Guild F-30 Flat Top Acoustic Guitar (1965)
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Item #5504
Guild F-30 Model Flat Top Acoustic Guitar (1965), made in Hoboken, NJ, serial # AI-324, sunburst top, natural back and sides finish, mahogany back, sides and neck; spruce top, rosewood fingerboard, brown tolex hard shell case.
The often very fine sounding Guild flattops of the 1960's are surprisingly hard to find these days, despite being fairly popular in their day. This is a 1965 sunburst-top F-30, the middle body size in the company's line up. The F-30 was the midline, mid-size model in Guild's line, above the the all mahogany M-20 (famously regarded as the "Nick Drake" guitar) and F-20, the same size and shape with a spruce top. The larger F-30 is more similar to a Martin 000, and is a smooth finger-or-flatpicking guitar with a vibrant midrangey sound which works equally well as a strummed chord machine.
The reddish-orange sunburst finish is a catalog option but in practice less often seen than a plain natural top. There are a couple of oddities-the bridge (which appears original) is an unusual light-colored wood with prominent grain streaks, and the original tuners are openback strip Dutch-made VanGhents of a type rarely seen on American guitars. The instrument dates to late 1965, the peak year of the guitar boom, and material shortages at Guild's Hoboken plant may well have been the cause of these anomalies! Regardless, this is an extremely well-built guitar, much lighter than 1970's Guilds and easily on par with similar size Martin or Gibson offerings from the same era. This example is fairly well worn but has a fine sound.
Overall length is 41 in. (104.1 cm.), 15 1/4 in. (38.7 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 3/8 in. (11.1 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.). Somewhat well-worn but a very good playing and sounding guitar. The finish is completely original but has an oddly streaky look to the way it settled into the spruce grain-maybe it was not someone's best day in the Hoboken spray booth! There is a decent amount of play wear overall; and some typical repairs-the top center seam is resealed and there is a repaired crack below the pickguard. The back has a single long crack as well-sealed but not retouched. No alterations, just honest wear, this is a good gigging Guild and excellent value in a 1960's flat top. Overall Very Good + Condition.
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The often very fine sounding Guild flattops of the 1960's are surprisingly hard to find these days, despite being fairly popular in their day. This is a 1965 sunburst-top F-30, the middle body size in the company's line up. The F-30 was the midline, mid-size model in Guild's line, above the the all mahogany M-20 (famously regarded as the "Nick Drake" guitar) and F-20, the same size and shape with a spruce top. The larger F-30 is more similar to a Martin 000, and is a smooth finger-or-flatpicking guitar with a vibrant midrangey sound which works equally well as a strummed chord machine.
The reddish-orange sunburst finish is a catalog option but in practice less often seen than a plain natural top. There are a couple of oddities-the bridge (which appears original) is an unusual light-colored wood with prominent grain streaks, and the original tuners are openback strip Dutch-made VanGhents of a type rarely seen on American guitars. The instrument dates to late 1965, the peak year of the guitar boom, and material shortages at Guild's Hoboken plant may well have been the cause of these anomalies! Regardless, this is an extremely well-built guitar, much lighter than 1970's Guilds and easily on par with similar size Martin or Gibson offerings from the same era. This example is fairly well worn but has a fine sound.
Overall length is 41 in. (104.1 cm.), 15 1/4 in. (38.7 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 3/8 in. (11.1 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.). Somewhat well-worn but a very good playing and sounding guitar. The finish is completely original but has an oddly streaky look to the way it settled into the spruce grain-maybe it was not someone's best day in the Hoboken spray booth! There is a decent amount of play wear overall; and some typical repairs-the top center seam is resealed and there is a repaired crack below the pickguard. The back has a single long crack as well-sealed but not retouched. No alterations, just honest wear, this is a good gigging Guild and excellent value in a 1960's flat top. Overall Very Good + Condition.