1996 Guild S-100

Not a vintage, but it's sweet.

http://s178.photobucket.com/albums/w248 ... 00%201996/

(Oops! That link wasn't working and I didn't realize it. It's fixed now. Take a gander at the old Guild T-shirt ad. Too funny!)

Congratulations! Nice guitar. Love that classic trans red finish, too.

One day I'd love to get my hands on another S-100 in good condition.

Thanks! It's an even deeper darker red than it looks in the pics.

By the way--Only one other person bid on that guitar. I expected a lot more than that. Are people only really interested in the vintage '70's? I know some people were concerned about Fender buying Guild but they were still in Rhode Island in '96. Go figure. My gain!

I think people put a premium on the first round of S-series guitars back in the early 70s... one, they're older and are of course vintage, and two they're the original series (although it can also be argued that the S series was itself a straight-out tribute/response to Gibson's SG, so questions of authenticity and originality can always be debated 'till the cows come home).

Had it been an early 70s S-100 you would expect more of a bidding war, for sure.

In any case, yours looks like a healthy specimen, in good shape. Electronics are all good? Unless you paid a huge amount (LOL- whatever that is), I'd say you got yourself a deal.

Yep, everything works fine. As for price -- it wasn't over my limit!

The vintage ones are sweet and I know they go for more and are more in demand. There seems to be a good bit of demand for the '90's ones too as they are getting rarer by the year. I'll just blame it on the economy.

Well, what got me started on all of this was . . . care to guess? . . . the Gibson SG. I decided to invest in a better guitar and I remembered really liking one my friend had years ago (a '61 reissue with '57 humbuckers). That's really the only one I'd want, but not for the money -- over $1500 used. That knocked me down to the SG Standard range and I figured if I was looking at that level SG I might as well get a Guild instead. I saw the band Kylesa and both guitarists were playing S-100s. That's when I really noticed them for the first time. So I figured I'd check 'em out. They proved to be the solution to a couple things I didn't like about the Gibsons -- headstock heavy (so if you take your left hand off the neck it tilts all the way down) and the weak headstocks that snap easily. So here I am with a '96 Guild that I don't feel like I have to keep under glass. A vintage one would be cool (but they tend to be $1200 and up), but my S-90 is pretty damn cool too.

Now all I gotta do is sell off a MIM Strat and file my tax return and I'll recoup some of the money I laid out recently.

Also, I had an Ibanez SA Series too that someone gave me years ago. I was going to sell that too (maybe $200 tops) but I found a guy with an old Peavey cabinet he was trying to sell and he ended up trading me the cab for the Ibanez. Not bad for a free guitar!

So in the last couple months I've resurrected my ailing Marshall head, traded a free guitar for a cabinet, and picked up an S-100. Sweet!

Qvart, another way to go if you like the SG vibe is look into MIK Epiphones... specifically G400s from Korea... solid axes, nice traditional materials - a fine platform from which to build a serious guitar. They're dirt cheap compared to even 90s Guild S-100s and are a steal compared to real Gibsons.

The other SG shape I dig is ESP's viper... I like the higher-end ones because the materials are more 'SG-correct' and they're set necks. I'd still rather have old school pups than actives, but otherwise I dig their take on the SG shape - skewed it a tad, but very nicely.

For the bazillionth time, I wish Fender let Guild reissue the S-100 line. LOL

A friend of mine offered me his Epiphone SG, and I played one once years ago in a band, but I was never a fan of them. I don't know the model you're talking about. Would have to do some research (you don't know what you start with such innocent comments and suggestions! I can be a little OCD with this kind of stuff!)

As for ESPs, I'm not familiar with that model either, but the ESPs I've played are nice (although they all had Floyd Roses, which I HATE).

But I should probably stop spending money for a little while. Maybe I'll be a little more willing to part with it down the road if I come across a vintage S-100!

Maxer said:

For the bazillionth time, I wish Fender let Guild reissue the S-100 line. LOL

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Amen brother.

Qvart said:

But I should probably stop spending money for a little while.

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Oh man, you are soooo in the wrong place then! :lol:

BTW, welcome and nice looking S-100 and S-90!

Hammer said:

Maxer said:

For the bazillionth time, I wish Fender let Guild reissue the S-100 line. LOL

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Amen brother.

Qvart said:

But I should probably stop spending money for a little while.

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Oh man, you are soooo in the wrong place then! :lol:

BTW, welcome and nice looking S-100 and S-90!

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Haha! Thanks! But I am SO in the right place because I say I shouldn't spend money, but I know I will!

It's all just a matter of timing.

This 2004 is nice, but I'm happy with what I have right now, and, they need a little work so I have PROJECTS.

Not to mention replacing (probably) all the pots on my JCM900. That thing has seen better days. Punk shows are not kind to gear.

Qvart said:

A friend of mine offered me his Epiphone SG, and I played one once years ago in a band, but I was never a fan of them.

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I've played a couple of Epiphone SG copies, and I'd say they could be nice if you sanded about 1/2" off the back of the neck. Same with the Gibson SGs I've played. The S-100 is a way faster feeling neck, and I love what a deal you can get on them! As you can see below, I'm hooked hard.

Hey! This guy stole my S-100!!!!!!!!!!!



This makes me drool:



This is what got me started--double Guilds:



http://www.myspace.com/kylesa

Pretty choice. The bands that use the S-100 are pretty limited. We use the dual Guild approach with the Daleks. Can't beat the sound.

Qvart said:

Hey! This guy stole my S-100!!!!!!!!!!!

This makes me drool:

This is what got me started--double Guilds:

http://www.myspace.com/kylesa

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Who is that in the first pic?

blakeley311 said:

Who is that in the first pic?

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Holy necro-thread.

That's Kylesa