The case even had case candy. Two old sets of Darco strings. From the pictures, can you tell me any more about this guitar? I appreciate any info you can share about it. Thanks!
OK:
Bridge pins are replacements: They're black, should be white (and they didn't have ab dots).
Pickup jack:
"Danger Will Robinson, Danger! Danger!". Guild didn't mount jacks there, they went through the tailblock. Unless there's a reinforcing block inside the body there, it's a weak mounting method and asking for a crack.
Minimal if any impact on the guitar's sound, though.
Fishman UST's weren't available when that guitar was built, but they far surpass what was. Sounds like the T's dust anyway if there's only half of it left.
Strap peg: I'd take that sucker out, I think it's an accident waiting to happen the first time there's an oopsie and it hits something.
(Ask you luthier how he'd fill the hole, but I'm thinking something along the lines of sawdust in glue topped by ground up binding material dissolved in super glue)
Guild actually never installed upper strap pins on acoustics except for the purpose-built cutaway a/e's, on the upper side bout.
Again, they were reinforced with a mounting block inside.
I'd remove that sticker from the guitar carefully and soon, some of those adhesives will react with NCL over time and leave gummy mess: that's degraded lacquer not just label glue..
I can re-orient that TRC for you in about a week, free of charge, but you'd have to pay for the shipping.
Still, all in all, ya done good.
I am so jealous.
My jealously is only mitigated by the fact that I'm personally lusting after an F40. (it's an inch smaller across the lower bout)
PS I see those Darco's are 80/20 bronze but I'm about 99.9% positive that in '74 Guild would have been shipping 'em with PB's as they were the first to start installing 'em as factory spec, and that's when D'A introduced 'em.
D'Addario actually
was Darco until they broke away to sell strings under their own name in '74, coincidental with bringing pb strings to market.
They'd been an OEM supplier to Guild since at least the early '60's though, so Guild was already using 'em even before they "went solo".
What I don't know (because is it's very poorly documented), and they seemed to change at a whim anyway, is whether it shipped with medium or light gauge.
Waitaminnit, did you say case candy?
Does it have the owner's manual with a stamp saying what strings are on it?
I'm notorious for suggesting stringing 'em with what they came with so I'm gonna suggest D'Addario EJ-16's (pb light uncoated), since Guild doesn't offer strings anymore themselves.
Those'll also conserve neckset life even if it
did ship with mediums.