Prices for vintage D55?

[kokotele]

I'm curious to know what the consensus is on typical prices on vintage D55's? I'm a sucker for fancy inlays and binding, and every time I see one of these I start drooling, so I figure it's time to start doing some research.

I've done some poking around and have seen prices ranging from the mid-to high thousands. What price point would you consider to be a killer deal?

After becoming so enamored with my '81 D40, I'm thinking that a D55 from that era or even older would be a great guitar for me.

 

[dane]

Others may have a different opinion, but in the present economy nothing is worth what it once was. Look at your house! But I also imagine it depends on your location. With that being said, I would be hard pressed to go over $1200 unless it was in perfect condition. And even there I think I’m being generous. $900 or less would be a good deal.

 

[Taylor Martin Guild]

With the price of a new D-55 what it is, I would think that $1,500.00 would be a fair price.
Any less would be a good deal.
The prices of used Guilds are going up even with the economy the way it is.

 

[West R Lee]

:lol: Price for vintage D55?.....$1050....right here :lol: :lol: . Sorry guys, what do you call that? Shameless plug?

West

 

[GuildsSing]

I'm new around here, so take it for what it's..... Elderly Instruments has a 1980 D-55 for $1550. I've never bought from them so I don't know but they're around forever. I consider vintage 20-30+ years, minimum. If I was in the hunt and found a EXC or better for $1500ish, I would be very interested, especially back into the 70's. I sold a '2000 D-55 in Near Mint for $1850 five months ago. I had a great buyer. Best of luck my friend.

Dan

'85 F50R-NT
'77 Mossman Great Plains
'76 Mossman Winter Wheat
'73 Mossman Great Plains
'71 Martin D-35
'68 Gibson Hummingbird

 

[West R Lee]

I'm new around here, so take it for what it's..... Elderly Instruments has a 1980 D-55 for $1550. I've never bought from them so I don't know but they're around forever. I consider vintage 20-30+ years, minimum. If I was in the hunt and found a EXC or better for $1500ish, I would be very interested, especially back into the 70's. I sold a '2000 D-55 in Near Mint for $1850 five months ago. I had a great buyer. Best of luck my friend.

Dan

'85 F50R-NT
'77 Mossman Great Plains
'76 Mossman Winter Wheat
'73 Mossman Great Plains
'71 Martin D-35
'68 Gibson Hummingbird

Dan,

First of all, welcome to the website. And secondly........I'd love to see some shots of all of those Mossmans. They are a pretty popular blue grasser guitar in these parts and are built about 70 miles from me in Sulphur Springs, Texas. Are you from Texas? In fact, last spring I attended an area bluegrass festival at which they gave away a gorgeous Brazilian Mossman.

West

 

[Frosty]

My $.02, having owned several D-55 guitars, is do not shop price. Shop value. "Vintage" is a word often used to describe guitars that meet a certain age requirement - read "older than used".

I have played and owned "vintage" D-55 guitars that, in my opinion, just did not sound good. Not true of all, but the year of manufacture does not guarantee a good sounding guitar.

What is my point?

A guitar who's sound melts my heart and which I am compelled to pick up and play every day - that guitar, if it costs $3000 (for example), is of great value to me. A good looking, bargain priced, original condition guitar that sounds "just ok" is of little value.

 

[kokotele]

Frosty, that's excellent advice, and the strategy I generally follow anyway. However, my strategy is tempered somewhat by my hunger for great deals. I have a couple of buddies who always seem to be in the right place at the right time and find incredible deals, and I'd be embarrassed around them if I paid too much for a guitar.

Another motivator for me is the fact that this recession and the one in the 90s both hit my family hard, and I won't put myself in a position to own something that I can't also get my money out of should the bottom fall out. I don't own a single guitar that I can't sell at a profit with a moderate amount of patience. Same for my house and car, even though women are sometimes put off by my beater car

 

[Ian]

women being put off by your beater car is actually an advantage if you're married :lol: plus it leaves you more money to spend on guitars.

