My GUILD Story -- Is it time for a new Guild?

PittPastor

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OK, bear with me for a moment -- this is long. But there is a purpose for this because I want to ask some advice about my GUILD DG40C (Guild 40 Cutaway) from 1980.

Background (skip if uninterested)

Why Guild? -- is a question I get asked a lot. I hear people talk about "That GUILD Sound" or "It opened Woodstock" or any number of other really great reasons. My reason for "Why Guild?" has nothing to do with any of that.

I first learned to play guitar on a small Stella 6 String my brother had bought off of a friend for $15. It was in pretty bad shape. Horrible action. My brother tried to learn to pay guitar, and failed. It passed to the next brother. He learned to chord and play a bit, and then it passed to me. I struggled to learn and stopped several times before I finally managed to get a few chords figured out. By this time I was in high school and some friends of mine were telling me I really should buy a new guitar. I began looking, but anything I bought had to fit into the budget of a part-time busboy at Howard Johnson's -- in other words: cheap.

I went with a friend to a local music store. He was looking for piano music, but I gravitated towards the guitar display. It was small. Maybe a dozen guitars on a round table/stand that was covered in carpet. (This was 1978 -- everything was covered in carpet!) I figured I could spend maybe $150 on a guitar. Every guitar on the carpet rack was $600 or more! I couldn't believe it. Who'd pay that kind of money for a guitar?

Owner of the store sees me gawking at the guitars and asks me if I am looking to buy. At $600 I'm afraid to touch! Buying was out of the question. I tell him not really, out of my price range. And he tells me he understands, but he won't sell "the cheap stuff" anymore because he kept having people returning them. He said: "All I sell now is Guild. I don't sell as many of them. But those I do never come back because people love them." He encourages me to pick one up and play. I'm guessing I knew how to get through maybe 8 chords at this time in my "music career." But I pick it up (carefully) and strum a few, and even to my novice ear, I knew this was no Stella. Then he starts telling me about how they are all hand made in America, and why he prefers them over any other guitar brand, and suddenly, my ideal guitar had a name, and it was Guild.

I couldn't afford it. But, I knew one day I would, and when that day came, I knew exactly what I would buy: the exact guitar I picked up by accident that day: The 12 string Guild Jumbo.

Fast forward two years. I now have a job working for a law firm, basically running the xerox machines. Still a pretty crappy job, but the pay is somewhat better. My Epiphone 12 string dies ingloriously one day (neck pulled apart from the body with a loud crack!) Time to finally get my Guild.

I did some research and was found that the Guild 12 string was $1200. That is about 2 months pay, but I am still living at home -- so why not? The music store I first saw the Guilds in has closed by now (maybe he should have considered selling Yamaha, too...?) But I find another dealer that had Guild. Actually, in Pittsburgh, PA in 1980, finding a Guild dealer wasn't that hard.

I head over to "Panny's Discount Guitar Center" with $850 in cash. Panny's advertised their prices were 40% off of retail prices, and I figured, if the retail was $1200, $850 would get me my Guild. Well, $1200 wasn't retail. And Panny's wasn't 40% off of everything. So disappointment was waiting for me when I got there.

It was even worse than I thought though because Panny told me he couldn't order it without 80% down -- or in other words all of my cash. And on top of that, he said they were only making 6 a year, so I might be waiting until the next year to get it... all of which added up to me dropping the idea of the Guild 12 String. (BTW, I doubt most of that was true, but I knew nothing about guitars, so I bought everything he told me much as I had bought everything the first guy had told me about the perfection of the Guild guitar.)

Why the DG40C (also skippable TBH)

Panny suggested I head upstairs and pick out a guitar. His shop was an old Victorian house, and the third floor, which was a converted attic, was where he kept all of his acoustics. I'll say this: He had almost every brand of guitar I could imagine up there. Martins, Guilds, Gibsons, Ovations. I can't imagine what his inventory costs were. He told me to take my time and enjoy myself. And I did. I was up there for over an hour. I didn't try every guitar in the place, but I played dozens.

Problem was, I had no real idea how to pick a guitar. I played more than 8 chords by now, but I was really ignorant about what I wanted in a guitar. My first was a hand me down, and the Epiphone -- which was the first guitar I ever bought -- I bought from a guy I met in church who needed to sell it. I had never had a choice in guitars before, so this was all new.

And although there was still this "Guild Mystique" in the back of my mind, I had also heard great things about Martin, and had met some guys that swore by them and assured me they were better than Guild in every way. After I had played my fingers sore, it came down to two guitars: A Martin and the Guild DG40C. The Martin was about $100 more. But I had money in my checking account I could dip into. I could have either guitar. Which to choose?

