NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
- rbrcbr
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NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
Well, all the recent obsession I've had with old Guild Starfires has culminated and I am now the proud owner of a '62 Guild Starfire III (also my first vintage guitar, so excited)!
I suppose it's an early '62, based on the lack of back binding, but so far haven't found a source to get a real ballpark of when it was made in '62. All I can find is that back binding was added to these models in '62.
I got this one from GC, turns out the original owner sold it to them (had the original receipt with it but he hung onto it) with a vintage spaghetti strap and a non original Guild case, as the original was too trashed after all these years. Aside from the case, everything on it is original. Good bit of finish checking and some dings, but pretty clean overall and the binding hasn't shrunk at all. Tuners are a bit stiff but I'm sure we can get them working well again easily. The frets are fairly worn and oxidized but still playable. It has some pretty hefty, old flatwounds on it currently and the action is a bit high further up the neck, but the neck is nicely worn in in some spots and is just the right size so it plays really well but will be even better after a set up. The bigsby is super broken in and feels great. I'm gonna take it to my tech this week to have him look over it and determine whether we should go for a refret, or just a fret dress + setup and new strings. Can't wait.
Even as it is, it sounds fantastic through my Super Reverb reissue. The amp needs a new transformer at the moment, so I'm getting some weird frequencies/harmonics over the stuff I'm playing, but I bet it will sound even better once the amp is in tip top shape. Dynasonics are some of my favorite pickups ever and these sound pretty great so far. It's super loud acoustically and has a nice woody, chimey clean tone to it. I need some more time (and a fixed amp) to get a really good gauge on how to describe these pickups and maybe a demo for you guys.
Overall, I'm loving it. It plays great, sounds great, and the thin body feels just how I hoped it would. This honestly feels like the perfect hollowbody, compared to the Gretsch's I've owned and others that I've played. It really feels like I got lucky with how good this one is.
Here are some more photos!
I suppose it's an early '62, based on the lack of back binding, but so far haven't found a source to get a real ballpark of when it was made in '62. All I can find is that back binding was added to these models in '62.
I got this one from GC, turns out the original owner sold it to them (had the original receipt with it but he hung onto it) with a vintage spaghetti strap and a non original Guild case, as the original was too trashed after all these years. Aside from the case, everything on it is original. Good bit of finish checking and some dings, but pretty clean overall and the binding hasn't shrunk at all. Tuners are a bit stiff but I'm sure we can get them working well again easily. The frets are fairly worn and oxidized but still playable. It has some pretty hefty, old flatwounds on it currently and the action is a bit high further up the neck, but the neck is nicely worn in in some spots and is just the right size so it plays really well but will be even better after a set up. The bigsby is super broken in and feels great. I'm gonna take it to my tech this week to have him look over it and determine whether we should go for a refret, or just a fret dress + setup and new strings. Can't wait.
Even as it is, it sounds fantastic through my Super Reverb reissue. The amp needs a new transformer at the moment, so I'm getting some weird frequencies/harmonics over the stuff I'm playing, but I bet it will sound even better once the amp is in tip top shape. Dynasonics are some of my favorite pickups ever and these sound pretty great so far. It's super loud acoustically and has a nice woody, chimey clean tone to it. I need some more time (and a fixed amp) to get a really good gauge on how to describe these pickups and maybe a demo for you guys.
Overall, I'm loving it. It plays great, sounds great, and the thin body feels just how I hoped it would. This honestly feels like the perfect hollowbody, compared to the Gretsch's I've owned and others that I've played. It really feels like I got lucky with how good this one is.
Here are some more photos!
- Debaser
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
Congrats, that’s a real beauty. Those Dynas can’t be beat either. I was about to ‘NGD’ my Guild but I’m clearly outshined
50,000 watts out of Mexico, this is the BorderRadio...
- Despot
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
That's beautiful - very similar to the early Starfire II that I had for a while - I love the older headstock and pickguard shapes too!
Happy NGD!
Happy NGD!
- PorkyPrimeCut
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
I won't deny that I'm green with envy. Congratulations!
That's a really gorgeous guitar you've got yourself!
That's a really gorgeous guitar you've got yourself!
