Another nice Starfire, by Guild pre 1967

I have covered quite a number of Guild Starfire in the past.

Another nice example today of the fine Guild from the 60's: a At $2,500 "buy it now" but you can make an offer (try $2,000 - $2,200, you never know).

Vintage 1962 Guild Starfire in original black finish

UPDATE: the auction for the guitar described below has closed. Browse vintage Guild Starfire on auction on eBay now!

An has been listed on eBay. While I have covered Guild Starfires in the past, that's the first time I see one with a black transparent finish. The seller is listing it as a "blackfire" and provides just a bit more information in the posting:

awseome collectable ebony grain starfire 2 or 3,(no bigsby)all original except the tuners,flamey on back especially,neck is super straight,life on orginal fretts,killer dearmonds, special color factory finish list for 2800$ in 2008 vintage guitar book! real clean cept for belt buckle typical back side marks from playing, neck and rest of guitar finish is original

More vintage Guild Starfire auctioned on eBay below.

Guild S-300 - for a rich sound between a Strat and a Les Paul?

Looking for something a bit different tonight on eBay, I came through this vintage from the end of the 70's.


The S300 was the main electric guitar in a line of new designs Guild launched in 77. It has an original shape which is kind of a mix of the Les Paul's large curves and the Stratocaster's ergonomic design.

It is getting great reviews on Harmony Central. Mainly for its versatility as it can sound anywhere between a Les Paul and a Strat, notably through the use of the factory-installed extra phase switch for reversing pickup polarity. But also for the great wood and set neck that makes it a tone and sustain killer.

I like that the 's fingerboard is made of ebony. It also has 24 frets which I think was a bit ahead of its time. To me, "24 frets" sounds Ibanez and 80's shredding craze. And I think to some extent the S300 was probably built for a heavy sound.

Especially this model auctioned on eBay, a , comes with "mahogany body and neck, DiMarzio PAF and Super Distortion humbuckers" (source). The S300-D version was only manufactured during 5 years from 1977 to 1982.

At $750, this white is without a doubt a great investment for a player who likes a bit of a different look and tone packaged in an innovative guitar -in a time which were clearly not the best years of the big manufacturers. Just note that this guitar has a large scratch. You have 5 days to make up your mind (as of writing).

And HAPPY FATHER DAY to all the dads who read me. I had a wonderful time with the kids in Soho today and I sure hope you had a great time too. You rock and definitely deserve to treat yourself to a vintage guitar...well at least that's what I keep telling myself :)

1960's Guild Starfire - cool vintage semi-hollow guitars

UPDATE: the auctions for the guitars described below have now closed. But browse more vintage Guild Starfire on eBay now!


And then I stumbled upon two nice 60's vintage Guild Starfire guitars on eBay.

Rewind. I was looking around for guitars a bit different tonight. And so I went on eBay and decided to stay away from my usual searches for Gibson and Fender vintage - no, they don't have the exclusivity for iconic guitars. So I typed Guild, which to me is like the sure thing to bring hidden jewels.

And so there I ended up staring at this 1961 Guild Starfire III and this 66-67 Guild Starfire V (see now on sell on eBay).

The is a florentine single cutaway. It is a beauty in its red finish (esp. in its blue case). I think it has two P90's (feel free to comment below). It has seen better days (a few serious repairs: headstock and jack output). It has no pickguard. Starfire III's are definitevely iconic: it was Jerry Garcia's main guitar on the first Grateful Dead record.

The is a double cutaway in the vein of an ES335 with some unique variations: the futuristic/cubist pickguard shape, the jack output on the side not the face of the guitar, position of the switches. This one has 2 humbuckers for sure by the look of it. Blues legend Lightnin' Hopkins was playing one when going electric. So much for claim to iconic guitar status!

These two Starfire's come in red (apparently likely refinishes), with bigsby-type tailpiece.

While both are probably not a collector's dream because of the repairs, refinishes and changes (bigsby tremolo, grover tuners), they are probably very nice players. These are 40-year old guitars of good craftmanship so I have no doubt that these Starfire would deliver a nice vintage tone with that 60's vibe (and maybe with some tune up).

Pricing is reasonable in the $1,200-1,600 range. And hurry up if you want to bid on those. Auctions close in 1 hour for the III and 2 days for the V at time of posting. (UPDATE: these have now closed)

More Guild Starfire guitars currently on auction below: