ProjectileBeaver
Junior Member
I finally got my first Guild and thought I would share some pictures of it in its current state. I drove a long way to get it and found that it came with a few more issues than the seller had disclosed when I asked all of my questions. Still, I got it for a good price and am happy to work on restoring it while I can't afford a full price Guild. This is not how it came to me!
It's a 1964 Guild Starfire IV, originally in cherry red but finished over in black at some point. I had to scratch a thick layer of black paint off the inner label but managed to make out the serial number. The pickups look original and sound incredible from what I've heard although the electronics aren't functioning properly so I haven't been able to play too much yet. The input jack was moved at some point from the lower side of the body to the front of the body by the volume/tone knobs. I've taken a picture where you can see the patch of wood which has been used to fill the side and hasn't been finished over particularly well.
Pickups: I'm not sure what to make of the stamps on the back of the pickups, as there doesn't seem to be any other information on there. Some of the mounting rings have missing screws still but I did find a replacement for a missing pickup height screw online. Luckily, all of the height springs are accounted for. The pickups themselves were covered in thick aluminium foil underneath. Has anyone found that they need shielding like this to keep noise down?
Electronics/wiring: After having to take the pots out (all were covered in aluminium type foil) though the f holes, I'm not particularly looking forward to putting the wiring back in place inside! Three of the pots seem to be original Centralab pots but I could be wrong. One of the pots has Centralab on the top of the casing but has Dimarzio written on the bottom. This one seems like it might be an 80's recreation of the original pots from my brief research. All pots are crackly to varying degrees and the neck volume only really works at settings between 9.5-10.
Frets: I haven't had a lot of guitars to compare to, but the frets seem playable, though I'm not sure for how long. They feel lower and flatter than most I've played before so maybe a fret dress would help if they are tall enough for that? The 16th fret does not ring out on the high E string so I'm taking it to get checked in the New Year to confirm what I suspect is a low/high fret situation and to see if anything should be done about the rest of the frets.
Finish: I would have preferred the original finish but I'm probably not looking to refinish any time soon as I mainly want to get it playing for now. However, I was wondering if I could touch it up in a few areas, especially where the input jack has been moved or there is damage as shown. There is a nasty looking dent in one picture that I thought I could get filled. I've also heard about people steaming some dents to recover some of the original shape but I don't know how feasible that is. If anyone has experience of that I'd be grateful to hear it.
Tuners/knobs: The tuners are Grovers. They feel like they could do with some attention and maybe an oiling. The knob casings seem pretty corroded/oxidised but I thought giving them a scrub with a toothbrush and using some automotive bumper/fascia vinyl restorer might help. Any thoughts?
I'm currently thinking I should try to clean the scratchy pots with contact cleaner and see if it has any impact on the pot I think may be broken. I may replace them all with the best equivalents I can find and keep hold of the Centralab pots anyway.
It's a 1964 Guild Starfire IV, originally in cherry red but finished over in black at some point. I had to scratch a thick layer of black paint off the inner label but managed to make out the serial number. The pickups look original and sound incredible from what I've heard although the electronics aren't functioning properly so I haven't been able to play too much yet. The input jack was moved at some point from the lower side of the body to the front of the body by the volume/tone knobs. I've taken a picture where you can see the patch of wood which has been used to fill the side and hasn't been finished over particularly well.
Pickups: I'm not sure what to make of the stamps on the back of the pickups, as there doesn't seem to be any other information on there. Some of the mounting rings have missing screws still but I did find a replacement for a missing pickup height screw online. Luckily, all of the height springs are accounted for. The pickups themselves were covered in thick aluminium foil underneath. Has anyone found that they need shielding like this to keep noise down?
Electronics/wiring: After having to take the pots out (all were covered in aluminium type foil) though the f holes, I'm not particularly looking forward to putting the wiring back in place inside! Three of the pots seem to be original Centralab pots but I could be wrong. One of the pots has Centralab on the top of the casing but has Dimarzio written on the bottom. This one seems like it might be an 80's recreation of the original pots from my brief research. All pots are crackly to varying degrees and the neck volume only really works at settings between 9.5-10.
Frets: I haven't had a lot of guitars to compare to, but the frets seem playable, though I'm not sure for how long. They feel lower and flatter than most I've played before so maybe a fret dress would help if they are tall enough for that? The 16th fret does not ring out on the high E string so I'm taking it to get checked in the New Year to confirm what I suspect is a low/high fret situation and to see if anything should be done about the rest of the frets.
Finish: I would have preferred the original finish but I'm probably not looking to refinish any time soon as I mainly want to get it playing for now. However, I was wondering if I could touch it up in a few areas, especially where the input jack has been moved or there is damage as shown. There is a nasty looking dent in one picture that I thought I could get filled. I've also heard about people steaming some dents to recover some of the original shape but I don't know how feasible that is. If anyone has experience of that I'd be grateful to hear it.
Tuners/knobs: The tuners are Grovers. They feel like they could do with some attention and maybe an oiling. The knob casings seem pretty corroded/oxidised but I thought giving them a scrub with a toothbrush and using some automotive bumper/fascia vinyl restorer might help. Any thoughts?
I'm currently thinking I should try to clean the scratchy pots with contact cleaner and see if it has any impact on the pot I think may be broken. I may replace them all with the best equivalents I can find and keep hold of the Centralab pots anyway.