I had no idea. They both sounded great. (Remember, I was comparing them with a low end Epiphone!) Different. But great. Which one was more "playable?" I didn't play well enough to notice a difference. Em was easy to get on both of them! How to make the final decision? Flip a coin? Eeeny Meeny Miney moe? I didn't want it to be arbitrary. I didn't want to pick Guild because I was star struck by the first one I played when I was in High School. This was two month salary. I wanted to be smart.

So, I strummed a chord on the Martin and counted how long it held. Then I did it on the Guild. I repeated it several times, switching chords and even just plucking a note on a single string. (I didn't know enough to call this "sustain.") Every test was conclusive: The Guild had -- by far -- a better sustain. I reasoned that if it held the sustain longer, it would sound better in the song, because it would hold the chord until the next one came along.

So, Guild it was. And Guild it has been ever since. For most of my life it has been the only guitar I have owned and the only guitar I have played.


The "Incident"

OK, so I have a Guild and I love it. Not unusual around here. Here's the problem: This thing has been through the war (otherwise known as my life.) Someone said recently: "Oh that's your baby then?" And I said: "Nope because a baby would have been treated much better than this guitar. It's my buddy, maybe, but not my baby."

This guitar is battle scarred. Some of them I did, I have to confess. I nick here. A scratch there. But the real damage was done to it by my dog. I was married at the time to a woman who owned a big fat Dalmatian. I owned a German Shepherd. They were wrestling one day and my GSD threw the Dalmatian over his shoulder. Looked like a Judo move. But the Dalmatian rolled like a wrecking ball to where the Guild was in its stand. Before I could move or react, the Dalmatian sent my guild flying to the tiled floor. A huge, sickening wooden rip sound followed and I picked up my Guild to see a terrible split down the side of my guitar. I was too sick to speak. My Guild. Turned into firewood in an instant.

I put it back on the stand. I didn't know what to do. Weirdly, my wife's ex-husband was over to pick up his kids for the weekend and saw it. He was a musician guitarist too. He and I didn't see eye to eye on much but the first thing he said when he came in the house was: "Oh man! Your Guild!" He looked it over and told me he knew a guy who could fix it. I almost didn't dare to hope. but I put it in its case, and handed it over. A few weeks later, he brought it back. Not as good as new, but it sounded as great as ever. That was 20 years ago. It still sounds great. In fact, it sounds better now than it did when I bought it.

What Now (please opine!)

Lately, I have begun playing again in earnest. I had a Fishman pickup put in it (and hated it, but the Aura Pedal helped mitigate the quack to the point it sounds OK now). I still love playing it. Still love the sound. But I am noticing a line that looks like the beginning of a crack running from the bridge down. Is the Guild finally succumbing to time? Or is this just more "character" developing in the wood.

Should I take it to a top flight luthier and see about refinishing it? In 36 years I've never had the neck adjusted. Never had the frets aligned. I've never done anything except replace strings. (and, of course, repair the soul wrenching split...) Is investing money in the DG40C throwing good money after bad? Should I be thankful to have gotten 36 good years out of it, and invest in a new Guild (or, geeze the way guys on this forum are -- on a dozen new Guilds!)

I honestly would love to have opinions.

What would you do if this were your Guild?

TIA!

Pictures:
Guild1.jpg


Damage from "The Incident"
Guild5.jpg


The Start of a Crack?
Guild4.jpg
 
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AcornHouse

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The fact that you take the trouble to tell the tale tells me that you have too much history with this guitar to give it up. It's not just a guitar, it's a member of your family.
I would take it to a good luthier; ANYTHING can be fixed, the only limits are time, skill, and money. The luthier should be able to give you a ballpark figure when they look at it. Then you can decide how to proceed.
 

silverfox103

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From your great story, you couldn't live without it. After 36 years, you owe it, to it. Spend a few bucks on it and get it all spiffed up. Remember find yourself a good repairman. I don't think I would have it refinished, just repaired and adjusted. Buy a new one? No keep that gem.

Tom
 

Rayk

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Wow nice story .
So what do you do ? Nothing wrong with getting another Guitar but you and that guitar have some awesome history , if you love the way it sounds get her fixed and play her till she can’t do it no more then hang her on the wall :)
 

dreadnut

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That "top crack" could be just where the 2 pieces of the top come together; it can become more evident under certain conditions. Have it looked at by a qualified Luthier at any rate.

My advice: keep it and play it. You and it have way too much history to part with this guitar. If the side crack really bothers you aesthetically, it can be filled and lacquered (or however they do it.) This can be done fairly economically if you don't need it to look "like new." To make it look "like it never happened" would be a different story.
 

walrus

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I agree with everyone else - too much "history" with this guitar not to fix it - it deserves to be repaired so you can play it another 36 years!

walrus
 

richardp69

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Unless you are just absolutely in love with this guitar then I'd suggest that maybe it's time to move on. There are some great guitars out there very reasonably priced and maybe it's time to take advantage of that.
 

gjmalcyon

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By any objective measure, my Yamaha FG-110 (worth maybe $200 on a really good day) should have been consigned to camp fire guitar duty, and then when no long fit for that, placed on its funeral pyre and given a suitable sendoff.

