Guild Starfire IV 1973 Blonde

TL:DR All original Guild Starfire IV in blonde finish, with the exception of the nut, 1 tuner, and refretted with period correct fretwire. No breaks or repairs, tons of wear lacquer checking.

Thank you for looking at thise wonderful Guild starfire IV from 1973, the first year that introduced a master volume knob. This is an absolutely beautiful instrument that is a complete gem which has preserved its original hardware and electronics. These old guilds are always welcome and I love seeing preserved pieces that have tons of hours on them yet retain their originality. The best of both worlds. There is no breaks or repairs and the body and neck portray lots of wear and tons of lacquer checking. Starting off the Starfire IV is a thinline double cutaway semi-hollow body made of laminated maple which has dehydrated over time to give lots of resonance and sustain. The nitrocellulose finish covers a beautiful blonde finish and brings out the wonderful figured maple. The electronics are completely original and untouched as well as all the hardware and plastics. The original muller-made adjustomatic bridge allows for ease of use and great sustain with brass saddles. The electronics have a very smooth and warm low end with a very nice les paul custom style mid range and very articulate trebly attack. This piece sounds amazing in all positions and the combination of old wood, vintage pots and caps and the hb-1's sound incredible. This piece has an amazing setup with great playability and low action thanks to the refret and adjustability, and is absolutely inspiring to play, it realy sings.

The first thing you feel when you pick this piece up is the neck, Its got a perfect slim  "c" shaped neck. (0.80" 1st, 0.85" 12th). The neck has been played alot and you can feel how smooth it is, and that its practically morphed to the shape of the human hand. There is play wear on it from hours of sliding up and down. The Neck is a 3 piece mahogany neck thats also got a beautiful mahogany stripe down the center. There are no breaks or repairs and is a players dream and feels super worn in. Sitting atop is a dark and delectable east indian rosewood fretboard with luxurious abalone block inlays. Its also got a spot on refret with period correct fretwire. There is no evidence of the refret and the fretboard is in perfect shape. The peghead is really beautiful with the Guild logo and abalone inlay which has faded to a transparent inlay which shows the wood underneath. The aged white binding around that black headstock and worn grover rotomatic tuners really seal the deal. This is a piece that you can look at and be shocked, and then plug it in and be even more shocked. A really good investment too, I never get tired of having these. True american history and some of the best sounding guitars you can buy and wont break the bank. Thanks for looking. 

Condition: Very Good all original condition that has beautiful patina and play wear that cant be replicated. A couple tiny impressions around the sides, one or 2 on the top and one or two on the back. The back also has buckle rash clearly pictured. Binding is in perfect shape, aged to a cream white. Hardware has visibile tarnishing but the pickups are really good with most of the gold remaining, as well as the bridge, the tailpiece has visible chrome showing. The Strap buttons look golden and new, definitely replacements. The neck is beautiful with its binding has also aged to a cream white. Fretboard is in perfect condition, its refret is not visible. The neck does not have any dings or feelible impressions, and has wear on the edges from play wear, not feelable, but smooth. Peg head is in great shape, has some dings around the edges but not much. Nut has been replaced to a TUSQ nut as well as the saddles on the original bridge are black TUSQ saddles. Under the serial number is a SECOND stamp, however there is no indication of any defects and is believed to be stamped second to allow dealers to sell them for cheaper back in the day. Overall, superb, originally preserved 78' les paul custom with the play wear to show its a good one.

Electronics:
Completely Original and untouched 1973 circuit. Pots date to the 9th week of 1973. Pickups are Original Guild Hb-1's the second variant.

Guild Starfire IV 1973
Serial: 93654
Weight: 10 lbs 13 oz
Series: Starfire IV
Body: Thinline double cutaway Laminated Maple with center block
Body Finish: Nitrocellulose
Neck: Mahogany, Standard "C" shape : 0.80" at the 1st, 0.85" at the 12th
Neck Finish: Nitrocellulose
Fretboard: 12-inch radius, east indian rosewood
Frets: 22, refretted with period correct medium fretwire. fret height ~0.033"
Position Inlays: abalone Block inlays
Nut (Material/Width): Non Original bone Nut, 1 10.5/16" (1.64")
Tuning Machines:  Original grovers with one replaced newer grover
Scale Length: 24.75"
Bridge: Original Guild Adjustomatic bridge and hard tailpiece
Pickguard: 1-ply black guild embossed
Pickups: original Hb-1 second version (Neck 8.34k)(Bridge 8.65k)
Pickup Switching: 3 way switch
Controls: Volume 1, (Neck) Volume 2, (Bridge) Tone 1(Neck) Tone 2 (Bridge)
Control Knobs: Original Black Guild logo Reflector Knobs
Hardware Finish: Mixed
Case/Gig Bag: Original Blue interior Guild hardshell case

Welcome!

At Gilded Guitars, we strive to provide you with used and vintage guitars of exceptional quality, played and tested by our own seasoned experts.

Every instrument has been meticulously examined, and as a buyer, you can be confident that your purchase will satisfy all your needs. Our team will help you find your dream instrument, and is always willing to work with you to achieve that goal.

We have 100% feedback on Reverb so we can guarantee your going to get exactly what you see here, only the best quality stuff. We follow the reverb policies and if you have any questions please feel free to contact us.