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New guy needs Guild Starfire Help

F

Fropa

Apr 15, 2008
5
0
#1
Hello. I just found this site while doing some research on my Bass and thought someone here might be able to help me. Way back in 1979 or 80 when I was in high school I bought this Guild Starfire bass and Traynor amp for $150. It's the only bass I've owned over all these years and it's traveled around the world with me in the Air Force. I also taught one of my sons to play with it. I finally decided I wanted to learn more about it other than the basic name so I just started doing some research on it. I believe it is a Starfire I. I would like to know what year it was made and how this bass rates quality wise. I am also curious what it's value is. I don't plan on selling it and expect to eventually pass it on to my son.

Here are some pictures of the bass:

GuildandAmp.jpg

GuildandCase.jpg


GuildHead.jpg

GuildKnob1.jpg

GuildPickup.jpg


GuildSticker.jpg


Unfortunately the label was tore up when I got it. I haven't found a picture that looks exactly like this one anywhere on the net. The bass and amp both still sound great.

Any help with info on the bass or amp would be very much appreciated.

Thanks
 
#3
That old thing. It's a POS you really should get rid of it! I'll gladly dispose of it for you. :ninja:

Now on to the serious post. That is a beauty! It is a Guild Starfire I with a Hagstrom Bisonic pickup. It would have been made between 1965 and 1970. After 1970 they switched to much less worthwhile pickups. These are in demand pieces, in a somewhat rare color. It's easily worth 10Xs what you paid for it and the prices are only going up.

You really should consider sending it to me! :D
 
#4
Thanks El Kabong.

Thanks for the info Marcury. Is there anything to look for that would pin point the year? I found a Vintage site that had a bunch of Guild ads and catalogs on line, but none of them showed a bass with the duel thumb/finger rests.

Where would this bass fall on the quality scale?
 
#5
Fropa said:
Where would this bass fall on the quality scale?
Click to expand...

Up top.

I think you can get an idea of the year of manufacture from the position of the pickup. Some were by the neck, some were by the bridge, and some may have been in between.

You have a high quality bass which appears to be 100% original (which is a big deal for value). It should have strings and be set up to stabilize the neck. That pickup is often thought as the Holy Grail of bass pickups. Then there's the rare color.

Your bass is a keeper, and it's nice you took such great care of it over the years. It may have been stolen...can't think of any orhter reason to mess with the sticker.

If the Traynor is a tube amp that's probably worth a few hundred by itself.

For a guesstimate on the total value of the bass and amp, I'd say at least $2,000, but it might be more.
 
#6
Guild basses are considered to be among the better vintage basses...opinions will vary, but they're "the good ones". They have many fans, and ones similar to yours are both collectible and sought-after. The pickup on your bass has been imitated a lot, and I believe the very popular aftermarket Dark Star pickup is modeled after it (run a quick web search and you'll find info on it).

I haven't seen a bridge with wooden saddles like that before, and I suspect they are not factory-made. Research may reveal whether this is just ignorance on my part.

Keep searching - there must be some websites for Guild fans, and I imagine they would be able to help you narrow down the age span by such things as pickup and its placement, bridge type and other details.
 
#9
I used to have a '67 that had the same set of features as yours -- mine was stripped to the wood including the peghead cover and had its' finger rests removed, but had the same truss rod cover, pickup, knobs and bridge. That's got to be a phenomenal instrument.
 
#10
Absolutel gorgeous pieces, Fropa! I'm the proud owner of a '67 Starfire I. It's right up there with my '72 P bass for everything -- tone, build quality, esthetics -- and it's an absolute joy to play.

Your son will have a wonderful legacy! :)
 
#12
GlennW said:
Here's something that shows a '66 with the pickup by the bridge,

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

And a '67 with the pickup by the neck,

http://www.bassplayer.com/article/1967-guild-starfire/oct-05/13802

which would make yours a '67-'69 (since they started using the Guild HB pikcup in '70).

I think the wood saddles were original.
Click to expand...

I think they made SF-I basses simultaneously with the two pickup positions. The bridge dates it to the earlier range of production before the harp bridge was introduced.

The wood saddles are definitely original. They were part of the reason Alembic replaced the bridge to increase the sustain dramatically.



To the OP, check out the bass forum at letstalkguild.com for dating help. They know all of the signs to narrow it down.


Beautiful bass, by the way!
 
#13
GlennW said:
It should have strings and be set up to stabilize the neck. That pickup is often thought as the Holy Grail of bass pickups. Then there's the rare color.
Click to expand...
+1 on strings. That baby deserves a good setup and a lot of playtime.

It looks like a '65—67. There's a shop near me that has two '68s with the same pickup placement and both have the "Harp" bridge so yours' is older than that.

Here are serial numbers runs for the years 65—69 that should help you date it. I got them from Invalid Link Removed.

STARFIRE BASS: BA101 to 177 | BA178 to 654 | BA655 to 1696 | BA1697 to 1946 | BA1947 to 2043 |
 
#14
+1, on the suggestion to put on some strings!!!
If you are planning on storing it without strings, you must lossen the truss rod all the way! Otherwise the truss rod is pushing the neck back to resist string tension that isn't there. That kind of thing can warp a neck severely.

Most folks would say that keeping strings on with trus rod tension is better than no strings and an untensioned neck, but either is infinitely better than no strings with the truss rod at tension. If the strings have been off for a while, it would be good to let a luthier do the initial setup. It shouldn't cost you much.

Awesome bass by the way. As others have said, it looks all original, I'm not sure if both thumbrests are original, but someone more qualified can say. Also, as was mentioned, the versions like yours with the hagstron "BiSonic" single coil pickups -yup, it's actually a singel coil, not a humbucker- are more desireable than the later models with Dearmond Humbuckers.

Definately an instrument worth insuring, or at least worth making record of on your home insurance.

How does it sound?
 
#15
Thanks for all the help and nice comments about my Guild. It is not normally stringless. I was replacing the strings and decided that would be the best time to take the pictures to best show the parts.

GlenW - The amp is a tube type. Thanks for the web sites. The article on Bassplayer had the first picture of a bass that looked like mine (except for the color).

ZezozeceGlutz - Thanks for the link. I signed-up there and posted my pictures.

The bass and amp both still sound great Eilif.
 
#18
My father had a red one in near perfect condition that sat in a closet most of my life. I think it was a '68. It even still had the original flat wound strings on it. I'm 37 now and a few years back I inquired about it because I wanted to check it out (after reading about them here on TB). He informed me that just weeks earlier they had a yard sale so he put it out for sale. A neighborhood kid bought it for $30. Made me sick.:crying:
 
#19
I don't have any useful info, but would like to comment on how beautiful your bass is. Very unusual color, I like it alot. I have a friend with a Guild guitar, also old, and it reminded me of yours, 'cept for the greeness. Your son will be a lucky boy to get such a nice bass. One question, when it has strings, do you use flatwounds. I would, I'd bet it would sound absolute killer. Oh, and welcome to Talkbass.
 

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