My new (2007) F-50 is finished in black - how rare (or not) is that?

[Paul Guild Guy]

I just purchased a used 2007 F-50, and it's as amazingly resonant and rich-sounding as everybody promised. That said, I'm curious -- it's finished in black/ebony, and I haven't seen many black versions of the F-50 listed for sale. Serial Number is TK022022. Does anybody have any idea how rare (or not) a black F-50 is? Thank you!

 

[SFIV1967]

Welcome to LTG and congratulations to a nice black F-50!

The F-50 in black was a regular catalog model as the Feb 01, 2007 pricelists shows:



However that white pickguard is not a Guild pickguard, somebody glued it to that guitar later on. Same for the truss rod cover, that is also definitely aftermarket, at least almost the right shape.



Same for the pickup. Interesting that the previous owner left the factory DTAR and set a second output jack....



Ralf

 

[davismanLV]

I'd be curious to see what the label looks like. If you could post a photo of that it would be good. Not sure if that's the original pickguard, tho. I doubt it. Label photo??

Oooops, Ralf got here first. He's got way more into than I.

 

[jeffcoop]

I can't give you numbers, but I'd say it's fairly rare. I know I've seen pictures of other black F50s, but very few.

 

[SFIV1967]

I'd be curious to see what the label looks like. If you could post a photo of that it would be good.

Not sure what you want to see on a regular Tacoma label?



The pickguard situation is very clear if you look at this:



Ralf

 

[davismanLV]

Oh I just wondered if they noted the color on the labels in Tacoma, WA. That's all but I guess not. Not like a special run or anything.

 

[SFIV1967]

Oh I just wondered if they noted the color on the labels in Tacoma, WA. That's all but I guess not. Not like a special run or anything.

Exactly. Mostly never mentioned on those labels, especially as it was a catalog color. And that is the label of the guitar in question I posted....

Ralf

 

[davenumber2]

Not sure what you want to see on a regular Tacoma label?



The pickguard situation is very clear if you look at this:



Ralf

The guard definitely is aftermarket and appears to have been hand-cut based on the rough edging. Also the wrong shape.

 

[Paul Guild Guy]

Welcome to LTG and congratulations to a nice black F-50!

The F-50 in black was a regular catalog model as the Feb 01, 2007 pricelists shows:



However that white pickguard is not a Guild pickguard, somebody glued it to that guitar later on. Same for the truss rod cover, that is also definitely aftermarket, at least almost the right shape.



Same for the pickup. Interesting that the previous owner left the factory DTAR and set a second output jack....



Ralf

You guys are awesome - thank you for the quick reply. And yes, you're correct -- the previous owner (or the previous-previous owner) did a bit of a hack job on the pick guard, but I have to admit I like the way the iridescent sparkle balances against the black finish, so I'll likely just leave it. As for the DTAR, you're also right -- it came attached/connected when I purchased it. Unfortunately it was really really bad at reproducing the upper register notes (especially upper B and E). Somebody apparently felt the same way and had a SECOND sound hole pickup installed with a strap button. I used that 2nd access point to pull everything out and install a single, new K&K Mini, which sounds very good. Again, thanks!

 

[chazmo]

Welcome aboard, Paul!

Cool F-50. Enjoy it! Yeah, black is not too common.

Boy, howdy... Someone liked a "mother of toilet seat" theme on that black finish! It actually looks pretty cool to me, but ... agreed with the others that the pickguard is the wrong shape for a Guild so was non-original.

 

[GGJaguar]

Welcome to LTG and congrats on the cool and unusual F-50! I'm sure it will bring you a lot of joy.

 

[davismanLV]

That is a super cool black F50. I love black guitars. I'd probably remove the pick guard completely.

 

[walrus]

Welcome to LTG! Very cool guitar, congratulations! I, too, would remove the pickguard but it's your guitar!

walrus

 

[Paul Guild Guy]

Welcome aboard, Paul!

Cool F-50. Enjoy it! Yeah, black is not too common.

Boy, howdy... Someone liked a "mother of toilet seat" theme on that black finish! It actually looks pretty cool to me, but ... agreed with the others that the pickguard is the wrong shape for a Guild so was non-original.

First of all, I'll never un-see 'mother of toilet seat' -- although you're basically spot-on. And I kind of like it, too. Still, going forward, I'll probably ditch it. I do like the way it offsets the black-on-black of the rest of the guitar and gives the guitar 'shape,', but... One question, though -- if I wanted to replace the pick guard, is that a fast way to damage the finish? Or (in the hands of a decent luthier) is it a pretty straightforward process? Thanks for any insights... Yours in bathroom accoutrements, Paul

 

[Paul Guild Guy]

Welcome to LTG and congrats on the cool and usual F-50! I'm sure it will bring you a lot of joy.

Thank you!

 

[Paul Guild Guy]

Welcome to LTG and congrats on the cool and usual F-50! I'm sure it will bring you a lot of joy.

Thank you!

 

[Paul Guild Guy]

A

That is a super cool black F50. I love black guitars. I'd probably remove the pick guard completely.

Thank you -- and yes, as mentioned to Chazmo on this same thread, I'm leaning that way, too -- either replacing the existing pick guard with a Guild product; or just removing it entirely. I'm a little leery of removing it only because I'm worried about what's underneath, but again, I agree with you. Thanks for the input!

 

[richardp69]

I've got a black F 50 as well. I haven't seen many.

 

[chazmo]

First of all, I'll never un-see 'mother of toilet seat' -- although you're basically spot-on. And I kind of like it, too. Still, going forward, I'll probably ditch it. I do like the way it offsets the black-on-black of the rest of the guitar and gives the guitar 'shape,', but... One question, though -- if I wanted to replace the pick guard, is that a fast way to damage the finish? Or (in the hands of a decent luthier) is it a pretty straightforward process? Thanks for any insights... Yours in bathroom accoutrements, Paul

It's even got an abbreviation, Paul. MOTS. .

I'm not sure I can advise you in any detail. I know your Tacoma-era F-50 is finished with nitrocellulose lacquer, but who knows what you're going to find under that pickguard. My guess is you can remove it with heat and possibly clean the area with naphtha when it's off. But it could be a bit of a mess under there (though hopefully not!). The good news (I think) is that this black should be a pretty easy color to deal with if some additional lacquer or base coat (pore filler) needs to be applied to cover any damage.

In any case, there's many PG's to choose from, and y'know you could go with a clear one after you've got it cleaned up if you want to protect it going forward. I agree with you as well that I'd just go solid black and no PG (or clear, like I suggested).

 

[SFIV1967]

One question, though -- if I wanted to replace the pick guard, is that a fast way to damage the finish? Or (in the hands of a decent luthier) is it a pretty straightforward process? Thanks for any insights...

Like others said, it depends how it was glued. If it was just glued using a double sided tape it might be easy with a hair dryer to carefully heat it and pull it off and clean with Naphta, as Naphta does not damage nitrocellulose lacquer. But still one need to be careful.

Here is the picture from richardp69 on the left using tortoise shell, right is one built slightly earlier in the Corona factory (CU000300) where they used black pickguard material.:



Ralf