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  #1  
Old 07-23-2013, 09:44 AM
bobdcat bobdcat is offline
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Default '63 Guild Mark IV on Craigslist - no affiliation

I came close to buying this because I used to have one. But, I'm staying pat with my Mark I. I don't know this guy and have not seen the guitar, but these are great instruments and $400 is below market. The large pickguard is a little scary, but it might come off easily. The listing says 1964, but the serial number is from 1963

Craigslist Link: Guild Mark IV for sale

Seller's Photobucket page: Guild Mark IV pictures
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Several Martins, 2 Guilds, a couple of kits and a Tilton (ever heard of those?),
some ukes and a 1920s Vega tenor banjo


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Old 07-23-2013, 01:14 PM
Steve DeRosa Steve DeRosa is offline
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The pickguard is a DIY stick-on item; how easily it will come off after 50 years - and how much of the guitar's finish it will remove in the process - is open to conjecture. FYI, they came in a set of two (upper and lower), cost about $2 as I recall, and were originally used by flamenco players to help protect the top from the incipient stages of "Willie (as in Nelson) rash" when using golpe and rasgueado techniques; you'll also see some '60s Gibson "folk" models (the FJN in particular) that came from the factory with a similar setup...

My thoughts:

1] $400 is unquestionably below market value - while there may well be legitimate reasons for the low price (the primary one hopefully being that this guy really doesn't know what it's worth) ask a lot of questions, preferably off the public forum;
2] As long as it's not a total junk job and you intend to keep it for some time, it'd be worth investing another $400 or so in restoration/repairs if necessary;
3] Unless you're planning to use it in a classical setting, don't sweat the pickguard - it lends an authentic folk-era period vibe to the mix...
4] Learn how to play "Puff the Magic Dragon" ...
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  #3  
Old 07-23-2013, 01:46 PM
drumstrummer drumstrummer is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa View Post
...you'll also see some '60s Gibson "folk" models (the FJN in particular) that came from the factory with a similar setup...
don't sweat the pickguard - it lends an authentic folk-era period vibe to the mix...
As an owner of '64 Gibson F-25, I agree. Some like it, some don't, but it has a distinctive folky vibe.
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Old 07-23-2013, 01:50 PM
bobdcat bobdcat is offline
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Nice assessment and I agree entirely.

These are beautiful, woefully-underrated guitars. The back and sides are pearwood - a lively tonewood with plenty of projection. I owned a '67 for over 30 years. Unfortunately, a cholesterol drug reaction made playing a 2" classical guitar painful. So, I sold it after hurricane Katrina and gave the money to the Red Cross.

Years later, different medication and persistence have allowed me to play a classical neck more comfortably. I found a '69 Guild Mark I in excellent shape and have been able to play that. I was almost overcome with G.A.S. (Guild acquisition syndrome) on this one, though. But, I just couldn't justify buying a second Guild classical when I don't really play the one I have more than occasionally.

I did ask the guy if he had put the guard on, but he bought it that way several years ago, so there's no way to know how long it has been on there. It is possible that a little, carefully-measured heat might lift the pickguard and some naphtha might remove the residual glue. But, this is not a process for the faint of heart. Other than that, the pictures indicate that this Mark IV is in acceptable shape. Somebody please buy it so I won't.
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Several Martins, 2 Guilds, a couple of kits and a Tilton (ever heard of those?),
some ukes and a 1920s Vega tenor banjo


Neil deGrasse Tyson — 'The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.'
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Old 07-24-2013, 10:25 AM
bobdcat bobdcat is offline
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G.A.S. wins again. I'm going to look at it Saturday, after all. Most likely it will come home with me unless that pickguard is hiding something awful.
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Roger

Several Martins, 2 Guilds, a couple of kits and a Tilton (ever heard of those?),
some ukes and a 1920s Vega tenor banjo


Neil deGrasse Tyson — 'The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.'
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Old 07-24-2013, 09:40 PM
reholli reholli is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bobdcat View Post
G.A.S. wins again. I'm going to look at it Saturday, after all. Most likely it will come home with me unless that pickguard is hiding something awful.

I'll be hoping with you that the pickguard's not hiding something, although the thought did enter my mind also.

I bought my 1st wife a Guild classical in the late '60s (don't remember the model), and it was a fine guitar.
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