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Oh, there will be fotos, my friend - there. will. be.
But I don't get the bass in-hand until 07. may...So, until then you - as I - must be patient, sorry.
However, I will share these words with you: Factory-new, never-played, mint-condition (same goes for the original case), time capsule, translucent 5-string...drool
I am an ex Guild Pilot owner. I've been looking for a Pilot I could afford for several years. Due to making enough money to live and have fun but not own several basses.
I recently purchased a Pilot body that was labeled as a DeArmond. When I received the body I paid no attention to it. Sanded it, painted it and did some clear coat. So now it's a few months later and I realized the body I purchased does not have the routed horns like the DeArmonds I've seen. I own a DeArmond Pilot Plus and love it . But it's not a Guild. So can anyone tell me does a Guild Pilot have any markings on the body that would tell me if it's a Guild or DeArmond body.
I had a friend make me a Pilot spec neck and I put passive EMG's in it along with my always trusted thumb rest...
It's actually sounds pretty killer. I call it my Custom Pilot. So can you guys tell me what you think....Guild or DeArmond body....like I said the DeArmond/Fender Pilots, the ones I've seen are all routed at the horns...
I recently purchased a Pilot body that was labeled as a DeArmond. When I received the body I paid no attention to it. Sanded it, painted it and did some clear coat. So now it's a few months later and I realized the body I purchased does not have the routed horns like the DeArmonds I've seen. I own a DeArmond Pilot Plus and love it . But it's not a Guild. So can anyone tell me does a Guild Pilot have any markings on the body that would tell me if it's a Guild or DeArmond body.
I had a friend make me a Pilot spec neck and I put passive EMG's in it along with my always trusted thumb rest...
It's actually sounds pretty killer. I call it my Custom Pilot. So can you guys tell me what you think....Guild or DeArmond body....like I said the DeArmond/Fender Pilots, the ones I've seen are all routed at the horns...
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So here are the first fotos of what I can only describe as my "Pilot score of a lifetime" - a factory new, unplayed, mint-condition 1994 Guild Pilot Pro 5 (with original case in the same condition)...I fell over an ad for this miracle in Switzerland and made contact with a gentleman there who used to be an official Guild dealer. He had this Pilot as part of his own personal collection. He *thinks* that he brought this particular Pilot was perhaps back from NAMM or some similar event, and that it might be a bit unique because of the body color which he described as "Emerald Green" instead of the "Woodgrain Green" (WG) color option that Guild offered this year and model Pilot in. This might also explain it's "unknown", SB-605'ish serial number - instead of what it "should be" - a "PRO5" designation with a serial number starting off with AL05...Who is the resident Guild pilot serial number expert here...? (And, is the fingerboard ebony or dark rosewood - not a wood expert so I'm not sure...And the textured cavity panel - is that normal for a Pilot Pro...? Never ever seen that before...) Anyway, here are the first fotos of my new bass at home - enjoy...!
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Man I am so glad. I bought my first Pilot around 1983/4 all black with chrome hardware. It was a 602 w blk/what/blk pick guard. I used that in a band called Republic from 1984 to 1990 then the guitarist went on a mission. Then Republic again until 90 something. Then Republic turned into Guttermouth. 3 of 5 members went to the beach and changed the name to Guttermouth and I did a fill in spot for Raw Sewage. Now Im in the Gerbil Turds.LOL @ "Gerbil Turds"...
Looks to me like you've found yourself a good old genuine Guild Pilot SB-602 body and not a DeArmond body - do you have any fotos of the body without paint...? Do you have any idea what the wood type is...?
Congratulations with your rebuild...!
The body was covered in tar when I received it so I just cleaned it with those bleach sponges. Went over the white paint again and redid the clear. It's a lot lighter then a DeArmond body. So I'd think it's Poplar or something. But no, no pre pictures since I just kind of repainted. If my buddy opens his his shop in CA he has a 4 string neck spec sheet.
Thanks man...I'll use this baby on Friday in Wenatchee at the House of Booze...
You found a sweet Pilot.....I have never been comfortable with a 5 stringer...that thing is bad ass.....
Oh I'm fired up for Fri. I haven't been fired up to do a show in years haha...
I had that exact bass for so long. Worse thing I did was set it aside and someone walked off with it...
That is true but It plays pretty great, and the headstock is definitely not close. I think as far as feel the neck is similar to what I remember and was told . Supposedly it's close as he could get to the radius.
Beautiful, love that green color and the flame maple is laid out better than many other Pilot's. I have the pro 5 4 numbers before yours BK100799 and it has a mahogany body and was painted a buttery cream color originally.
Pics here
Guild Pilot bass club?
