just curious...

dpv

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when and why did Guild stop making solid body electrics?

my parents bought me 2 acoustics and 2 electrics back in the mid to late 70's to the mid 80's from my guitar teacher who only sold Guilds.

back then they were $600.00 to $800.00 and there weren't Guitar Centers all over the place, so they were considered pretty affordable.
 

Dreamlander

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There is no real reason, as far as I know, why they stopped making solid bodies, besides Fender buying the company. They made solid bodies into 1999, not sure if they made any beyond that date or not. They did make semi-hollowbody electrics in Corona through 2004 I believe, but someone will be along to better inform you, my dates are not certain.
By the way, what guitars do you own?
 

danerectal

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I know for my Fender Frontlines that Guild solid bodies were made up through 2002. I'd say it was a foolish move to quit making them...
 

Maxer

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If Fender was smart, they'd permit Guild to renew the solid body line of guitars. I am convinced that there would be a whole new audience for a nice modern take on the S-100 alone... perhaps they don't want to legally clash with Gibson? Kind of strange, considering how far Gibson has watered down their own brands with QC issues and their penchant for about a zillion variations on the SG alone, thanks to marketing schemes like the Guitar of the Week program.

I dunno, maybe I'm mistaken in my perception of how much pent-up interest in Guild starting up a solid body line of electrics. I do know I personally would be interested in scoring a new S-100, provided of course the quality control was very much there. I suspect they'd be looking at having them made in Indonesia/Korea/China in order for people to cough up for a new Guild solid body in acceptable numbers. On the other hand, maybe not; Godin does a remarkable job of producing excellent guitars whose main components are generated solely in North America - at a very competitive price point as well, and the value is definitely there... so there's at least one business model Guild could pattern themselves after.
 

danerectal

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I know for a fact that I would not buy a Guild if they moved production overseas. Why gut your own economy when there are perfectly capable people willing to build quality instruments. The main problem is that wage increases aren't proportional to the devaluing of the dollar. Minimum wage has increased less than 20% in the US while the price of even basics like a sody-pop have doubled in price. Not to mention the fact that some employers that pay above minimum wage don't compensate their own pay rates to keep up with the minimum. I'm finding it really hard to support companies that don't support their constituents.
 

danerectal

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True. I guess I haven't bought a new guitar, ever. At any rate, there's at least a Fender Corona and a Guild Tacoma. My point is if you outsource your production, you may as well just outsource your market.
 

Maxer

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Not saying that outsourcing is good or bad, but the reality is that tons of companies have been doing the outsourcing for quite some time now. Gibsons and Fenders made within US borders are very pricey; part of that is due to those companies trading on their famous branding, but a big part of it is due to skilled labour rates at home - and, to a lesser extent, cleaner and healthier working conditions. The Asian tigers haven't yet come to a point where their workforces are demanding more money and better conditions... they'll get there but in the meantime they can still make amazing stuff for much less dough.. owing to that tremendous standard of living differential. But take a look at Mexican Fenders, too... great bang for the buck there, too and in terms of sheer playability I've played some that were easy matches for their American-made counterparts. Much depends on what the customer base gets used to. Mexi Fenders have been around for so long they've become quite acceptable - even admired for their value relative to an American Standard Strat or Tele.

Most of my guitars were built in Korea within the last ten or twenty years and they are fabulous instruments. Modern C&C techniques makes for better guitars from the get-go, no matter where in the world they are produced. But beyond components that better fit together in general, there are still lots of relevant issues remaining - choice and quality of tonewoods, quality of finish and hardware, etc.

Godin is really bucking the outsourcing trend, but they're doing it very successfully. That's due to a very strong company vision and philosophy and immense pride in their legacy. Guild could make solid body electrics again on their own turf but they'd have to really want to - and their parent company would have to be into it big time, as well. I really don't know that we'd ever see that. It would be nice, though. I'm guessing that Fender fears brand dilution and would prefer that all solid body electrics made by them bear the Fender logo.
 

Bing k

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Every time I respond to this subject I get my butt chewed "but" here is my 2 cents worth.

The last solid (chambered) Guilds we received here were 2004 Bluesbirds from Corona. All Guild production had shut down and the move was being made to Tacoma for the American Acoustics while the GADs were just coming off the design table.

I ask about reintroduction quite often when talking with folks at Fender.
The feeling I get is that it's out there in the future, in fact I thought a few months ago we might see something this winter, but I've not heard recently of anything concrete that would make me think anything will happen before very late this year, if then.

I believe Fender will do it but I for one would want it done right and not rushed just to get something on the market.

My personal preference would be for reintroduction of models as they did with the D40 and D50 Bluegrass acoustics and then throw in some innovation as with the contemporary series.

We need to consider that to pull this off all models to be built have to be reengineered so they can be mass produced with todays plant processes in order to compete in todays market. Let's face it. If they cost Benedetto money to build, go buy a Benedetto.

It would be nice to have production this side of the pond and I understand the sentiment of folks who would like to see them made here but in reality Fenders association with Gretsch production in Japan presents it's self pretty well as an option.
I believe the selling price schedule would be higher if the instruments were produced in Japan.

From a retailers standpoint I'd like to see them in the showroom at the same money as the American acoustics, say $1400-3000 but if you look at the Gretch pro-line retail prices, that's low.

If made well Guild lovers would buy them but to convert a good piece of the market
Guilds will have to compete with some very well made product such as Hofner's German archtops and Gretsch on one end and the Ibanez Custom Artcores on the other, all 'killer" products in their price range, but not produced stateside.

Is that 2 cents worth or 3? :?
 

Maxer

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2 cents, 3 cents... it's all good to me. Your post gives me some hope, thanks for that.

After all, even though it's now Fender's baby, Guild is a great brand. And hey - their logo is killer.
 

jp

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I think the bass company Lakland has a good operation. If I understand correctly, the basic parts are all manufactured overseas, according to their exact specs. The basses are then assembled, spec'd, and outfitted in the States to ensure that quality standards are met. This enables the company to sell really high quality instruments at reasonable prices. Their artist list substantiates the success of their idea, and resale seems as respectable as Fender's American instruments.

I think that the Gibson price bubble will soon collapse, especially with LPs. The market is flooded with Gibsons of every shape size, color, and configuration--even the custom shop and limited editions. Google Gibson Les Paul Limited Edition and see how many hits you get. The buying public is getting bamboozled into mistakenly thinking that they're worth more than they really are. We see these types of guitars with outrageous prices all over eBay and craigslist. You can't defy the basic laws of supply and demand. Curious to see how long this pattern sustains itself. Just a premonition.
 

Maxer

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Agreed... especially considering the huge amount of very well made clone LPs coming out of Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and China... very decent stuff for a fraction of what Gibson charges for one of it's limited edition 'custom' models. Rondo, Tokai, Edwards... those are just three companies off the top of my head that make amazing LP-types.
 
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