Guild mandolins? How many? What's the deal?

[Bslot0622]

I've been working on my flatpicking so I decided to save up for a rather nice '72 Martin D-35. Suddenly, this '74 Guild D-35 which I'd already tried out a bunch of times started calling to me. I had previously felt the neck was a bit too uncomfortable for me, but then all of the sudden it felt perfect. So I decided to go for it, and saved money when all was said and done. It'll go nicely with my Weber Yellowstone!

So this got me thinking about whether Guild made any mandolins. I started poking around a litle bit and found plenty of the Madeira two points, and found one picture of an actual Guild 3 point (two points at the top, one fin at the bottom, a la F-5). Everyone seems to say that only a handful were made as prototypes.

So what's the deal? How many are there? What were the specs? Why weren't they put into production? How much would one of them go for?

[DataNick]

The only one I've heard of is the "Treble Maker" that formally was owned/played by Scott Napier of "Lost And Found". Scott told me it is an F5 mandolin that someone at the Guild factory built in the early 70s...great sounding mando!

[MikeEdgerton]

I believe they built a prototype and then started importing mandolins under the Madiera name. Those are the only Guild associated mandolins I've ever seen in person. There are images of at least one on the Internet. Gruhn doesn't list any in his Guild section. I would suppose they are rare but I'm guessing nobody other than a dyed in the wool Guild fan would be seeking them out.

[nmiller]

From The Guild Guitar Book:

After the death of [Guild founder] Alfred Dronge [in 1972], the new management thought about adding other instruments to the line, even to the point where prototypes for new instruments were made. However, it never got to the actual production stage after it was decided that it was simply not feasible for Guild and that they should stick to what they were good at.

The same page shows a prototype mandolin (probably the same one Mike posted) and a 5-string banjo. It doesn't explicitly say that only one prototype of each was built, but I think it implies that. The specs of the pictured mandolin are:

• Spruce top
• Maple back and sides
• 3-piece maple/mahogany neck
• Ebony fingerboard without inlays
• Ebony bridge
• "G-Shield" headstock inlay
• Kluson 4-in-line tuners
• 14" scale

[Bslot0622]

Very weird looking. The body looks....stocky? Short? Stubby? Can't find the right word for it...

[mandroid]

Picture is shot from above so there is some visual distortion.

[f5loar]

The guild pictured above sure looks mid to late 50's or maybe early 60's. Is that one for sale somewhere? how much?

[mandolinstew]

Timbofood has a photo(maybe) of a headstock w/ the Guild(mandolin or guitar,not sure)under his name when posting.

[MikeEdgerton]

The guild pictured above sure looks mid to late 50's or maybe early 60's. Is that one for sale somewhere? how much?

The source of that image is here.

[Timbofood]

Timbofood has a photo(maybe) of a headstock w/ the Guild(mandolin or guitar,not sure)under his name when posting.

That's my D-25M guitar with custom Bill Halsey "Yellow Rose of Texas" and "The Guild" (with hanging dot) inlay. Come to think of it he took the picture probably 30-35 years after he did the inlay!
The subject of that Guild mandolin has come up here before. I think the info was something like there were three or four of them built, never did anything else with them. The Madeira collection was as far as Guild went down that road.
Maybe Mike can shed some light on the other thread about it. I actually contacted Guild and, a very nice fellow Hans Moust, who owns a Guild guitar forum about it, there wasn't much information. The guy from Guild chimed in on the other thread if memory serves.
Memory may not serve but, I won't remember in five minutes anyway!

[abmatt]

Congrats on that Guild D-35. Underrated guitars, for sure. A good guitar buddy has that same year and model, beat to heck, and it sings so sweetly. He calls it Old Yeller and jokes that he's going to be buried with it. I told him I'd dig up his grave ...

[Timbofood]

Good grief! I just looked and that shot does not show the rose, let me see if I have that handy....



Jaycat and I have a kinship with regard to D-25's, I was lucky enough to have worked at a Guild dealership way back when, and sold a boatload of pretty much the entire acoustic line. D-35's were easy to sell, they were so consistently good and with some fine tuning in set up, could develop into some mighty fine sounding guitars! Well priced, excellent value. A buddy who is now in Nashville, still loves his D-35, great guitar!
Most of the bluegrass scene, back then, or now, was not too keen on them if they saw a peghead first but, play one behind a hard core guy, now and then he might just turn and say,"Dang!" And be very interested, especially when it was my D-25! It was just kind of interesting to see guys talking about it wth such surprise. Martins will always rule that roost. But, lots of the Guilds I have known held their own from a sound standpoint. Great guitars and still can be found in the secondary market for an incredible price.
Mine needs a little TLC, I have neglected it for some time, shame on me!

