The Mystery Guild, prepare for the weird...

Guildedagain

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I got a new old Guild in the mail, it's weird. Not even sure where to go with this one, maybe take it slow.

I'll write more as soon as I do a chore.

;-)

For now, I'm calling it "The Mummy" and I even had wifey almost spooked with it last night fingerpicking 30 year old strings three steps down... there was some weird G string twangs in there that almost had my running for my recorder.

I'll be back. It's worth the wait.
 
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Guildedagain

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Ok, so I did hook one "the Bay" a while back, it came out of nowhere in a sea of same old same old everyday, and there it was, this crazy 1971 F30 Sunburst with some crappy pics don't you know, really pretty bad but somehow enticing enough that it was me that was hooked, not the guitar...

The asking price was high, and the story was non existent, there was nothing written about it, other than the year, and go see Westerly.com for more info.

I'm trying to upload a seller pic (for now) but I can't find the upload button?

I got him to come down on price a little and figured I'd take a chance, 14 days return.

The guitar looked fairly amazingly clean, and in its original (rare to me) "Marigold" lined chipboard case, the fanciest chipboard case with neat sewing on the lid edges and Guild emblem.

I bought it and then looked around to see if there anything else like it out there, it happened pretty quick. And I saw that it had been sold around Christmas once, and wrote and asked, he said the guy never paid.

Maybe what happened is the other guy bought it and then found out asking more questions the action was high and didn't want it, maybe asked for better pics, got them, didn't like what he saw?

At any rate, we started talking about shipping, I gave him a very exact prescription for packing the guitar, which it turned out, he followed to the letter and then some, how often has that happened? It was a first for me.

I'd already asked him about any history on the guitar before I bought, so this I knew already.

The guitar was in Stamford Connecticut. It didn't take me long to realize that the guitar was less than two hours away from Westerly, the guitar had "been given to his mom by somebody who worked at Guild, a present", and the guitar had never been more than two hours away from Westerly it's whole life.

Right there and then, I decided it was special, definitely special, in this day and age of slim pickins and high prices.

I wanted it Priority Mailed, said I'd chip in, he said a Staples clerk told him it would be better to UPS it, and three winterstorms later it got here yesterday, big brown truck. Nights have been around zero around here, except for the cold spots (our yard) I've seen -17º a couple mornings ago. Not ideal time for guitar shipping?

Anyway, it got here, in a fairly giant box weighing 20lbs, and eventually by dark, I got to open it.

It was packed just like I said, I couldn't believe it. I said put the case in a trash bag and put another one over the top so you don't get any tape on the case cause it ruins it, and then wrap around the case with tape to keep the latches from opening (extra precaution, I received a vintage P Bass the case had popped open inside the box, it was ugly) and then bubble wrap, HUGE BOX and he used all edible corn peanuts, nice touch.

Inside the case, he'd used a scrap of old old bedsheet over the top to keep in down, padded the neck and headstock better than I've ever packed anything, using old tore up T shirt soft enough for guitar rags.

Lifting the guitar out, neck still swaddled, I rifled through the case pocket, my favorite part with old cases and... not even pictured in the ad, a flippin Guild polishing cloth, in the original package!!!, plus an old fashioned (clunky) chromed capo and an unused set of GHS A* Bronze strings, in a really old GHS package, really cool case candy, and the cloth is the best I've ever used!

Mind you everything smelled like the old closet musty vintage guitar smell I've grown to love "old case" I call it.

I finally got a look at the guitar and wow...

There is some weirdness with the top and pickguard, the pickguard is barely off the top, has melted into the top, it looks like pigment from the guard bled into the paint, and that was only the beginning of the weird...

Does anybody remember my D4-12 with the pickguard issues, the exploding pickguard? Summer of 2016b I think it was, I'll never forget it... The guitar is gone, I did the pickguard but never posted it, stepped away from the forum for a while. The pickguard material was original from Hans, and I finally got the gumption to trace it, cut it, glue it. I wasn't happy with it when it was done, some crap got under it during the gluing process, but I left it alone, and six months later, it all shrunk and you could not tell it from an original.

However I have major history with old Guild pickguards and this one looks like it's been through something, but I don't know what.

Next was the top, on both sides of the pickguard, it was just sucked in, hollow, you can see the braces, I tuned it for a second, and then realized that this is is not a good time to tune it, with 30 year old strings.

Neck angle seems horrible, with a rule hitting the top edge of the bridge, rather than the top of the saddle, which is pretty healthy actually.

