NFGD. Flamey Bluesbird content.

ianb

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new flamey guitar day here.picked this up off craigslist and it's a lifer. HUGE.HUGE neck,rings like a bell and has this reeeeediculous top.
i'm guessing 2000? 2001 maybe??

iKjfege.jpg


2xaBWyL.jpg


n5PW2a5.jpg
 

adorshki

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Hey ya finally nailed it, congrats!
Yeah I think that quilting was showing up from about 2000 through Corona, believe or not that's not even "AAA" but some of us like it better.
A Corona would have a "CK" prefix, btw, so has to be Westerly and can't be later than '01.
 

ianb

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Hey ya finally nailed it, congrats!
Yeah I think that quilting was showing up from about 2000 through Corona, believe or not that's not even "AAA" but some of us like it better.
A Corona would have a "CK" prefix, btw, so has to be Westerly and can't be later than '01.


aaaaaah, thank you, thank you sir!! i'l be ballparkin with the best of em before you know it!!! :p
the AAA discussion is in the bluesbird thread, isn't it?
 

adorshki

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the AAA discussion is in the bluesbird thread, isn't it?
Yah.
:friendly_wink:

Edit: Actually I base my AAA id on Walrus's note that Hans once confirmed his Cherry Sunburst as a AAA based on the flame, it should look like this:
33a8ozd.jpg

The AAA tops supposedly also came in 3 colors only, Amber, Cherry 'Burst, and Tobacco 'burst.
(I think yours is a "Natural")
And yet Hobbesickles' AAA in Amber is absolutely "quilty" so don't know if t's a fluke of photography angles or if there's more to the story.
uoOwCFL.jpg

Hans had an opportunity to correct the top ID if necessary, in post 317 of the thread, but he didn't.
And here's one that's kind halfway in between but it's Amber so I'd assume it's a AAA:
(EDIT: Actually I think this is a Natural, especially compared to Hobbesoickles' above and even allowing for color shift between the different devices used to make the pics and the viewing platforms, so maybe it's not really AAA:
guild98bluesbird-nat-fmt2_zps77eb3453.jpg

But for sure the majority of the AAA Flame tops are one of the 3 designated colors.
Blues '90's area slightly different animal, but not much .
 
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ianb

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'n I was doin' some editing while you were answering.
Link here in case you're still lookin':
http://www.letstalkguild.com/ltg/sh...rds-Owners-amp-Long-Time-Borrowers-List/page2

Thanks for That post number. I seemed to remember the AAA being bursts with more of a ripple pattern in the grain
As opposed to the big wavy patterns you see on some of the naturals but couldn't remember where I read that.my Starfire 3 had quite a bit of that tight pattern
On the back but it wasn't uniform like an old Les Paul or the nicer bluesbird bust tops. They must have had a WHOLE lot of nice wood to pick through in the late 90's.
 
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ianb

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Wow, that's sending me into diabetic shock!

Hah!!! It sure does sound great too!!

What's that in your avatar? A tone stack of some sort?
I've been fighting getting a cathode follower tattooed on my shoulder somewhere but figured that
Might push me completely over the geek cliff :)
 

walrus

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Quilted tops can also be considered AAA if I'm not mistaken. But I'm sure what the "rules" are about that. And assuming I am remembering correctly (a big caveat!) AAA flame has to with the "matching" of the two sides, but also that the flame goes all the way to the top and bottom of the wood, and all the way to the edges.

Beautiful guitar, ian!

walrus
 

bluesypicky

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Oui, these 2000 era B-birds have some of the hottest maple tops ever made, whether quilted or striped.
The HUGE HUGE neck as you mentioned is one of the reasons why I parted with mine, paired with a lack of enthusiasm for the stock p'ups, but gorgeous guitar to be sure!
 

mavuser

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those tops all look triple A to me. I have seen some crazy guitars advertised with quadruple A, but they were not Guilds (probably should have been!). Either way it is all marketing lingo. if you have a real maple top USA Bluesbird with figuring/quilting/flameage, I would say 95+ percent of those are AAA. if u have one painted solid black or solid red, then I would not consider the natural grain of the top to be AAA, as it was painted over, and likely not as cosmetically aligned and matched as the AAA that they show off through those transparent finishes. i personally like the super quilty ones best, like the OP piece, they change with light as you move the guitar. I could stare at those for days (i think i have a couple times)

congrats and enjoy the ‘bird!!
 