You think you can't, you wish you could, I know you can, I wish you would. Slip inside this house as you pass by.
- StevenO
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
Absolutely beauty of a guitar right there. Enjoy!
- shadowplay
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
Fantastic looking guitar, well done you.
D
D
Are you loathsome tonight?
- garyfanclub
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
Congrats, looks amazing! Can’t wait to hear some clips.
I’ve got a 66 Guild T50 (student model nom cutaway arch top) and it’s an awesome guitar with an incredible broken in vibe - I hope you enjoy yours as well!
I’ve got a 66 Guild T50 (student model nom cutaway arch top) and it’s an awesome guitar with an incredible broken in vibe - I hope you enjoy yours as well!
- Maggieo
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
Looks way better than the one i had! Well played!!!!
“Now I am quietly waiting for/ the catastrophe of my personality/ to seem beautiful again.”- Frank O'Hara
I am not an attorney and this post is for entertainment purposes only. Please consult a licensed attorney in your state for legal advice.
I am not an attorney and this post is for entertainment purposes only. Please consult a licensed attorney in your state for legal advice.
- Telliot
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
That's beautiful, congrats! It's hard to say just by the pics, but if you're having issues with the neck angle, you may need a reset. It's pretty common on these. Mine was borderline, and so I opted not to have it done, and it played fine. Yours is in great condition. I guess having one owner all its life has been good for it. I love the sound of those pickups, too. Mine had the mini-humbuckers, which were great, but I always preferred the look and sound of the Dynasonics.
The cool thing about fretless is you can hit a note...and then renegotiate.
- nanamour
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
Congrats, that's a gorgeous guitar indeed. Those early Starfires with the Dynas are one of the very few guitars I still pine for, and this certainly isn't helping those pangs of desire. Here's to many years of enjoyment with its second(!!!) owner!
- rbrcbr
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- rbrcbr
- PAT. # 2.972.923
- Posts: 763
- Joined: Thu Apr 02, 2015 10:11 am
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
Thanks everyone! Loving it so far.
Funny enough, Daniel Rossen's work with an old T-50 in Grizzly Bear is actually what reignited my desire for an old Guild. I'm sure yours is amazing! I'll probably still keep my eye out for one of those in the future.garyfanclub wrote: ↑Tue Oct 30, 2018 4:16 amCongrats, looks amazing! Can’t wait to hear some clips.
I’ve got a 66 Guild T50 (student model nom cutaway arch top) and it’s an awesome guitar with an incredible broken in vibe - I hope you enjoy yours as well!
Hahaha, I don't know about that, it seemed like you had a really good one! Thanks for the inspiration too, those photos of your '61 helped me make up my mind on this one.
Thanks! Yeah I'm gonna swing by the tech tomorrow and see what he thinks. Hopefully it doesn't need a reset, and that having one owner has lessened the chances of it needing one. Worth it either way for the shape it's in. So psyched.Telliot wrote: ↑Tue Oct 30, 2018 8:52 amThat's beautiful, congrats! It's hard to say just by the pics, but if you're having issues with the neck angle, you may need a reset. It's pretty common on these. Mine was borderline, and so I opted not to have it done, and it played fine. Yours is in great condition. I guess having one owner all its life has been good for it. I love the sound of those pickups, too. Mine had the mini-humbuckers, which were great, but I always preferred the look and sound of the Dynasonics.
Hahaha thanks, maybe you'll get into one sometime soon
- cestlamort
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
Awesome. Great to hear that you got it.
Welcome home, SFIII.
Welcome home, SFIII.
- wproffitt
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
That’s one sweet looking guitar! The dynasonicsbare really a great sounding pickup. Billy Zoom can’t be wrong about that, right?
- rbrcbr
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Re: NGD! 1962 Guild Starfire III
Yeah! Thanks for all the feedback and input. I totally see what you meant by this one being a keeper and better than everything else you've tried in the same realm. It's so good. I have a feeling it'll be the last to go of all my guitars as well.cestlamort wrote: ↑Tue Oct 30, 2018 3:41 pmAwesome. Great to hear that you got it.
Welcome home, SFIII.