From 1956 to 1966, Guild guitars were made in Hoboken, New Jersey. During that period, Guild developed its reputation for archtop guitars, producing perhaps the finest archtops in the company's history. Hoboken Guild archtops reflect a blend of traditional design and innovative features that rival the best of their time. This Guild Starfire III dates to 1961, and as the label makes clear, it was made in Hoboken, New Jersey. Introduced in 1960, the Starfire III features a fully-hollow thinline body with a single cutaway. It features two pickups with volume and tone controls, and what sets the III apart from the other Starfire models is that the Bigsby vibrato, which adds another range of expression. Guild used different pickups from year to year, but in 1961, the Starfire III shipped with white-top DeArmond Dynasonic pickups. Famously used on Gretsch guitars in the '50s, these single-coil pickups produce bold, articulate tone with sparkling highs, rich lows, and a dynamic, almost acoustic-like clarity that responds beautifully to touch. They are a great fit for a thinline hollowbody guitar! At some point along the way, someone stripped the original Cherry finish, and refinished this '61 Guild in natural satin lacquer. Some people call this a "hippie refinish" because it shows off the bare wood (similar to the Beatles famous stripped axes in the late '60s). In this case, it gives this Starfire III unique vibe and character all its own. Apart from the refinish and the screwed on switch, the remaining parts appear to be original, including the long-arm Bigsby vibrato tailpiece. This 1961 Guild Starfire III is a great player with nice action, and the original metal "roller" bridge is intonated properly as long as you use a wound 3rd string. The original frets are on the lower side, but it still plays nicely. The original Grover tuners show some age, but the tuning is still pretty stable, especially considering this guitar has a Bigsby. When you plug in, this is a versatile hollowbody with authentic '60s charm. It includes a more recent Guild hardshell case, which has some scuffs around the edges but still protects the guitar as needed.