adorshki

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Quilted tops can also be considered AAA if I'm not mistaken. But I'm sure what the "rules" are about that. And assuming I am remembering correctly (a big caveat!) AAA flame has to with the "matching" of the two sides, but also that the flame goes all the way to the top and bottom of the wood, and all the way to the edges.
Beautiful guitar, ian!
walrus

Right, that's what I was remembering of your confirmations.
Also, the '01 list specifically describes the AAA as having AAA flame maple top:
http://www.westerlyguildguitars.com/files/Guild2001.pdf
I recall now that that was the detail that finally made me believe the "quilteds" aren't actually AAA, even f I actually prefer 'em myself.
Also you see all the "standard" colors on those but normally only the 3 AAA colors on the "flame" tops.
That was more evident before we lost so many of the pics on the Bluesbird owners thread.
Hobbesickles' guitars are the ones that keeps making me wonder.
And don't forget that the AAA was a specific model with a $300.00 price premium so I don't think they just went throwing those tops around willy-nilly, even if they were Guild.
:glee:

A regular Corona Bluesbird serial number should start with 'CM' .
Sincerely,
Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl
Yes, saw that when I was reviewing the Bluesbird owners' thread but forgot to go back and correct it, thank you!
I still sincerely hope you're correcting me where necessary and haven't got tired of "watching out" for me!
 
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adorshki

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Here's just one example of what is called a "AAA quilted Top":

https://www.themusiczoo.com/blogs/n...limited-edition-3a-quilt-top-les-paul-customs

As mavuser mentioned, perhaps it is simply marketing lingo...

walrus
Yep, there you go, (And that LP does look like "AAA" to me) BUT:
If what I learned in previous discussions is true, grading itself has no concrete industry-wide standards, and is actually primarily based on cosmetics so one grader's "AA" could be another's "triple A".
It's been said here before that with Guild's tops from at least the '70's going forward, that in fact that looked to be the case, with Guild compared to Gibson for one.
And especially for the spruce.
Just about every used Guild you can find on the net with good enough photos shows some degree of silking in the top, supposedly a sign of being cut at the right angle from slabs from the best part of the log, but also cosmetically valued, before bearclaw became a sign of desirability.
Even my "standard" grade D25 shows it beautifully now that the finish has darkened up.
And for the sake of folks who haven't seen it before, let me once again pay tribute to the man responsible for it, Willie Fritscher:
http://www.westerlyguildguitars.com/articles/woodselection.pdf
But when it comes to the difference between flame maple and quilted, that's not something that's up to the grader's discretion, so I believe that citation of "AAA flame maple" meant "flame".
"Specifications subject to change without notice, of course."
:glee:
 
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ianb

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interesting turn of events, looks like i found its' birthday. repairing amps and guitars for 20+ years now, whenever i get a new guitar, it gets treated like a customer's guitar - fretboard feeding,restring, full setup, electronics inspection and repair where needed, etc...etc...

it needed a little rod tweak so as i was doing that i saw this :
95Vfu8d.jpg


cool! it's always nice to see some personal responsibility and pride in ones' work!!


after that, i was checking out the electronics in here because of the pickup change and i wanted to see what kind of horror show we were dealing with in there and lo and behold:
Am2wHMa.jpg


i don't know if that's when it was finished or wired up or what but it looks like: 3-30-2000 Jt under the clear coat in pencil.
 

adorshki

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i don't know if that's when it was finished or wired up or what but it looks like: 3-30-2000 Jt under the clear coat in pencil.
ah yes we've seen JT's initial elsewhere too.
Hans will know about the date's actual significance, I can't recall if I ever saw what it meant in electrics but I'll guess it's within a 90-day window of when it got "finished" and ready to ship.
 

mavuser

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there is a crazy quilted sunburst batch from Corona, they were sold as AAA. nicest i have ever seen
 
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