1974 F-47

Lono

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Just joined the forum, because I received my Grandfather's F-47. Based on the serial number I believe it was manufactured in 1974. Aside from needing a good cleaning and a new set of strings it's in pretty good shape.

Can anyone here tell me anything about these F-47's? Is the finish nitrocellulose? I'm wondering how careful I need to be when I'm cleaning it.

Here are some photos of my new guitar, sales receipt from 1979 found in the case:

PXL_20220102_172358161.MP.jpg
PXL_20220102_172412579.MP.jpgPXL_20220102_190308147.MP.jpgPXL_20220102_190320413.MP_2.jpgPXL_20220102_190335754.MP.jpgPXL_20220102_190340462.MP.jpgPXL_20220102_190346966.MP.jpgPXL_20220102_190409920.MP_2.jpgPXL_20220102_190414944.MP.jpgPXL_20220102_190718648.MP.jpgPXL_20220102_180636697.MP~2.jpg
 

walrus

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Great story! And welcome to LTG!

I love the sales receipt that shows your grandfather traded in a Gibson for this Guild!

A mystery that I'm sure someone will solve is the serial number of "96". I've never seen a two digit serial number before

walrus
 

Lono

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Great story! And welcome to LTG!

I love the sales receipt that shows your grandfather traded in a Gibson for this Guild!

A mystery that I'm sure someone will solve is the serial number of "96". I've never seen a two digit serial number before

walrus
I cut out the last 3 digits of the serial number in the pictures! It's got five total.

No one seems to have any idea what the Gibson he traded in was. My mom just remembers it being an acoustic shape, but she's certain he was able to plug it in and the connection was at the strap button.

Thanks for the warm welcome.
 

GGJaguar

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Welcome to LTG! Thanks for sharing your guitar and its back story!
 
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sailingshoes72

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Beautiful guitar! It looks like your Grandfather took very good care of it. And it's great that it is staying in the family. That model is popular here on the LTG Forum... a 16" Jumbo. I think that in 1974 the finish would have been nitrocellulose, but some others will be along shortly who will know for sure. The advice with NC finishes is to avoid any cleaners or polishes with silicone in them.

Welcome to LTG.
 

Lono

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Beautiful guitar! It looks like your Grandfather took very good care of it. And it's great that it is staying in the family. That model is popular here on the LTG Forum... a 16" Jumbo. I think that in 1974 the finish would have been nitrocellulose, but some others will be along shortly who will know for sure. The advice with NC finishes is to avoid any cleaners or polishes with silicone in them.

Welcome to LTG.
Thank you for the information and the advice! Planning on using a bit of naphtha to clean up, and then some Lizard Spit to polish it up. Planning on keeping the family playing it for another 40+ years.

Hello Lono,

Welcome! What surprised me is that the store wrote the instrument up as an F-48, which was a slightly larger bodied guitar!

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl
That surprised me too. I wonder if it was just an oversight, or if there's more to the story. Either way I'm sure happy he ended up with this one. Seems to feel just right size-wise.

Welcome to LTG! There is no 1974 catalog that I'm aware off, so besides Hans' book the only info is in the June 1, 1974 pricelist:

1641204160483.png

And yes, it is nitrocellulose lacquer.

Ralf
Thank you for this info! That book looks incredible. I'm going to have to find a copy.

-lono
 

bobouz

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What a wonderful guitar to inherit! I have it’s super close relative, an F-40 from the same year, same color finish, same black pickguard, same 3-piece mahogany neck, same size body & appointments, but differing with maple sides & arched maple back. Can’t beat this body size & shape for comfortable playing. Congrats & Enjoy!
 

Guildedagain

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Are you familiar with cleaning guitars already?

I've never used naphta on a guitar, but it is used in wet sanding because it's not water based.

I never use any guitar polishes on a guitar or should say I don't anymore. I used em all in the past, Gibson, Martin, Smiths and they got me in more trouble than I care to remember.

I use Meguiar's Cleaner/Wax, really removes wall paint scuffs on headstocks in a hurry, like nothing else, and leaves a brilliant shine.

NEVER put anything on your guitar.

Put it on the rag, then wipe it on the guitar.

I've seen someone squirt polish on a guitar, answer the phone, and by the time they came back it left a cloudy streak in the finish, it looked like it was going to need to be refin-ed, unreal.

A guitar cloth.

These are not to be underestimated. Some of my finest polishing comes from old guitar polishing cloths, not impregnated.

Dry polishing with guitar cloth is best, use a little breath to loosen crud.

I bought more guitar polish in my first 20 years of guitar ownership when I basically had one guitar.

I've had 100 go through my hands since - 20 subsequent years- and will not buy any kind of store bought guitar polish, and the smell, ugh...

Meguiar's products are pro industry standards for car care, fine cut cleaner, heavy cut cleaner, I have em all - all free of silicones - rarely if ever use them, just the wax.

Wax on Wax off ;]

And this.

Gorgomyte. Get some. Clean and polish the fretboard and frets, nothing like it.

I personally do not oil boards afterwards. Old boards like this are quite sealed by products and time. I'd much rather have a high polish luster than an oily board that weeps around the frets for a while, not to mention even the best oil out there F1 Bore oil "made from all natural ingredients" actually stinks suspiciously like man made fragrances, no thanks.
 
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HeyMikey

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Welcome Lono. That is a beautiful guitar your grandfather left to you. F47’s are a perfect size in my mind and there is nothing like old seasoned wood.

One thing you should do immediately is to humidify it. Especially in the winter months. Nitro finishes can crack when they dry our or when subjected to quick changes in temperature. Drying out can also cause glue joints to fail on braces, the bridge, or cause cracks in the wood itself. Humidity of 40-45% is ideal.

