to the thicker wound G. (I normally make .011 string sets with Burnished Nickel Rockers, swapping the stock unwound G for an .018 or .020 wound string. With some guitars the wound .018 can be a little wobbly tuning-wise.)

-Dave-
 

markb

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Nice guitar! Imo she needs a neck reset. Will take care of the harsh bridge pup and most likely any intonation issue's regardless of string type..but if you dig it as is thats all that matters.
 
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