Ngd guild jf 30 1991

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I have s 92 JF30 and it’s not a bass thumper either. It has a nice balanced tone and is smooth and easy to play, but it’s no “cannon”.
It’s all original, so maybe I’ll change saddle, nut and pins and see if it makes a difference. I use D’Addario PB 12s. But don’t get me wrong, I love it! Built like a tank too!
 

adorshki

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I have s 92 JF30 and it’s not a bass thumper either. It has a nice balanced tone and is smooth and easy to play, but it’s no “cannon”.
It’s all original, so maybe I’ll change saddle, nut and pins and see if it makes a difference.

Bone nut and saddle made a diff on my D25.
As for pins I believe the school that says they won't make much difference unless they change the bridge mass "enough".
Bridge mass gets the top moving so theoretically if your bridge is maybe a bit "thin" due to having been matched to a relatively shallow neckset angle**, adding mass should up the amplitude a bit.
When pins are seated they simply become part of the moving mass of the bridge.
**In Westerly Guild set the neck and then selected the bridge from a stock of pre-cut blanks of varying height, to match bridge height to neck angle.
 

bobouz

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**In Westerly Guild set the neck and then selected the bridge from a stock of pre-cut blanks of varying height, to match bridge height to neck angle.

Yes, lots of variation in the bridge height of my Westerlys.

Luckily, the one with a low saddle has the tallest bridge, with plenty of room for shaving.
 

JF-30

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Nice axe. I got one in December. Its an '87. I bought Rosewood Pins for it and the action is low and it plays great. It is a different beast than my Martins and is a fabulous guitar. I would buy another American Guild in a heartbeat.

https://i.imgur.com/jtvzIL4.jpg
 
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beecee

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Nice ax indeed JF-30, love the variegated rosewood bridge.
 

JF-30

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Your tuners look Gold. Mine are Nickle or Chrome. My Guild Script on my headstock are really yellow/or gold. This is my first Guild and not sure if it aged or was made like that. Yours looks like white pearl. Out models are only 4 years apart.
 

adorshki

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Your tuners look Gold. Mine are Nickle or Chrome. My Guild Script on my headstock are really yellow/or gold. This is my first Guild and not sure if it aged or was made like that. Yours looks like white pearl. Out models are only 4 years apart.

It IS possible they started using different pearloid in that span but I have a suspicion it's probably more due to yellowing of NCL on your headstock, because the body looks somewhat ambered up, nut & saddle look especially dark too.
Definitely spent some time in the sun, like my D25.
And yes we don't often note things like change in tuner plating but suspect that's "legitimate".
They were completely flexible about implementing small changes like that, sometimes planned, and occasionally simply because they had a parts shortage and used something they had on hand to get guitars shipped.
Here's a PDF to a 1990 catalog, and while I'm certain, the JF-30 in there does look like it's got the gold tuners when I blow it up enough, yet the text says nothing about that even though it points 'em out on the JF-55.
https://acousticmusic.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Guild-1990-Catalog.pdf
Also confirms they still had scalloped bracing in '90 which I don't remember seeing before.
And assuming the catalog's accurate because even their catalogs had errors according to Hans Moust.
 
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General Dreedle

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The tuners are gold, and I took it in to Dusty Strings here in Seattle and had DR rare bluegrass strings 12-56 put on, I think someone recommended them, they adjusted the truss rod and the bass came alive! Only thing now is some frets need to be shaved a little bit it's minor. Really a great sounding guitar, has nice Maple clarity, nice base. Honestly it sounds as good or better than some Gibson SJ 200s I've tried in the past
 

bobouz

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Honestly it sounds as good or better than some Gibson SJ 200s I've tried in the past

A good Guild jumbo can deliver a tone that's every bit as appealing as the tone produced by a good Gibson jumbo. I happen to have one of each, and although they do sound different, both are very satisfying.

Re tuners, the JF-30 did come stock with chrome or nickel tuners in the '80s. At some point around the front end of the '90s, Guild went to gold tuners on this model.
 