Instead, I had the bridge, saddle, and nut replaced, tuning machines replaced, a set up done, and it now sits in the front rank of my guitar cases so I can get to it easily.

Why?

Because of what it represents to me, and the role it played in some very important events in my life.

I suggest that's how you should look at your D-40: If it really is that important to you, keep it in your life.
 

Neal

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Yeah, looks like a center seam de-lamination caused by low humidity. Get the guitar humidified, glued, clamped and cleated, and it will continue to serve you well.

I would definitely not do a re-finish. Keep the guitar looking the way it is, full of life and stories.

BTW, I still own my D-25 I bought in high school in 1973. No way it ever gets sold.
 

gilded

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A great story, Pastor. Thanks for the story. I agree with all my other brothers here, keep the guitar.

But, it's not too late to think about..... a Guild 12 string jumbo!

Good luck with all of it and a belated welcome aboard.

Harry aka gilded
 

JohnW63

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Yep. Find a good luthier to look at it. The split is very likely the center seam, which could be getting opened due to not keeping it humidified. Where do you live ? How dry is it ? Did you move there within the past few years ? Once they look at fixing that, ask about what they can do with the side. You might be surprised. If you can't find a local guy, there is a Forum member, named Fixit, that does very good work.
 

poser

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I agree with the others. That guitar is your buddy. You've got to keep it. :calm: As AcornHouse said, anything can be repaired. A top crack is not a big deal. Remember, acoustic guitars are designed with a crack in the top. If you want to get some work done one it, I'm sure that there are some good guitar techs in the Pittsburgh area.
 

PittPastor

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First of all, thanks everyone who took time to read the post and respond. Most of you (except for richardp69 -- I appreciate your candid answer Richard!) expressed what was pretty much what I thought (which, was pretty transparent, I guess) -- I want to keep playing it. And, honestly, from a dollars and cents standpoint richardp69 is probably right. But, I have few dollars and no sense... so...

Some good news -- I finally made contact with Stuart Day, who is a bona fide Luthier here in Pittsburgh. We have a bunch of people who do repairs, but most don't consider themselves full-on Luthiers. I'm usually not one for titles and things, but Stuart's bio certainly sounds impressive (About Stuart Day) And pretty much sounds like the person I was trying to find.

I had been trying to reach him for a week, and nowadays, when I can't connect with someone via telephone or email in a week, I'm thinking they are out of business. Turns out he was just on vacation, and unplugged. So, I'm taking my Guild to him tomorrow. I'll let you know what he thinks.

I would take it to a good luthier; ANYTHING can be fixed, the only limits are time, skill, and money.

Reminds me of a friend of mine once giving me a tour of his workshop. He pointed to an old hammer hung on the wall and said: "That hammer is over 100 years old. It was my great-great grandfathers, who was a carpenter." I said, wow, the same hammer? He replied: "Yep. Same hammer. I've had the head replaced twice and the handle three times, but that's the same hammer!"

That "top crack" could be just where the 2 pieces of the top come together; it can become more evident under certain conditions. Have it looked at by a qualified Luthier at any rate.

Actually, that's what the guy who put in my Fishman pickup said. He also advised me to get a humidifier for it -- which will probably be another thread!

If the side crack really bothers you aesthetically, it can be filled and lacquered (or however they do it.)
Actually the side crack doesn't bother me. It elicits a sharp groan from any guitarist who sees it. But I've actually had two guitarists offer me $700 and $800 for it after playing. So, the groan doesn't last long.


I would definitely not do a re-finish. Keep the guitar looking the way it is, full of life and stories.

Somewhere, I have a T-Shirt that says: "Scars are just tattoos with better stories." That being said, there is part of me that would like to see it restored to its former glory. IDK. I go back and forth on it.

it's not too late to think about..... a Guild 12 string jumbo!

I've never stopped thinking about that 12 String! The one I played was blonde. Amazing sound. One day...

The split is very likely the center seam, which could be getting opened due to not keeping it humidified. Where do you live ? How dry is it ? Did you move there within the past few years ?

Oh, Lord John, have I moved! My wife and I moved 7 times in the first 6 years we were married. The Guild and I have moved more than that. It started in Pittsburgh, moved to Blacksburg, VA, then Tulsa, OK, the DFW area in Texas (that's where the dog attack happened) then to Northern Virginia, and finally -- about 9 years ago, back to Pittsburgh. The seam just showed up in the past couple of years, and I would have thought that the air around here is fairly humid. But maybe its more just a matter of time than anything else. Never had a humidifier on it before, but that will change very soon!

