Fralin pickups on starfire?

[spiff1970]

Hiya,

I came across this lovely Starfire on EBay:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Guild-Starfir ... 3a6f48369b

The seller is not 100% sure but he thinks the pickups are Lindy Fralin's. Surely not the original starfire ones so I am reluctant to take risks as I have no idea what they sound like. Any clues or wise advice? I really like the guitar and I know the Fralin's are good pickups but maybe I should hear from anyone who might know about it.

Much appreciated,

Pedro

 

[dapmdave]

Hiya,

I came across this lovely Starfire on EBay:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Guild-Starfir ... 3a6f48369b

The seller is not 100% sure but he thinks the pickups are Lindy Fralin's. Surely not the original starfire ones so I am reluctant to take risks as I have no idea what they sound like. Any clues or wise advice? I really like the guitar and I know the Fralin's are good pickups but maybe I should hear from anyone who might know about it.

Much appreciated,

Pedro

I don't know what they'd sound like, either. But Lindy Fralin pickups are good pickups, considered a "boutique" maker. This guitar (1997?) would not have had original mini or HB1 Guild pickups, so I'd say the Fralins are an upgrade.

Dave

 

[SFIV1967]

Hello Pedro,
welcome to LTG! Yes, serial number AG000654 seems to be a 1997 serial number, made in the Guild factory in Westerly/Rhode Island. The guitars were great, several members here greatly love their 90ties Starfire IVs! The Bigsby clearly is added later on and screwed into the top. If you like it, fine. If the original saddle (that is still on the guitar) is good with a Bigsby? I don't know, I guess others will comment. Clearly Pickups are not original, but what brand they are or if they are good, I don't know from the pictures.
This guitar probably either came with Seymour Duncan SD-1 as the original pickups (which are nearly identical to the specifications of the Duncan SH-1 '59 pickups.) or even Fender own copies of the Guild HB-1 (which were introduced in the late 90ties as far as I know). You could always change them back to some other pick-ups, should you not like what is in them now. I guess you want the guitar as a player and not as a collector.
Ralf

 

[AlohaJoe]

Fralins are great... an upgrade (if they're Fralins), but the price seems about right either way. I'm not a Bigsby fan but it wouldn't be too hard to replace the tailpiece if you choose to. Pretty guitar!

 

[SFIV1967]

Pedro, here is a 1997 Starfire IV with just a few serial numbers above this one, you see what it would have looked like from the factory.
Those pickups here were Fender HB1s I believe, not Guild HB1s and not Seymore Duncan SD-1. It's my guess.
http://s146.photobucket.com/albums/r243 ... fire%20IV/
Ralf

 

[mad dog]

Kinda depends on which Fralin pickups too. He winds many good ones.
MD

 

[spiff1970]

Many thanks for all your valuable comments. Precious information regarding the model's year and how it looked like as new. As you can imagine I am tempted to buy it because of the reasonable price and knowing that Fralin's are an upgrade. Still, the seller won't be 100% sure about the brand. Difficult decision. :|

 

[spiff1970]

I have just read some not very positive comments on the ebay seller in another thread here. He (petopeterson) is been listing quite a few Starfires for a while and it seems they are not in such a good condition as he describes them. I am myself disappointed that he can not be sure whether the pick ups are Fralin's. It seems that I may just pass and wait for a safer purchase.

spiff

 

[Default]

Peteopeterson hasd been discussed here in the past. He is a "flipper" and buys low, then jacks the price up and sells the guitar with a lot of disclaimers. Not having looked at the listing, he often sites ignorance when it comes to modified guitars. Still, if the price is "right" enough.

 

[SFIV1967]

Pedro,
there is another one on ebay now, an earlier model, probably with SD-1 pickups (which are great according to other members). And look at that neck!
The case looks a bit used.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dl ... 0941110729

There is no pickguard on that one guitar, but some people remove it anyway, the wood looks nice without.
The only other item not original are the 4 knobs, but you should be able to find original Guild knobs, they pop up here and there.
There are actually 4 of them on ebay right now, so you would have the whole set.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-N-O-S-GUILD-G ... 19cd112f83

Ralf

 

[spiff1970]

Pedro,
there is another one on ebay now, an earlier model, probably with SD-1 pickups (which are great according to other members). And look at that neck!
The case looks a bit used.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dl ... 0941110729

There is no pickguard on that one guitar, but some people remove it anyway, the wood looks nice without.
The only other item not original are the 4 knobs, but you should be able to find original Guild knobs, they pop up here and there.
There are actually 4 of them on ebay right now, so you would have the whole set.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-N-O-S-GUILD-G ... 19cd112f83

Ralf

Thanks Ralf. I have noticed that some starfires have the guild tailpiece whereas others (like this one) don't. How does that impact on sound? Also the one I have been interested in has the Gibsy tremolo, not Guild's original... would you say that's a big difference?

best

spiff

 

[CajunBlues]

Thanks Ralf. I have noticed that some starfires have the guild tailpiece whereas others (like this one) don't. How does that impact on sound? Also the one I have been interested in has the Gibsy tremolo, not Guild's original... would you say that's a big difference?

best

spiff

In my opinion tailpiece style has no significant effect on tone... I have owned (and own) semi hollows that had stop tailpieces that would give you the creamiest, warmest, woody tone that would make you melt... and I have owned semis with trapeze style tailpieces that sounded like a strat...

I have never switched tailpiece styles on a single guitar... but I think the top wood, guitar thickness, top wood thickness, electronics, string types, etc... have more of an impact...