sonicreducer
Junior Member
Looking for sunburst, but will consider every option.
WTB WTB: Guild F-20
- Thread starter sonicreducer
- Start date
Wanted to Buy
mavuser
Enlightened Member
long scale or short? they are pretty different in many ways. the late 70s (and 80s?) long scale F-20 is a BEAST.
there was a nice looking sunburst 1975 long scale F-20 on eBay recently. It was listed at $1,095 OBO with nice hard case and appeared to not sell. It looked like the seller has a bonafide guitar shop in South Carolina so there is a chance it did sell locally. but it might be worth contacting them to ask if it is still available.
lmk if this link doesnt work or if you cannot find it on ebay.
http://m.ebay.com/itm/Very-Cool-197...%3A985725ab1580a2a2150d4f3effef4c29%7Ciid%3A2
I have the same guitar in Natural top, a 1976. It is an absolute monster, and sounds to me closer to a D-25 (or F-30) than a shortscale F-20. mine has a very chunky neck. Also these have flat backs. The ones from the 90s have arched backs. I personally cant play arched back guitars, the guiatr just moves around too much while im playing, just something to consider before u jump on an arch back. id say from what i know, all of the longscale F-20s (70s/80s?/90s) are somewhat "rare" (or at least harder to find), certainty moreso than the 60s shortscale F-20, which is much more of a true small bodied guitar in every way (short scale, nut width, neck carve, body depth, tone...) than the long scale. if u want a short scale theres alot of 60s/early 70s (and some 50s- which have arched maple backs), as well as some newr stuff from New Hartford Guild plus the M-20 from Oxnard Guild (which does not sound like an F-20, but is the same size). good luck!
there was a nice looking sunburst 1975 long scale F-20 on eBay recently. It was listed at $1,095 OBO with nice hard case and appeared to not sell. It looked like the seller has a bonafide guitar shop in South Carolina so there is a chance it did sell locally. but it might be worth contacting them to ask if it is still available.
lmk if this link doesnt work or if you cannot find it on ebay.
http://m.ebay.com/itm/Very-Cool-197...%3A985725ab1580a2a2150d4f3effef4c29%7Ciid%3A2
I have the same guitar in Natural top, a 1976. It is an absolute monster, and sounds to me closer to a D-25 (or F-30) than a shortscale F-20. mine has a very chunky neck. Also these have flat backs. The ones from the 90s have arched backs. I personally cant play arched back guitars, the guiatr just moves around too much while im playing, just something to consider before u jump on an arch back. id say from what i know, all of the longscale F-20s (70s/80s?/90s) are somewhat "rare" (or at least harder to find), certainty moreso than the 60s shortscale F-20, which is much more of a true small bodied guitar in every way (short scale, nut width, neck carve, body depth, tone...) than the long scale. if u want a short scale theres alot of 60s/early 70s (and some 50s- which have arched maple backs), as well as some newr stuff from New Hartford Guild plus the M-20 from Oxnard Guild (which does not sound like an F-20, but is the same size). good luck!
sonicreducer
Junior Member
Thanks for all the wonderful info. Is yours a long scale as well? I'm curious how the change in string tension affects sound and playability.
mavuser
Enlightened Member
i have one of each, was referring to my long scale 1976 F-20 above, with the deeper body, chunky neck, wider nut, and more dread-like/long scale sound.
the shortscale F-20 has a 1 5/8" nut and slimmer neck (still round but not "fat" like my 1976). The short scale F-20 is more of a true smaller bodied and folk type guitar, but is still quite a weapon for its size. i use 11 gauge strings and it sounds great. the M-20 is not as loud, and is much closer to the Martin sound, to my ears at least.
the shortscale F-20 has a 1 5/8" nut and slimmer neck (still round but not "fat" like my 1976). The short scale F-20 is more of a true smaller bodied and folk type guitar, but is still quite a weapon for its size. i use 11 gauge strings and it sounds great. the M-20 is not as loud, and is much closer to the Martin sound, to my ears at least.
sonicreducer
Junior Member
Which one do you like best?
mavuser
Enlightened Member
honestly tough to say, like I said they are completely different. and for me, certain songs are just easier to play on a long scale guitar, be it acoustic or electric, of any brand. My shortscale F-20 fits me like glove though, it is my favorite acoustic, but that is just me. the one thing about mine though, it is a 1970 Westerly short scale, but it was re-topped by Guild in 1980, with the top (all of its cosmetic features *plus the bracing*) that would have been for a long scale, so it is noticably heavier than an all original Guild shortscale from the 60s or early 70s (and has the bridge moved up for the short scale). i love it, i think its perfect. after playing my own for a while, i picked up a 1966 and it felt too light for my liking, but that is just me and my own personal experience. id probably look for a long scale Westerly with the flat back like that sunburst one on ebay. those late 70s Guilds are cannons and built like tanks, they are less expensive than the 60s models and they dont come around every day. With that said though, they dont feel or sound, to me, like such a "small bodied guitar". more like a regular guitar with that quintessential Guild dominance. If you are really after the small bodied thing, or a "quieter" guitar, or have smaller hands, id get the shortscale F-20 or even possibly an M-20. living in Los Angeles i would hope you can try a couple out at least. try Sam Ash, at least for the new M-20. I have not seen many long scale F-20s or long scale M-20s from the mid-late 70s at all. Theres the 76 F-20 I own, the 75 on ebay, and ive seen maybe 2 or 3 M-20s from the same time period (long scale) online, all of this since ive been paying attention, about the last 6-7 years. the shortscales are everywhere, new and old.
mavuser
Enlightened Member
I currently own these 3
and this one
the shorties are all pretty consistent with the 1 5/8" nut and medium but round neck carve, they all just fit in my hands perfectly. the weight balance is perfect, but again they are mahogany tops and a 1980 heavier spruce top, and the true 1966 F-20 felt almost weightless to me by comparisson. the longscale has a baseball bat fat neck with the wider nut. it's different like night and day.
and this one
the shorties are all pretty consistent with the 1 5/8" nut and medium but round neck carve, they all just fit in my hands perfectly. the weight balance is perfect, but again they are mahogany tops and a 1980 heavier spruce top, and the true 1966 F-20 felt almost weightless to me by comparisson. the longscale has a baseball bat fat neck with the wider nut. it's different like night and day.