Kim Thayil S-100 Coming

[GGJaguar]

Sweetwater has the Indonesian (black) one in stock and the US-made white one is a coming soon at a whopping $9750!!! The Indonesian version has a headstock that appears wider at the top than that standard Newark Street style.

Guild Polara Kim Thayil Signature Electric Guitar - Black

Solidbody Electric Guitar with Mahogany Body, Mahogany Neck, Rosewood Fingerboard, and 2 Humbucking Pickups - Black

www.sweetwater.com

Guild USA Artist Edition S-100 Polara Kim Thayil Electric Guitar - White

Solidbody Electric Guitar with Mahogany Body, Mahogany Neck, Rosewood Fingerboard, and 2 Humbucking Pickups - White

www.sweetwater.com

 

[chazmo]

a whopping $9750!!!

Seriously? Well, I suspect some marketing person will lose their job over that.

 

[GGJaguar]

If that price holds, I'll bet the prices for used S-100s from the 1970s and 1990s will increase.

 

[SFIV1967]

...and the US-made white one is a coming soon at a whopping $9750!!!

That is double the price it should be in my opinion...a Fender Custom Shop Jeff Beck Strat for instance is half the price...

Ralf

 

[LesB3]

They've hit the main website too...

https://guildguitars.com/g/usa-artist-edition-s-100-polara-kim-thayil/

No MSRP listed though...

old-growth honduran mahogany body and neck with guild 70’s headstock and neck shape​

Hand-built utilizing one-piece bodies of old-growth Honduran Mahogany, a Guild 70’s neck shape and large headstock reflect Kim’s favorite features of his ’78 S-100.

custom usa guild hb-1 humbuckers handwound by jason lollar w/ phase switch​

World renowned for his pickups, Jason Lollar worked with Guild and Kim to authentically reproduce Guild’s legendary, flagship HB-1 Humbuckers. Handwound by Jason himself, these humbuckers replicate the warm but articulate timbre of 70’s S-100 Polaras. A perfect match for Kim’s heavy tones, the added clarity of the HB-1’s allow the guitar to cut through the mix. Also equipped with a phase switch, accurate to vintage spec, these features are essential to recreating the magic of Kim’s favorite S-100 Polara models.

grover original rotomatics® tuners​

Per Kim’s request, the signature model features Grover Original Rotomatics® tuners for stability and ease of use. Standard on vintage S-100 Polara models, these tuners are a reliable industry favorite.

soundgarden king animal truss rod cover and badmotorfinger back cover hand signed by kim thayil​

Honoring the long-standing legacy of Soundgarden’s 1991 album, “Badmotorfinger” and their 2012 album, “King Animal,” these symbols are quintessentially grunge and pay tribute to Kim and his band mates.
Additional features include a bound Indian Rosewood fingerboard with Mother of Pearl block inlays, reproduction Guild/Mueller style bridge & compensated stopbar tailpiece. Available in a White Nitrocellulose gloss finish with gold hardware. Ships in a custom hardshell case with Certificate of Authenticity Hand-Signed by Kim Thayil.

 

[chazmo]

Well, that's super cool that Kim Thayil will be hand-signing the CoA, but I just can't see that price actually working out. Anyway, this is exciting!

 

[LesB3]

This article lists a "street" price:

https://mmrmagazine.com/site/gear/f...-launches-kim-thayil-signature-polara-models/
"Guild USA Artist Edition S-100 Polara Kim Thayil- $6,999 Street • $9,700 MSRP"

Still quite a bit of $$$$

 

[SFIV1967]

 

[SFIV1967]

And the Asian built one:

 

[Bill Ashton]

Price is perhaps due to the body wood? Maybe not enough or right sizes for D40's but right for electrics?

 

[GGJaguar]

Still quite a bit of $$$$

Agreed. Even if the body is Honduran mahogany.

 

[LesB3]

I didnt even realize this until I watched the video of Kim and then saw the new scrolling page on the Guild site...



...but if you look, there is clearly a difference in the placement of the tailpiece -its much further back on the white model.

 

[SFIV1967]

Looks like the US model comes again with real ABM (Müller) hardware:



Ralf

 

[GGJaguar]

Are those NOS or does ABM still manufacture them?

 

[SFIV1967]

Are those NOS or does ABM still manufacture them?

They still manufacture them on request. The company is named: "JoWo Berliner Schreibfeder GmbH, Division ABM GUITAR PARTS"

ABM

abm-guitarpartsshop.com

They have some parts that are regular production parts.
But for custom parts it's not cheap, however they offer to reproduce any part they did in the past as long as one provides a sample (they don't have or have only a limited sample stock). I was just in contact with them in Berlin in July regarding a different part and they said the one time costs are for CAD/CAM/machine setup, electroplating and so on. Same like it was done for the American Patriarch models back in 2012. If you order like 10 parts that reduces the overall cost a bit per part, obviously the more the better.
Ralf

 

[SFIV1967]

Are those NOS or does ABM still manufacture them?

The Guild webpage specs actually show: "Guild Vintage Mueller" but the press release shows: "a reproduction Guild/Mueller style bridge and compensated stopbar tailpiece". So I'd bet that is new production not NOS.

Ralf

 

[matsickma]

“This guitar does things most guitars aren’t gonna do”: It took three failed attempts and three decades of waiting, but Soundgarden guitarist Kim Thayil finally has a signature Guild S-100

The long-awaited signature model for the grunge guitar icon has landed at last, complete with nods to the Seattle institution’s discography and hand-wound Jason Lollar pickups

www.guitarworld.com

Interesting to learn how Kim Thayil utilized the microphonic aspect of the non potted Guild HB1 to make some sound effects and the compensated stop to make high pitch notes and tones.
Don't think I ever heard of anyone using the HB1's as a microphone!
M

 

[GGJaguar]

"a reproduction Guild/Mueller style bridge and compensated stopbar tailpiece".

Maybe fabricated by a contract manufacturer in Asia?

 

[SFIV1967]

Maybe fabricated by a contract manufacturer in Asia?

Possible but not on a $9k guitar I'd say....The Asian model has a normal bridge. The high price indicates "Made in Germany" to me. It's a reproduction as the new ABM only can reproduce it without having the original tools anymore.

Ralf

 

[GAD]

That's Gibson Custom Shop money for a non-custom-shop guitar that's a copy of a vintage guitar that you can get for less than 1/5th the price.

I love that they're trying to recreate excitement for US-made Guild electrics, and I accept that US-made guitars will be more expensive, and I especially love that there's a Mueller bridge, but that price is absurd.