GUILD SURFLINER

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GUITARIST SUMMER 2022

GUILD SURFLINER

£395

WHAT IS IT? Original-design

retro-style solidbody bolt-on

resumably named after the Pacific

Surfliner train service that runs down

the California coast from San Luis

Obispo to San Diego, this new electric is quite

a departure for Guild. First off, it undercuts the

previous Newark St start-up model, the Jetstar,

and is nearly half the price of the long-running

S-100 Polara. It shares the Jetstar’s longer

648mm (25.5-inch) scale length but is the only

bolt-on in the current range. Guild did produce

various bolt-ons to try to stay current in the

80s, but those were more ‘SuperStrat’-like;

the style here seems more retro. And while

technically an offset, as in its waist and curved

bass-side base, the Surfliner doesn’t look – or

feel – like any Guild guitar this writer has ever

seen or played before.

“[It’s ]an entirely new solidbody platform

that crosses subtle offset styling with the

vintage lines of 1960s and 1970s Guilds,” we’re

told. Those horns look like they’ve come from

the Jetstar, likewise the light chamfering on

the top edges, plus we have a regular ribcage

cut-out on the back. Through the translucent

blue gloss finish (one of three offered) you

can easily see the four pieces of poplar that

Words Dave Burrluck Photography Olly Curtis

While Guild’s Newark St Collection features

numerous repros of past models, the latest bolt-on

Surfliner is an all-new creation. What’s going on?

All Aboard

GIT488.rev_guild.indd 8GIT488.rev_guild.indd 8 07/07/2022 10:5307/07/2022 10:53

Summary of content (5 pages)

PAGE 1
GUILD SURFLINER £395 WHAT IS IT? Original-design retro-style solidbody bolt-on All Aboard While Guild’s Newark St Collection features numerous repros of past models, the latest bolt-on Surfliner is an all-new creation. What’s going on? Words Dave Burrluck Photography Olly Curtis P resumably named after the Pacific Surfliner train service that runs down the California coast from San Luis Obispo to San Diego, this new electric is quite a departure for Guild.
PAGE 2
GUILD SURFLINER SUMMER 2022 GUITARIST GIT488.rev_guild.
PAGE 3
GUILD SURFLINER 1 1. Recalling plenty of two- or three-pickup guitars from the 60s, these modern minirocker switches simply turn each pickup on or off, providing seven selections and the ability to totally mute the output 2. Whatever your thoughts on this oversized headstock, it offers straight string-pull from the nut to the tuners and is back-angled, meaning you don’t need string trees. The split-post tuners are perfectly functional, and it’s very stable, tuning-wise 3.
PAGE 4
VIDEO DEMO GUILD SURFLINER http://bit.ly/guitaristextra UNDER THE HOOD Aside from those rocker switches, what else is happening here? A ll three pickups are made by BHK (Booheung Precision Co Ltd, Korea). The LB-1 at the bridge, which uses an Alnico V magnet, will be pretty familiar to any Guild Newark St fans, while the flush pole (Alnico V) single coils look fairly regular, except for their partial covers, which will help to reduce hum pick-up.
PAGE 5
GUILD SURFLINER GUILD SURFLINER The ‘G’ cut-out on the neckplate echoes other Guild hardware such as the ‘Guildsby’ vibrato or harp trapeze tailpieces found on numerous other models in the Newark St range simply need to be lowered, and both the 2nd and 4th frets are slightly high on the treble side, again a simple job to spot-level, reprofile and buff up.