There are several products on the market that you can get form most guitar/music stores. Everyone has their favorite.

I prefer a DIY type humidifier made out of plastic soap box and “water beads” Cheap and lasts a month or so before needing to be rehydrated. Others like Oasis employ a similar method but need to be refilled weekly. Some use a Humidipack type pad that lasts 6-12 months but are more costly. Some use a simple wrung out sponge in soap dish. Do a little research, but get the old gal humidified.

Enjoy!
 

wileypickett

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Guildedagain -- sounds like we could all benefit from your experience with guitar / fretboard cleaners and polishes!

A couple questions:

RE: Meguiar's: do you let the wax dry before wiping it off, or polish while it's stll wet?

Gorgomyte: I bought some because several LTGers recommended it, but had exactly the "weeping around the frets" problem you attribute to other fretboard cleaners -- I had to wipe down the fretboard every time I took the guitar out of its case for what seemed like weeks.

This soured me on the product, and I reverted back to boiled linseed oil as my fretboard cleaner of choice.

Did I use the Gorgomyte incorrecty? Did I apply too much? (I applied the Gorgomyte with a rag, not straight out of the bottle.) Did I let it sit too long? (I waited 10 minutes or so for it to soak in before wiping it down.)

Thanks!
Glenn
 

HeyMikey

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Guildedagain -- sounds like we could all benefit from your experience with guitar / fretboard cleaners and polishes!

A couple questions:

RE: Meguiar's: do you let the wax dry before wiping it off, or polish while it's stll wet?

Gorgomyte: I bought some because several LTGers recommended it, but had exactly the "weeping around the frets" problem you attribute to other fretboard cleaners -- I had to wipe down the fretboard every time I took the guitar out of its case for what seemed like weeks.

This soured me on the product, and I reverted back to boiled linseed oil as my fretboard cleaner of choice.

Did I use the Gorgomyte incorrecty? Did I apply too much? (I applied the Gorgomyte with a rag, not straight out of the bottle.) Did I let it sit too long? (I waited 10 minutes or so for it to soak in before wiping it down.)

Thanks!
Glenn

Hey Glenn, I use the Gorgomyte impregnated sheets not a liquid. The sheets are fairly dry. Works great. I tear off a small 1x2 square which is enough to do the frets and fretboard.
 

Lono

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Are you familiar with cleaning guitars already?

I've never used naphta on a guitar, but it is used in wet sanding because it's not water based.

I never use any guitar polishes on a guitar or should say I don't anymore. I used em all in the past, Gibson, Martin, Smiths and they got me in more trouble than I care to remember.

I use Meguiar's Cleaner/Wax, really removes wall paint scuffs on headstocks in a hurry, like nothing else, and leaves a brilliant shine.

NEVER put anything on your guitar.

Put it on the rag, then wipe it on the guitar.

I've seen someone squirt polish on a guitar, answer the phone, and by the time they came back it left a cloudy streak in the finish, it looked like it was going to need to be refin-ed, unreal.

A guitar cloth.

These are not to be underestimated. Some of my finest polishing comes from old guitar polishing cloths, not impregnated.

Dry polishing with guitar cloth is best, use a little breath to loosen crud.

I bought more guitar polish in my first 20 years of guitar ownership when I basically had one guitar.

I've had 100 go through my hands since - 20 subsequent years- and will not buy any kind of store bought guitar polish, and the smell, ugh...

Meguiar's products are pro industry standards for car care, fine cut cleaner, heavy cut cleaner, I have em all, rarely if ever use them, just the wax.

Wax on Wax off ;]

And this.

Gorgomyte. Get some. Clean and polish the fretboard and frets, nothing like it.

I personally do not oil boards afterwards. Old boards like this are quite sealed by products and time. I'd much rather have a high polish luster than an oily board that weeps around the frets for a while, not to mention even the beast oil out there F1 Bore oil "made from all natural ingredients" actually stinks suspiciously like man made fragrances, no thanks.
Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts on cleaning and polishing. I appreciate the advice.

I've had some experience with cleaning guitars, mostly solid-body electrics. I find that naphtha helps me cut any accumulated gunk pretty quickly. It evaporates really quickly and doesn't seem to impact the finish at all. It was recommended to me by a couple of luthier/touring guitar tech friends. The lizard spit polish was recommended as well. It's a carnauba wax and water base. Seems to polish on fast, and prevent gunk from accumulating at the pace of unwaxed finish. I really like it.

What kind of cloth do you mean by guitar cloth? I tend to use a combination of Costco automotive microfiber clothes and well worn/washed cotton.

Completely in agreement on the gorgomyte. I currently have a miracle cloth, but I think it's the same stuff.
 
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Lono

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Welcome Lono. That is a beautiful guitar your grandfather left to you. F47’s are a perfect size in my mind and there is nothing like old seasoned wood.

One thing you should do immediately is to humidify it. Especially in the winter months. Nitro finishes can crack when they dry our or when subjected to quick changes in temperature. Drying out can also cause glue joints to fail on braces, the bridge, or cause cracks in the wood itself. Humidity of 40-45% is ideal.

There are several products on the market that you can get form most guitar/music stores. Everyone has their favorite.

I prefer a DIY type humidifier made out of plastic soap box and “water beads” Cheap and lasts a month or so before needing to be rehydrated. Others like Oasis employ a similar method but need to be refilled weekly. Some use a Humidipack type pad that lasts 6-12 months but are more costly. Some use a simple wrung out sponge in soap dish. Do a little research, but get the old gal humidified.

Enjoy!
Thanks for the advice on humidifying the guitar. I've done the sponge in a travel soap dish I've drilled holes in before. I was unaware of the water beads. Looks like a great solution. I'm going to pick some up. Thanks!
 
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