1974 Guild F50 pawnshop find

[redir]

Yeah you did more then good. It's harder and harder to get away with stuff like that in pawn shops these days.

[Guildman]

My local pawn shop is way too smart to do that. You got the deal of the decade at least from what I just saw on reverb for something like that.

[Orfeas]

You did fantastic my friend. This is a 40+ year old instrument apparently well kept and obviously played. Thats actually the first acoustic that I've got and lost it in a house fire back in 2001. Sound was massive.

[Gary1953]

The guitar shows a lot of players wear. I haven't found any pictures online of a Guild F50 in similar condition to determine what it's value might be. Regardless, attempting a finish restore might devalue it further. So, I should probably enjoy it "as is".

I don't have any pictures of the back at the moment but it is flame maple and matches the color on the back of the neck. Finish is worn through on the upper bout where the arm rests and near the middle of the back where a belt buckle rode. Not bad though.

It must have been somebody's pride and joy as it has been played a lot.

Any idea what factory it was made in? The label doesn't say Westerly on it. But the serial number is from the 1974 range of guitars.

[rampix]

Very nice find!

As mentioned before, you may want to post this over on the LetsTalkGuild forum. There is a member there by the name of Hans Mount that has written a book(s?) on the history of Guild guitars. His depth of knowledge regarding Guild guitars is incredible. You could also PM or email him from contact info there with questions. I'm pretty sure he would be willing to answer all of your questions.

Did I mention that's a VERY NICE find?

[Gary1953]

Thank you.

[Tico]

WOW!

Score!

[markrj]

Very cool, and lucky find! Congrats.

[fuman]

Man, that's great. Enjoy your tremendous score.

[valleyguy]

Woa, where is this pawn shop?

So jealous.......

[H165]

Heck, the tuners are probably worth about what you paid. I love these stories - just goes to show they're "still out there" if you're in the right place at the right time with the $$.

[Mr Fingers]

Someone else will date it for you, but it appears to be from well before the spree of ownership changes and changes of direction that messed up Guild's reputation. A good F50 is, for some of us, a dream guitar -- dreadnought volume but more balanced tone; beauty without bling; SJ200 type, but with tone -- and yours looks very promising. While it's true that restorations reduce value, many players and collectors do have guitars in this condition that have been "cleaned up" and the finish "revived" without really obviously crossing the line into refin territory. I don't think it will take much to turn this into a spectacular instrument. I would love to have one! Congratulations.

[Gary1953]

Yeah, I'm chomping at the bit here. My luthier will not have it ready until Friday. I think he wants to play it for a couple days. LOL! It will be fun to compare it to my only other acoustic, a koa Taylor GS Mini.

You just watch, I'll find that I need a dreadnought to fill the gap between the two, then maybe a 12 string... then a....

[Goat Mick]

That old guitar is beautiful. You don't need to do any restoring to it at all. It just needs a little TLC. I picked up some of this wax a few weeks ago and it did wonders on the finish of an old Martin DM I bought. I bet it would make your guild shine like a new diamond.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/acces...4MF-adType^PLA

[island texan]

I’ll second the comments about Hans Mount’s book. Anyone with an older Guild should buy that book. I think it’s on Amazon. Really fun to peruse and you’ll learn a lot about your find.