JF-30

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The tuners are gold, and I took it in to Dusty Strings here in Seattle and had DR rare bluegrass strings 12-56 put on, I think someone recommended them, they adjusted the truss rod and the bass came alive! Only thing now is some frets need to be shaved a little bit it's minor. Really a great sounding guitar, has nice Maple clarity, nice base. Honestly it sounds as good or better than some Gibson SJ 200s I've tried in the past
You say that on the Gibson Forum, The Acoustic Mafia of the Acoustic Section will be on you like stink on...
 
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JF-30

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A good Guild jumbo can deliver a tone that's every bit as appealing as the tone produced by a good Gibson jumbo. I happen to have one of each, and although they do sound different, both are very satisfying.

Re tuners, the JF-30 did come stock with chrome or nickel tuners in the '80s. At some point around the front end of the '90s, Guild went to gold tuners on this model.
Glad mine have Chrome. I loath Gold on guitars. It's the only complaint I have about my Gibson BB King.
 

bobouz

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Glad mine have Chrome. I loath Gold on guitars.

Generally, I'm not a fan of gold plating either.

But for some reason on certain guitars, it looks good to me, even if a bit tarnished. It would be easy enough to swap them out, and in fact I already have a couple of sets of chrome Grovers available. However on my '94 JF-30 and '92 D-6nt-hg, the gold tuners look right to my fickle eye, and they'll remain on there. Same with a couple of the electrics.

On my '02 Gibson J-45 Rosewood, the gold Grovers came off, to be replaced by nickel Grovers with tulip buttons - a significant improvement, imho.

Aesthetics can be a peculiar thing!
 

General Dreedle

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I don't mind the gold so far on this guitar but I had J45 custom rosewood too and it did bother me.
 

davismanLV

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If it's a standard production tuner the change from silver to gold or the other way, is easy as can be. Keep the originals in a bag or the case. I think both my guitars have the ones they should have. My 25 year old Guilds are good. The DV72 has silver which really suits the whole "turquoise" theme of the guitar. And my blonde D65S is as golden and mellow as you can get. But if I was unhappy with them, I'd just change 'em. Not happening, though.... see??

B5g3C3.jpg

ael3.jpg


Gold/silver.... you can have what you like. Just keep the originals, always!! :encouragement:
 

Cougar

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I thought I had added my congrats to this thread. Don't see it now. Maybe it was over at Gibson. Anyway, MAJOR CONGRATS, Dreedle, on nabbing a killer jumbo!

Honestly it sounds as good or better than some Gibson SJ 200s I've tried in the past

Exactly! You're not the first one to make the comparison, Mark Agnesi being one recognizable name who put the JF30/F412 in the same ballpark as the SJ200. I am majorly sold on these jumbos and love my 12ers....
 

twocorgis

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Exactly! You're not the first one to make the comparison, Mark Agnesi being one recognizable name who put the JF30/F412 in the same ballpark as the SJ200. I am majorly sold on these jumbos and love my 12ers....

Agreed! My F50ce sounds better than any of the dozen or so jumbo maple Gibsons I’ve played, and it’s a lot prettier too. I could never relate to the mustache bridge, and all the attendant bling on the J/SJ200 myself, but a lot of people sure don’t seem to mind. And then there’s the cost...
 
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bobouz

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Agreed! My F50ce sound better than any of the dozen or so jumbo maple Gibson’s I’ve played, and it’s a lot prettier too. I could never relate to the mustache bridge, and all the attendant bling on the J/SJ200 myself, but a lot of people sure don’t seem to mind. And then there’s the cost...

Worth checking out is Gibson’s J-100 model. It’s a mostly blingless version of the J-200, with different versions using mahogany, maple, and bubinga since the ‘90s. I’ve owned a few, including my current 2000 version in maple (purchased new). Surprisingly light as a feather, with gobs of tone.
 

General Dreedle

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Worth checking out is Gibson’s J-100 model. It’s a mostly blingless version of the J-200, with different versions using mahogany, maple, and bubinga since the ‘90s. I’ve owned a few, including my current 2000 version in maple (purchased new). Surprisingly light as a feather, with gobs of tone.

I always was intrigued by the recent J 185
 
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