 

[kokotele]

Were I married, that would be an advantage. ;-)

Fortunately the newest catch claims not to mind, but she was well-warned in advance. I secretly suspect that she would rather I drive a better car, but I do enough other stuff that she'd rather have me do that the car is not (yet) an issue

 

[GuildsSing]

Here's a 1977 on eBay, just showed up today.

http://cgi.ebay.com/1977-Guild-D55-Orig ... 2a0b881bdb

Dan

 

[Rockinb23]

A near mint 78 just sold on ebay for $2000. It was listed at $2200 OBO it was pretty cherry though.

 

[Janpeter]

Hi, dearest Guild-Zillas; friends and fans of the Guilds;

agein I will refer to my file on Guild offerings at ebay.com; I hope that I can manage to enter a Word-file here:


D 50 1969 910 $ 28.02.2007 AL 613 mit leichten Beschädigungen, Brazilian Rosewood
D 50 1972 2.250 € 15.10.2007 75381 aus Deutschland
D 50 1974 1.400 $ 10.01.2007 107343
D 50 1976 400 € 21.10.2007 Anfangsgebot aus Deutschland, guter Zustand, ohne s/n
D 50 1976 2.900 $ 07.01.2007 145779 sehr guter Zustand
D 50 1979 2.490 $ 23.05.2007 DD 100058 guter Zustand
D 55 NT 1983 1.230 $ 07.12.2006 DE 101216
D 55 NT 1996 > 1.200 $ 15.01.2007 AD 550972
D 55 1997 > 610 $ 09.05.2007 AD 551xxx guter Zustand, Serien-Nummer unleserlich
D 55 2001 1.200 $ 30.01.2007 MD 551385
D 55 2001 1.450 $ 24.05.2007 AD 552163 guter Zustand
D 55 2002 > 1.000 $ 24.06.2007 Corona made
D 55 2002 1.100 $ 01.05.2007 AD 55xxxx Westerly, mit professionell repariertem Deckenriss
D 55 NR 2002 > 1.675 $ 25.05.2007 CVU-00794 mit B-Band-Pickup, Corona made
D 55 2006 210 $ 12.12.2007 TI 241003 Bühnengitarre - insgesamt guter Zustand
D 55 2006 1.650 $ 16.03.2007 Corona made
D 55 2007 2.020 $ 17.03.2007 380-0500-821 Tacoma made
D 60 SB-E 1986 > 75.000 $ 25.10.2007 D 6000 aus dem Original-Besitz von Johnny Cash
D 60 SB-E 1987 8.100 $ 25.11.2007 D 6000xx Original-Gitarre von Johnny Cash
D 60 NT 1989 2.000 $ 09.10.2007 D 600304 guter Zustand
D 60 BLD 1996 100 $ 21.10.2007 AD 600069 mit Beschädigungen
D 64 Amber 1985 1.950 $ 12.03.2007 KC 100051
D 66 1985 1.000 $ 05.11.2007 KD 100162 seltenes George Gruhn-Modell



Just to have an idea on pricing on the D-modells; with all the good wishes - and regards across the ocean

Jan-Peter

. . . . still fond of my wife and Guild!

 

[bodger]

That D55 that was listed on e-bay from GuildSings post finally went for $1626.

And the listing was not very descriptive of the guitar and the pics were lousy.

I've got mine up there now: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... :MESELX:IT

 

[kokotele]

I was looking at that one. He had it on CLat the same time. I had a couple of questions that he wouldn't answer. That and the fuzzy pictures that don't show anything important and the fact that he said almost nothing about the guitar made me suspicious that it might not be on the up and up.

I suspect that yours will go for more, but I'm hoping it doesn't because its already just beyond he limit of what I could justify spending right now

 

[bodger]

Yeah, that was a weird listing.

 

[kokotele]

I'm going to be be watching his feedback to see if maybe there was something amiss.