How many of you still have your first professional quality guitar?

[RussellHawaii]

I still have my Gallagher G70 from 1975, my first real one. But it does not get played and I need to find a future home for it!

[Jim Owen]

Originally Posted by Alnicol

My original 1958 Fender Telecaster.

That’s beautiful.

[Wade Hampton]

This thread has been fascinating to read, with a far higher percentage of people reporting that they still have their first good guitar than I would have predicted. It’s holding steady at about 60%, which is amazing.


whm

[elmaestro]

Yes and no. First professional classical? Yes I still have that. First pro steel string? Unfortunately not. It was an HD-28LSV. I played it as the sometimes-guitarist in a bluegrass band (I mainly played mandolin). Killer guitar for that but terribly versatile so I traded it for a J-45. I ran across a great one at my local shop last year but couldn't swing the cash and it got away. Could be nice to get one again but I traded the J-45 for a Collings D1 and it's all the dread I need.

[dbvirago]

Well, I just bought it 11 months ago, so yeah.

[Zexxor]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

How many of you still have the first pro quality guitar you ever bought?

You have some pretty interesting posts.
When I was 18 my brother gave me some money and I bought a brand new 1972 or 73 Fender Tele, it was a custom deluxe or something like that, had a humbucker at the end of the fretboard and a single coil which also had slots for an ashtray-which I kept on it religiously
I fell on some hard times and a friend of mine said he knew of a job we could get in Minnesota, so I pawned it for $150 (paid $450) and we hitchhiked to Minnesota from Portland, OR.
I absolutely loved that guitar and was in a group trying to become a band, but things did not work out. Sad memories.

90s Fender American Standard Telecaster in 3 tone sunburst with rosewood fingerboard. Sold during a massive purge when I literally sold ever piece of gear I owned. Sometimes I think about it with nostalgia but the reality is I would never play it if I still had.

[mattwood]

I have a 1967 Martin D-18. It’s the guitar I play the least and am open to selling.

[DanR]

My first professional quality acoustic guitar was a Martin D-12-20 I bought in 1972. I moved it pretty fast when I realized the 12 string was not for me. I then purchased a D-35 which was a great guitar, but alas, long gone.

My first professional quality electric guitar was a brand new '65 Epiphone Casino. John, Paul and George each used one so that's about as pro as you can get. Paul still plays his in concert.

[Mark Stone]

Long, long gone. It was a Gibson B-25 I got as a gift in 1971, and, frankly, I don't remember what ever happened to it.

[Tony Burns]

My first pro quality Acoustic - '71 Guild D-55 -Still with me
as a college student that was a very pricy guitar for me.
my first electric -telecaster custom --long gone , do miss it -thinking about getting another American made one. ( just for fun )

[blews]

Originally Posted by hubcapsc

That's pretty cool... made me look it up... I guess it was made by Yairi in
Japan...

-Mike

Yes - Japanese build....hard to find these days and when you do find them, they sell quickly.....I love her....

[Tone Gopher]

Originally Posted by guitarwebguy

Wade,

My first professional guitar was a 1972 Gurian series B size 2 Brazilian rosewood/spruce that I purchased in 1976. I kept it until 3 years ago when I sold it to help fund a custom Emerald X20-12. Well played over the many years and well traveled. Certainly had a large influence on my learning and playing!

When I was at USN Nuclear Power School (Orlando, Florida) in the late ‘70s, I hung out at a guitar shop, and became friends with the guitar repairman, Michael Tobias. He was friends with Michael Gurian, and introduced me to Josh White, Jr., who was playing a Gurian at the time. Michael ultimately ordered a custom herringbone Jumbo for me that I still own, although it is currently on loan to a friend that performs with it regularly. I still own a Size 3M Cutaway that was my second guitar (also ordered via Tobias), and a third S3R that I bought from William Cumpiano several years later.

[Lkristians]

IMG_9557.jpg

I guess this counts. As I mentioned in one of Wade's earlier threads, I still have this 1950ish Gibson that I learned on.

[hansmoust]

Originally Posted by HogsNRoses

My first nice acoustic was a ‘87 Westerly Guild all mahogany dread with the laminated slightly arched back. I sold it while downsizing. Does anyone know what model that would have been? I miss that guitar.

Hello HNR,

Maybe you already did get the answer, but if it really was a model from 1987 then it most likely would have been a D-15 or a D-17.

D-15: No body binding
D-17: Body binding

Good luck!

Hans Moust
www.guitarsgalore.nl