Carl Kress L-5

[Harp Tail]

Very sweet - thanks AcornHouse!

Backing vocals by your cat or I am making that up?

 

[AcornHouse]

Very sweet - thanks AcornHouse!

Backing vocals by your cat or I am making that up?

That would have been Xiao Hu, one of Nica's predecessors.

 

[Harp Tail]

been Xiao Hu

I couldn't hear very well, so I didn't realize Xiao Hu was singing in Chinese

 

[DjangoLang19]

And my Starfire II.

Oh wow very cool, sorry I missed this one Acorn, it's really nice. Ok so now I count 9 on my unofficial list.

 

[DjangoLang19]

I've posted about it before. I don't have any pics on this phone. Here's one of the videos of some noodling on it.

These pickups sound really great, they sound very similar to mine even though YouTube. To me they are very clear and have an acoustic quality. How do you like them Acorn?

 

[DjangoLang19]

I have been trying to get a count on all the Guild guitars that I have seen on the internet that have these rare DeArmond pickups and I've counted about 8 so far. I've seen two Starfire 3s, 2 x-500s, 3 x-550s and Duane Eddie's personal model.

Just want to make a correction on myself here lol. One of the "Starfire III" is actually a 1960 Slim Jim custom T- 100CD according to Bernuzio Uptown music's site, it's for sale there now. The Starfire III was sold from Retrofret guitars, still shown in their archives.

 

[Harp Tail]

1960 Slim Jim custom T- 100CD

That transitional model is literally extraordinary - too bad for the steep price...

 

[AcornHouse]

These pickups sound really great, they sound very similar to mine even though YouTube. To me they are very clear and have an acoustic quality. How do you like them Acorn?

They're pretty versatile, like a good P90. I took it out on the deck to see how they handled a little more heat. Not great playing, but they proved their drive.

 

[DjangoLang19]

They're pretty versatile, like a good P90. I took it out on the deck to see how they handled a little more heat. Not great playing, but they proved their drive.

Sounds great outside too. Do you have any or played any Guilds with DeArmond dynasonics? I'm just curious how they compare?

 

[AcornHouse]

No, never had any Dynasonics.

Sounds great outside too. Do you have any or played any Guilds with DeArmond dynasonics? I'm just curious how they compare?

 

[Neal]

Back to the OP.

Here is my 1936 L-7, with the same windowpane fretboard inlays as that ‘34 L-5.

By ‘35, the L-5, L-7, L-10 and L-12 were “advanced”, increasing in size to 17” across the lower bout, and for four years only, they were X-braced. All four models were identical except for cosmetics.

 

[Harp Tail]

my 1936 L-7,

Stunning guitar, Neal, and it looks fabulous for its age.

 

[Neal]

During the the Great Depression of the mid-1930’s, an L-7 cost $125, while an L-5 was over $250 ($5,600 in today’s money!). They were prohibitively expensive for most musicians, given that they had to be hand carved, both top and back, from big slabs of spruce and maple.

By comparison, a ‘34 L-00 sold for $27.50, or around $600 in today’s money.

Consequently, a lot of L-00’s were made and sold.