Guild Pilot 5 bass questions and pics

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Hi, first post here. Just picked up a used 1986 USA Guild Pilot 5 in a trade over at talkbass.com and have been looking around the internet for info on these basses. Not a whole lot out there. The Fender/Guild site doesn't even show any basses that I can see. Did Guild quit making basses all together?
My bass has cherryburst finish with rosewood fretboard. Anyone know what type of wood is used in the body? It's real light weight so I know it's probably not ash. It shows a nice grain and is somewhat flamed.

[img:461:615]http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/cb56/Pilot%205/100_5917.jpg[/img]

[img:462:615]http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/cb56/Pilot%205/100_5913.jpg[/img]


I found out over at talkbass.com that there is a special 1/4 inch trussrod wrench needed to adjust the trussrod. Can I do this with just a 1/4 inch wrench from my toolbox?
The previous owner of the bass replaced the EMG pickups and preamp with Dimarzio Ultra Jazz pickups and passive controls. He sent me the original electronics but the dimarzios do such a good job of sounding like single coil pickups without the hum, I think I'll just leave the bass as is and sell the EMG electronics.









[img:431:574]http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/cb56/Pilot%205/100_5916.jpg[/img]

[img:449:598]http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/cb56/Pilot%205/100_5915.jpg[/img]

Anyway, I bought this bass as a backup to my G&L L1505 but it will probably get quite a bit of playing time. Seems to me the Guild Pilot basses are underated and underappreciated by the internet bass community.
 

Squawk

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Welcome, cb56!

I have a top-of-the-line pilot bass. This one has a solid flame maple body - it blinds you. I don't remember the model and I'm too lazy to go upstairs now to look at but will at some point.

PS - is the 56 your age by any chance?
 
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Squawk said:
....
PS - is the 56 your age by any chance?
Close. It's the year I was born. I'm 50.
another question. I see some pictures of Guild pilots on the internet that have a painted neck plate (lady Liberty) Mine just has a plain black neck plate. was the painted neckplate only on certain years or models?
 

hansmoust

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cb56 said:
Hi, first post here. Just picked up a used 1986 USA Guild Pilot 5 in a trade over at talkbass.com and have been looking around the internet for info on these basses. Not a whole lot out there.

Hello cb56,

Welcome! I have quite a bit of information on these basses in my files.
It's a little too much to type out everything I know about these bassses, but if there's anything in particular you would like to know, just go ahead and ask and I'll try to answer your questions.
Anyway, the official model designation for your bass is the Pilot SB-605 and the one you have is from the first year that the 5-string version was produced.

The Fender/Guild site doesn't even show any basses that I can see. Did Guild quit making basses all together?

Yes, when Fender bought Guild at the end of 1995 the solid body basses were among the first models that were discontinued.

My bass has cherryburst finish with rosewood fretboard. Anyone know what type of wood is used in the body? It's real light weight so I know it's probably not ash. It shows a nice grain and is somewhat flamed.

From the photos I would say it's a two-piece solid flame maple body. Maple is not a very light species of wood but the design of the body is such that even with a rather heavy wood species like maple, the instrument still feels comfortable.

I found out over at talkbass.com that there is a special 1/4 inch trussrod wrench needed to adjust the trussrod. Can I do this with just a 1/4 inch wrench from my toolbox? [

As long as you use a small 1/4-inch socket wrench it would work.

The previous owner of the bass replaced the EMG pickups and preamp with Dimarzio Ultra Jazz pickups and passive controls. He sent me the original electronics but the dimarzios do such a good job of sounding like single coil pickups without the hum, I think I'll just leave the bass as is and sell the EMG electronics.

Maybe you should hold on to the original EMG pickups, just in case you'd ever decide to sell the bass.

I see some pictures of Guild pilots on the internet that have a painted neck plate (lady Liberty) Mine just has a plain black neck plate. was the painted neckplate only on certain years or models?

Yes, those were introduced in 1987.

Hope this answers some of your questions.

Sincerely,

Hans Moust
http://www.guitarsgalore.nl
 
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Thanks Hans,
Once again you are a weath of information. I talked to you back when I owned a JV-52. Unfortunatley I decided to trade the jumbo for a bass a few years back. Should have kept it. But I did trade it to someone who appreciates Guilds and I'm sure he found a good owner for it. (Jay Pilzer)
I wasn't sure that the SB605's would be made of solid maple. I heard that the SB905's were.
My bass is kind of nicked up by previous owners but the neck has stayed in good shape considering it's 20 years old. I got it as a backup for my G&L L1505 and have been pleasantly surprised as to how light and comfortable this bass feels and the ease of playability.
Thanks again.
cb
 

hansmoust

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cb56 said:
I wasn't sure that the SB605's would be made of solid maple. I heard that the SB905's were.

No, maple was not the standard wood for the body of the SB-605 but it was an option that you could get for an extra $ 80.00.

Sincerely,

Hans
 
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