[allenhopkins]

When I worked part-time selling instruments, we sold a ton of Guild D-25's; $169 back then, all solid woods, and still a fine instrument when they went from a braced back to a heat-pressed laminated back, sometime in the '70's. Guild seemed to me to be a victim of the improvement in Asian-made instruments; the earlier Yamahas et. al. couldn't compete, but when Takamine and Alvarez started making better copies of American guitars, Guild sales fell off.

[lenf12]

Great guitars but until this thread, I had no idea that Guild had prototyped a mandolin. It was an odd duck imho. Thanks for the pictures and the thread folks!!

Len B.
Clearwater, FL

[Timbofood]

I sold Guild in the mid to late seventies, and I do not recall ANY mention of a mandolin project back then. There may have been some mood enhancement back then clouding memory but, I may be mistaken. Mine is a laminated arched back and the price was more than the $169 but, I don't remember, maybe somewhere in the 250 range? Again........
Allen, you make an excellent point! The Asian influx of very good, extremely low priced instruments, sounded sad times for some American makers of the day, it was extremely hard to compete. Some went virtually dormant some closed up shop entirely. It was a sign of the times. Look at the Yamaha FG-160 from those days, they were great $100.00 dollar guitars!
Labor cost in the United States could not compete, the Alvarez instruments of the day were another excellent value. I'm still playing my A-700 (the only F-5 they offered in 1975) and have no complaints. I get compliments on that too. When you have a well designed (well copied) competently made instrument, it can last a long time!

[jaycat]

Good grief! I just looked and that shot does not show the rose, let me see if I have that handy....



Jaycat and I have a kinship with regard to D-25's . . .

Nice rose, Tim!

I am settling for a D-4 these days, I got a good deal on it, but it's not my old D25-M that some brigands made off with. The Poor Man's Martin!

[Timbofood]

I'd probably sell the Guild were it not for the script and rose, (and the overlay of course) having been done by such a dear friend. The work means as much as the guitar to me. Sadly, my grandchildren do not seem to have much interest in playing mandolin or guitar.
Jaycat, shoot me a picture of the D-4, I know we have talked about your search but, when last we "spoke" you had not yet found the right one. Or am I having a "Norris" moment?

[jaycat]

Tim, sending you an email now.

[Bslot0622]

For what it's worth, I played a gig with the D-35 for the first time last night and I'm definitely satisfied with my choice. It's nice flat picking on a guitar that's actually meant for flat picking!

[Timbofood]

I honestly believe that Guilds from the '70's were under appreciated. Not trying to make any waves but, I saw some HOT guitars pass through my store back then!
Tommy Smothers liked his!

[jaycat]

Mom always liked him best . . .

[Timbofood]

No, Mom always liked YOU best!
I seem to remember it was a sunburst "TV-55" with the "V" inlay. White blocks with V shaped abalone down the centers.

[Chompa]

In the early eighties, Madeira mandolins were made in Japan and distributed by Guild. I have owned one - an M-10 - since 1982. Great build quality. It's a double cut away tear drop, F hole A style, solid carved spruce top with layered rosewood b/s.. I keep it in like new condition... had a complete re-fret and new bone nut a couple of years ago.. it's a keeper

[Jim Garber]

I believe they built a prototype and then started importing mandolins under the Madiera name. Those are the only Guild associated mandolins I've ever seen in person. There are images of at least one on the Internet. Gruhn doesn't list any in his Guild section. I would suppose they are rare but I'm guessing nobody other than a dyed in the wool Guild fan would be seeking them out.

Very weird looking. The body looks....stocky? Short? Stubby? Can't find the right word for it...

Hmmmm... ugly! I am a big fan of New York Epiphone instruments—the sort of precursor to Guild as many of their employees went to work for Guild—but I never liked their aesthetic for their mandolins. Their headstocks especially were way too large and looked wrong. This Guild is also a bit scary, with those points.

OTOH I am usually attracted to oddball instruments so it does have some appeal. Nothing truly wrong with an ugly instrument if it sound great, right?

[Mark Gunter]

Guild’s head stocks are pretty full looking - but the one in that image from an earlier post appears larger than life due to camera angle and foreshortening effect. I agree those horns on the body look scary!