FACTOIDS & TRIVIA

The double cutaway Starfire series was introduced in late 1963 beginning with the Starfire IV and Starfire V. The Starfire VI followed in 1964. These guitars were made to capture part of the market that was almost exclusively enjoyed by the Gibson ES series guitars. Like the Gibson ES-335, the Starfire IV has a center block of wood that runs from the neck to the tail and is glued to the top and back. This reduces feedback and increases sustain. Up through 1967 the neck was joined to the body at the 16th fret. After 1967, the neck-to-body joint was moved to the 18th fret to facilitate better access to the upper registers. In the early 1970s, it received the fancier appointments of the then discontinued Starfire V. The striped appearance of the wood on the guitar pictured here is characteristic of the Sapele (African) mahogany that Guild commonly used in the early and mid-1960s.

Body:  Semi-hollow; laminated 1-piece Sapele mahogany top and back, and laminated mahogany sides; single bound top and back

Finish:  Cherry Red,  nitrocellulose lacquer

Neck:  3-piece mahogany/maple, set-in; black plastic headstock overlay with pearloid logo and Chesterfield inlay

Fingerboard:  Indian rosewood, single bound; pearloid dot markers

Number of Frets:  22

Pickguard:  Black backed Lucite

Bridge:  Hagstrom adjust-a-matic on rosewood base with Guild harp tailpiece

Nut:  Plastic

Tuners:  Grover Rotomatic, sealed, chrome (non-original)

Pickups:  Two, Guild small humbucking with adjustable pole pieces, chrome

Controls:  Tone and volume controls for each pickup, 3-way pickup selector

Scale Length:  24 3/4 inches

Neck Width at Nut:  1 5/8 inches

Body Width at Lower Bout:  16 3/8 inches

Body Depth:  1 7/8 inches

Weight:  7.8 lbs.