NGD: Guild M-120E...

For guitars of the straight waisted variety (or reverse offset).
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pesdispenser
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Re: NGD: Guild M-120E...

Post by pesdispenser » Tue Sep 29, 2020 9:24 am

PorkyPrimeCut wrote:
Tue Sep 29, 2020 4:14 am
I'm not particularly fussed about the installed pickup so I may remove it too. One of these days I'll buy a similar pickup to yours (I was thinking something by LR Baggs) which I could use on both my acoustics.

Where did you get the replacement bone saddle & did you have to resize it at all?

I got identical bridge pins to my Guild D50, knowing they use the same size pins on all their acoustics. These are the ones.

LENGTH = 30mm COLLAR DIAMETER = 5.3mm END TAPER DIAMETER = 4.5mm
Thanks! Will order a set. I had a luthier make up the nut and saddle.

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Guild M-120E - Tuner upgrade...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Mon Dec 07, 2020 1:45 am

After waiting a while longer but still having a slight problem with tuning stability I decided to go ahead with the upgrade and got a decent deal on some Kluson Prestige 18:1s.

I had a small issue with fitting them - the Klusons wouldn't fit through the stock ferrules & the ones that came with the tuners were a slightly loose fit. I bought a set of "Vintage-style" Kluson bushing that fit perfectly...

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I love them! Much more suited to the modesty of the guitar & they feel great - they're very smooth & there's a noticable change in stability. Problem solved.
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Re: NGD: Guild M-120E...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Wed Apr 27, 2022 1:48 pm

Another little update with this guy...

The electronics inside the guitar have always rattled around a bit, annoying the hell out of me. Then today the battery holder decided to work itself loose & swing around inside the body. I never plug this thing in so figured the time was right to do something about it.

After removing the strings I realised I could reach in & unplug the battery cable from the PCB. The same was possible with the cable leading to the pickup. So, once that was done all I had to do was work these 2 things loose.

They'd actually drilled through one of the braces to attach this...

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...and glued this one to the body...

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Fortunately it all came out with little resistance. The controls, glued into the inside of the soundhole, peeled off really easily...

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I had a thin shim in my parts box, possibly mahogany, I don't know, but it was an identical colour to the guitar. I sliced it into 4 even strips, glued them together & they dropped nicely into the bridge slot to compensate for the loss of height caused by the pickup removal.

Finally I sorted out the unsightly hole left behind by the strap button/jack input. I had an ebony strap button that came with the bridge pin set. I just had to modify a rubber grommet slightly & pushed them both in together...

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It's a tight fit so I may leave it like that. Alternatively I could do what I did with an older guitar, inserting a wallplug & actually screwing a strap button in. I never use a strap for this guitar though so will probably leave it as-is. I think it looks OK.

First impressions - The guitar is even louder than before, which is great!! I wasn't expecting much more than that but of course the removal of electronics makes it much nicer. No rattling anymore.

The neck's freshly oiled & it still feels & sounds great! I love this thing!!
You think you can't, you wish you could, I know you can, I wish you would. Slip inside this house as you pass by.

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Larry Mal
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Re: NGD: Guild M-120E...

Post by Larry Mal » Wed Apr 27, 2022 2:03 pm

PorkyPrimeCut wrote:
Wed Apr 27, 2022 1:48 pm


First impressions - The guitar is even louder than before, which is great!!
Undersaddle pickups are the worst... it's louder because the pickup isn't impeding the saddle and bridge from vibrating together.
Back in those days, everyone knew that if you were talking about Destiny's Child, you were talking about Beyonce, LaTavia, LeToya, and Larry.

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Re: NGD: Guild M-120E...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Wed Apr 27, 2022 2:17 pm

Larry Mal wrote:
Wed Apr 27, 2022 2:03 pm
PorkyPrimeCut wrote:
Wed Apr 27, 2022 1:48 pm


First impressions - The guitar is even louder than before, which is great!!
Undersaddle pickups are the worst... it's louder because the pickup isn't impeding the saddle and bridge from vibrating together.
Yeah, that too :)

I was contemplating having a luthier do this at first. Asking him to cut a new bone saddle at the right height.
In the end that little shim saved me money & waiting time. Happy days!
You think you can't, you wish you could, I know you can, I wish you would. Slip inside this house as you pass by.

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Re: NGD: Guild M-120E...

Post by Larry Mal » Wed Apr 27, 2022 3:49 pm

You can do your own saddle, I've done a dozen. You just sand them down to the proper size. Nothing to pay someone else to do.
Back in those days, everyone knew that if you were talking about Destiny's Child, you were talking about Beyonce, LaTavia, LeToya, and Larry.

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Re: NGD: Guild M-120E...

Post by Maggieo » Thu Apr 28, 2022 7:18 am

That's gorgeous! I love that sized Guilds.
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Re: NGD: Guild M-120E...

Post by i love sharin foo » Thu Apr 28, 2022 2:52 pm

That is a nice looking guitar! After years of dreadnoughts (and larger), I've really come to prefer a smaller, thinner body.

I just pulled the pickup and electronics out of my Gibson L-00 last week. Even with the pickup removed, the saddle height was still crazy high. I have no idea why they ship them like that :fp: . I took a lot off of it and it's much better now. I bought an endpin adapter from Stew Mac to replace the jack. It's an ebony pin with a threaded hole from the inside. They come with a little sleeve that slides into the old 1/2" hole. You then thread a screw from inside the body into the pin and snug it up. It's a really simple, non-invasive solution. Looks like your way is working out too though :)
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Re: NGD: Guild M-120E...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Thu Apr 28, 2022 10:41 pm

i love sharin foo wrote:
Thu Apr 28, 2022 2:52 pm
That is a nice looking guitar! After years of dreadnoughts (and larger), I've really come to prefer a smaller, thinner body.

I just pulled the pickup and electronics out of my Gibson L-00 last week. Even with the pickup removed, the saddle height was still crazy high. I have no idea why they ship them like that :fp: . I took a lot off of it and it's much better now. I bought an endpin adapter from Stew Mac to replace the jack. It's an ebony pin with a threaded hole from the inside. They come with a little sleeve that slides into the old 1/2" hole. You then thread a screw from inside the body into the pin and snug it up. It's a really simple, non-invasive solution. Looks like your way is working out too though :)
I originally envisaged something that threads from the inside. I've always been a little nervous about strap buttons that push in. My old '59 ES125T was sent to me like that & it just freaked me out, imagining it popping free & the body cracking after landing on the hard ground. Nightmare!!

The more obscure Stew Mac products aren't so readily available over here but I'll have a dig around for something similar. Thanks for the tip.

EDIT - another simple option would be to desolder the jack socket from the Fishman pickup & put it back in. It would be a closer match to the Fender-style strap that's already been attached to the heel of the neck (probably non-stock).
You think you can't, you wish you could, I know you can, I wish you would. Slip inside this house as you pass by.

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