Thank you - and thanks to everyone else as well - for the positive comments...!
Wauw, that's funny - only 4 numbers away and yet separated by about 10000km...
I have seen your fotos in this thread before and it's a very cool refurbish you had done - I do like it...Do you happen to have any fotos from before the refurbish...? Why did you do it, btw...?
The only "online tool" I have concerning Guild Pilot serial numbers is this:
How to Date a Guild Guitar
Scrolling down to the "1990 - 1994" section I find only this relevant line of info:
"PILOT/SB605 BK100569 BK100594 BK100748 BK100783"
My new Pilot Pro 5 has serial nr. BK100803. That indicates my Pilot Pro was produced in "late 1994" as one of the last of that year's production run...So, what happened to numbers BK100784 through to TrustRod's (BK100799) and mine and thereafter...?
Scrolling a little further down to the "1994 -1996" section - the only section with the "PRO4" and "PRO5" designations which I *ASSUME* are the short forms of Pilot Pro 4 and 5 string, the serial numbers begin with "AL04..." (4 string?) and "AL05..." (5 string?)
So, offhand it looks like I have a SB-605 serial number (BK100...) on a "PRO5" (AL05...) bass...!?
I'm thinking it was so close towards the end of the Pilot that "anything" could happen in the building workshop, you know...Either that or the dating website I linked to above has incorrect or incomplete information...
It looked like this when I got it.
I paid $290 and had been looking for a good deal since I first played one in 1985. Didn't find this one till about 2016.
Oh, mine also has the textured cavity cover.
Nice vintage Cars tune with Benjamin Orr playing a Guild Pilot—or something quite like one?
Well, I promised that I'd report back after I'd put the BTC system into my Pilot, and a couple of members had echoed that I should do that. Done...and now done! My Pilot has EMG-X pickups which I added a few years ago before I sold the bass, and now recently bought it back (glad I did). The pickups are beautifully clear and a bit more open or natural sounding than the stock EMGs *and* are running on 18V. That said, I found the bass rather light in the bottom end and perhaps too mid-focussed.
The BTC was easy to install, just adding onto the existing circuitry with no-solder connections. The Pilot now has volume, active blend, and stacked bass/treble rather than a tone control. I also bought (from elsewhere) new black knurled metal knobs rather than using the supplied plastic ones. I should mention here that there's a set of two internal dip switches on the BTC control which enable the user to set the character and effective frequencies of the treble control (see below). I set mine to 1 OFF / 2 ON so that it acts over a slightly wider frequency range, down into the mids, as a kind of super tone control.
Impressions? The control completely alleviated my principal objection: the lack of bottom. With the bass control cranked to about 80%, the bottom fattened up really nicely without any hint of boominess. The lovely clarity down to the low E is still all there, but with more authority now. The treble control is also significantly better than the pre-existing tone, both in degree of effect and of course its ability to boost as well as cut. I'm very happy with the dip switch setting choice.
This BTC control, with the EMG-X pickups at 18V has now given me the Pilot bass that I really wanted, without compromises.
Yep! That's a "Pickguard" Pilot. A lot of people think they sound better as the have the neck pick-ups reversed from the later versions without the pickguard.
I have the exact same model, chrome bridge and all!
Maybe it was his!!!!
I have a skill-testing question for the most knowledgeable of the Guild Pilot geeks...
I just recently fell over a foto of what looks to be a mutation of a Pilot body...In my eyes, I can see the Pilot's basic form within the mutant's body, including the Pilot's forearm contour. And, isn't that "Guild" script across the bridge...?
I also have a foto of what I must assume is the mutant's headstock - very extreme indeed but again, you can see the Pilot's truss rod cover and D & G string guide.
Something somewhere in the back of my mind is whispering "Jaco mutant Pilot model prototype" to me, but I really don't know anything - except that I wish I owned it... *drool*
Does anyone here know anything about this unique, obviously Guild Pilot-inspired alien...? Are there more fotos of it and/or information about it...?
Have a great weekend...
I just recently fell over a foto of what looks to be a mutation of a Pilot body...In my eyes, I can see the Pilot's basic form within the mutant's body, including the Pilot's forearm contour. And, isn't that "Guild" script across the bridge...?
I also have a foto of what I must assume is the mutant's headstock - very extreme indeed but again, you can see the Pilot's truss rod cover and D & G string guide.
Something somewhere in the back of my mind is whispering "Jaco mutant Pilot model prototype" to me, but I really don't know anything - except that I wish I owned it... *drool*
Does anyone here know anything about this unique, obviously Guild Pilot-inspired alien...? Are there more fotos of it and/or information about it...?
Have a great weekend...