I unstrung it eventually, polished it, restrung and tinkered with it til midnite. I decided that it was completely dried out, put double sponges in the case and put it away.

So... this is a really weird guitar.

The finish is immaculate, and the bridge looks thin, maybe the guitar is a refin, but really, a really good sunburst refin? Unlikely, if it was, it was done ages ago, there is zero smell of any recent spraying. The frets look like someone dresses the living daylights out of them in places. But on a guitar that almost looks brand new?

How could it be this dried out and have no cracks, ever, the guitar has no cracks in the top.

There are some horrible glue dribbles inside, down where the guitar rests on your knee, looks like somebody spilled a whole pot of glue ;-)

The neck block is very clearly stamped F112.

The neck serial number matches the guitar.

I think maybe this guitar was put together by a Guild employee from pieces laying around the shop?

Why does an F30 have a chipboard case, is that common, or normal?

This is enough for now, there was that honeydo list I didn't do anything on and I said I'd make biscuits...

I've got pics of the unpacking and the guitar so far, will try to get these on here soon, if I can.
 
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Guildedagain

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I don't see a photo. i don't believe you....... :devilish:

Where the pic button, have I lost it?

I can host them somewhere, would rather not.

Even did the cell phone pics from inside, never done that before.

It's got a date just below the soundhole, NOV 1 1971.
 
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GuildFS4612CE

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Pics do have to be hosted elsewhere to be added to your posts.
 

Guildedagain

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I still got Fototime for some weird reason, but usually forums didn't want outside hosting anymore because the pics eventually disappear so the info is lost.
 

fronobulax

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I still got Fototime for some weird reason, but usually forums didn't want outside hosting anymore because the pics eventually disappear so the info is lost.

That has been an issue but there are costs and liability issues that just go away if LTG doesn't host.
 

JohnW63

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There are a few members who have posted pictures for those with out the hosting site account.
 

Guildedagain

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Turns out you get more stuff done in the middle of the night sometimes, a lot quieter and the phone doesn't ring, heaven...

Brings back memories doing Fototime links, was going to dump it as useless, might have to reconsider.

Here goes, as well as more observations as I spent the evening with it, trying to figure it out, and I did figure some stuff out.

I think the guitar was hit, and repaired, on top next to the nearly even to the body pickguard. There's glue all around the area, incredibly sloppy actually with the drips witnessed. Quite possibly the weird "bleed" from the pickguard is just a sunburst match gone wrong, or at the very least done a long long time ago and faded at a different rate from the original sunburst, which is actually fairly divine. Many of the Gibson sunbursts from this era are pretty garish, this one is really pretty.

It's possible that the guitar was damaged at some point, turned into a Guild store, maybe even at Westerly (he said "it was given to her by someone who worked at Guild"), fixed up by somebody at a shop who was sweet on a gal from the area, and given it to her as a present?

The seller didn't indicate when it was received, but I should have asked.

He also claims it never suffered any damage under his mom's care, so it's unlikely she would have had it repaired.

I got the feeling by looking at it that it got all shrunk up like that in its case in a closet or under under a bed for decades, it shrunk up, like a mummy... and the trip here in the cold probably sucked that much more moisture out it.

Tonite, after about 24hrs of crude hydration with sponges, the top seems to be filling out, the neck angle actually improved a little, I tuned it to pitch again, strings are pretty high... I think it may have had a neck reset at some point, the neck joint areas look like it, and it looks like a new nut (glued, bummer), maybe not even bone ( a reason to use my nut files ;-), at any rate, the string height at the 1st fret is ridiculously high, so there is a lot of room for improvement there.

I tightened the truss rod a touch after slacking the strings last night, and that went well, with care. It responded really well and even up to pitch the relief was as low as you would like.

I realized that 12's are just too damn heavy, I can't bend the G string up by the nut, so I tuned down one step, and wow, it was miraculous, sounds awesome and easy and fun to play, dropped D, even better, double dropped D, too weird ;-)

I think I realized why all the great players capo a couple frets up, stick with big strings for good tone, drop down, then capo up.

It's kind of turning into a tone monster, and since it's tuned way down, I can leave it tuned during the rehydration process. I'll know it's there when the frets stop sticking out.

The guitar lived on Stamford Ave, in Stamford, less than two hours down the coast from Westerly.



There were holes punched into the box, missed the case thx to a greatly oversized box, seeing light poking through the box before you've even gotten the case out is scary.



Looks like a birthday cake ;-)



The Guild logo case, coming out of the protective bags I requested.



A leather hinge!



Unreal packing.



With its original Guild polishing cloth.



The Mummy... camera doesn't do justice to how dished sides of the soundhole were.

 
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davismanLV

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Apparently Foto Time is going the way of most free photo hosting sites. Now they want your money. Many people here use Imgur and have good luck with that. I subscribe to Image Shack and while it's not free, they've been very reasonable and give good service. Others will have their input......
 

walrus

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Thanks to FotoTime, this guitar will remain a mystery Guild...

walrus
 

chazmo

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GA, good luck with your new acquisition.

It happens all the time that dried out guitars *don't* crack. But in lieu of that, you'll almost certainly get geometry changes like warping in the top (belly, etc.), Usually combined with temperature extremes, you'll get neck block shift, which is ultimately going to require a neck reset or a bridge shave...

Anyway, I recommend you take the strings off (or just totally slack them) and case and humidify this guitar for maybe a week or two. As in over-humidify, that is. Not dripping wet, mind you but don't let your damp-its / sponges get hard. This will give you a starting point to see what this axe really needs.

Before you do that, though, you should use a light source and a mirror and really inspect for cracks and separated braces while it's dry. That'll let you know if you missed anything (which you might have). Often a thuddy or buzzy guitar could have bracing problems.
 

Rayk

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Turns out you get more stuff done in the middle of the night sometimes, a lot quieter and the phone doesn't ring, heaven...

Brings back memories doing Fototime links, was going to dump it as useless, might have to reconsider.

Here goes, as well as more observations as I spent the evening with it, trying to figure it out, and I did figure some stuff out.

I think the guitar was hit, and repaired, on top next to the nearly even to the body pickguard. There's glue all around the area, incredibly sloppy actually with the drips witnessed. Quite possibly the weird "bleed" from the pickguard is just a sunburst match gone wrong, or at the very least done a long long time ago and faded at a different rate from the original sunburst, which is actually fairly divine. Many of the Gibson sunbursts from this era are pretty garish, this one is really pretty.

It's possible that the guitar was damaged at some point, turned into a Guild store, maybe even at Westerly (he said "it was given to her by someone who worked at Guild"), fixed up by somebody at a shop who was sweet on a gal from the area, and given it to her as a present?

The seller didn't indicate when it was received, but I should have asked.

He also claims it never suffered any damage under his mom's care, so it's unlikely she would have had it repaired.

I got the feeling by looking at it that it got all shrunk up like that in its case in a closet or under under a bed for decades, it shrunk up, like a mummy... and the trip here in the cold probably sucked that much more moisture out it.

Tonite, after about 24hrs of crude hydration with sponges, the top seems to be filling out, the neck angle actually improved a little, I tuned it to pitch again, strings are pretty high... I think it may have had a neck reset at some point, the neck joint areas look like it, and it looks like a new nut (glued, bummer), maybe not even bone ( a reason to use my nut files ;-), at any rate, the string height at the 1st fret is ridiculously high, so there is a lot of room for improvement there.

I tightened the truss rod a touch after slacking the strings last night, and that went well, with care. It responded really well and even up to pitch the relief was as low as you would like.

I realized that 12's are just too damn heavy, I can't bend the G string up by the nut, so I tuned down one step, and wow, it was miraculous, sounds awesome and easy and fun to play, dropped D, even better, double dropped D, too weird ;-)

I think I realized why all the great players capo a couple frets up, stick with big strings for good tone, drop down, then capo up.

It's kind of turning into a tone monster, and since it's tuned way down, I can leave it tuned during the rehydration process. I'll know it's there when the frets stop sticking out.

The guitar lived on Stamford Ave, in Stamford, less than two hours down the coast from Westerly.



There were holes punched into the box, missed the case thx to a greatly oversized box, seeing light poking through the box before you've even gotten the case out is scary.



Looks like a birthday cake ;-)



The Guild logo case, coming out of the protective bags I requested.



A leather hinge!



Unreal packing.



With its original Guild polishing cloth.



The Mummy... camera doesn't do justice to how dished sides of the soundhole were.


Good Lord was it a under a heat lamp ????
What am I seeing in the last pic ??

Are you keeping this ?
 
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Rayk

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OMG ! My edit worked without deleting my post ! What gives ???
 

gjmalcyon

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Thanks to FotoTime, this guitar will remain a mystery Guild...

walrus

If you click on the FotoTime placeholders, you'll get to the photo album with the guitar pics.

This is the photo Rayk is talking about:


ie3IGB9h.jpg
 
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