F-30 1981 - Thoughts?

[Tallyrand]

Hi,

I'm after a new Guild after buying a Dreadnaught, now I want something a bit smaller to complement it. Guys on here recommended an F-30, and I have seen this:

Guild F-30NT 1981 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Guild F-30NT 1981 at the best online prices at eBay! Free delivery for many products.

www.ebay.co.uk

Any thoughts? Is this the Westerly era?

Thanks

 

[GGJaguar]

There are several people on LTG who swear by their F-30s. They punch above their weight. Yes, that one was made in Westerly. The main caveat here is that the seller has no feedback. After that it's the usual things - neck angle, truss rod working, etc. I notice there are no photos of the saddle so I'm guessing it's low. Ask lots of questions!

 

[chazmo]

Looks very nice, but definitely make sure about the neck and string height... That's a really sweet looking, honey-colored soundboard with lovely silking and I think there's some bear-claw figuring there too. Neat!

GG's warning above is important, though. Seller looks new to eBay, so make sure any return policy is iron-clad.

 

[Tallyrand]

Thanks, yes it didnt sell and was relisted I suspect because its a new seller.I will ask a lot of questions!

 

[HeyMikey]

I love the F30 size. They are usually very even sounding with nice tone, and comfortable to play. There was a lot of variation in specs over the decades. If it matters to you ask the seller to physically measure the neck/nut width and lower bout depth. Don’t go by general specs off the interweb.

Most importantly as with any old guitar ask for measurements of the action (string height) off the 12th fret, the neck angle and combined bridge and saddle height.

There is a great tutorial for that on frets.com that I will look for and post.

FRETS.COM

Good luck!

 

[walrus]

+1 for F-30 love!

walrus

 

[Tallyrand]

Thanks all, yes good point HeyMikey, I do need to find out the nut width and string spacing as I want this for fingerpicking and would like a slightly wider nut.

 

[HeyMikey]

There were many with 1-11/16 throughout the years. Lot of great pickin’s there! If you want an F30 size with a 1-3/4 then you’re mostly looking at a New Hartford F30 Standard series or some random custom/GSR models.

 

[Boneman]

+1 for a NH F30 with 1 3/4” nut width