Anyway, thanks again! I'll let you all know what Stuart thinks when I get the result from his examination.
 

Rayk

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That’s Cool you found him , someone else here ask about a Luthier in that area and I posted Stuart’s link .
It should work out fine ;)
 

txbumper57

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First off PittPastor let me say Welcome to the LTG Forum and I think you will find a lot of "Like Minded" individuals here that understand your situation. Also let me just say that that is an Awesome story about you and your Guild. As the owner of 2 Great Danes that love music I can sympathize with the way your "Buddy" got the big crack in the side as Large dogs recklessly playing keep away or "Judo Throw" with each other is a regular hazard in my household, LOL.

Coming from a guy who has "a dozen Guilds" as you put it I would never hesitate to have any one of them fixed no matter the cost due to what they mean to me and the enjoyment they bring me. Your D40C is a family member as far as I am concerned. I see no reason at all why you shouldn't have it looked over by a top flight Luthier and have it fixed the way you want it fixed regardless of cost. There is a big difference between spending money to fix a guitar to sell and spending money to fix a guitar you intend keeping for life. When fixing a guitar to sell you are always looking at the bottom line so you don't lose too much. When fixing a guitar to keep for life I just consider the work and cost to be needed maintenance. As mentioned in an earlier post if you can't find anyone local that you trust to so the work I would message Fixit here on the forum. They do some amazing work on guitars and especially Guilds for very reasonable prices. Every Guild I have seen that they have repaired looked amazing and I am sure others here will tell you the same.

As far as the option of buying another Guild I think you could fix your D40C and possibly find the 12 string that you were dreaming of all those years ago. I don't see why it should be a one or the other situation. That is the great thing about Guilds to me. While I feel they are some of the highest quality guitars out there, The used Guild market is a very buyer or working musician friendly place as they don't command the higher prices associated with other brands of guitars but still deliver all of that wonderful tone and play ability. Now that you have found LTG don't be afraid to ask about other models or anything you might be interested in as if one thing about this place is true, We love helping other folks spend their money, LOL! Seriously though there are some great folks here with a lot of great info and everyone loves to help out as much as they can.

If you have to narrow it down to either fixing your D40C or buying another Guild I would definitely choose to fix you D40C. No way I could let go of a friend that had been through that much life with me. Have a good one and once again, Welcome Aboard! Let us know how things turn out with the D40C and if you need any info, like I said before don't be afraid to ask as everyone here loves to help in any way possible.

TX
 

PittPastor

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That’s Cool you found him , someone else here ask about a Luthier in that area and I posted Stuart’s link .
It should work out fine

Actually, that was me ! Thanks for finding that. Still not sure how he didn't show up when I searched "Luthiers near me" -- I did get several Lutheran churches in the search results, so maybe Google was just confused!
 

PittPastor

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As far as the option of buying another Guild I think you could fix your D40C and possibly find the 12 string that you were dreaming of all those years ago. I don't see why it should be a one or the other situation.

Well, that's just because you've never met my wife! But , seriously, I probably will get another Guild (or two... or...) eventually. Some other priorities first.

As the owner of 2 Great Danes that love music I can sympathize with the way your "Buddy" got the big crack in the side as Large dogs recklessly playing keep away or "Judo Throw" with each other is a regular hazard in my household, LOL.

You know, I love my Guild. To call it family is just about right. Having said that, I would trade ten Guilds for that German Shepherd back. He was something special, and I still miss him... Terrible Judo skills notwithstanding... The thing about a good dog is one day, he will break your heart...
 

Rayk

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Actually, that was me ! Thanks for finding that. Still not sure how he didn't show up when I searched "Luthiers near me" -- I did get several Lutheran churches in the search results, so maybe Google was just confused!

Haha awesome ;) Google at one time if not still did your searches by the bubble they put you in .

Back some yrs three people in the same room one of them me would do the same search using are own devices on the same browser using google and we all got different results . I feel I mentioned this before as well lol

Sorry for the repeat . 😐
 

Cougar

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Unless you are just absolutely in love with this guitar then I'd suggest that maybe it's time to move on. There are some great guitars out there very reasonably priced and maybe it's time to take advantage of that.

So many nostalgiaphiles about that banged up old Guild! I'm with Richard! There are other Guilds out there, and man, they are sweet! I know because I keep looking at them, and I really no longer have any need for one since I've got the ultimate jumbo 6-string and one of the ultimate jumbo 12-strings, both of which I got fantastic deals on. There's not too much more exciting than going on a Guild hunt. OK, get your old buddy D40 patched up, but Pittboy, you need a Guild 12, and you don't need to drop $2,000 for one. My like-new Corona-built JF30-12 is one of the best 12ers in the world, snagged a couple years ago for $800! There are good deals out there!

gfj350.jpg
 
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