OldCowboy

I love Guilds! In some circles, my friend, you have already reached the top of the pyramid👍😎👍

So there we were back in the 70's, following like paths and arriving at like conclusions. Early Epi imports were - to be polite - running a little behind their Asian counterparts. I've owned and played a 1958 Epi Cortez since high school. Splended LG-2 with a NY Epi neck. My only issue with later Kalamazoo Epi models is the narrow nut width. Otherwise, they're fine guitars.

Releasing tension rarely causes problems☺ Glad to hear it's working well!

I owned one of those puppies back when they were current. Top bracing is always to be suspect - loose brace(s) might account for the top bulge you mentioned. Go easy if you adjust the neck yourself - the truss rods in those were prone to breaking easily.

Forgot about those (damn senior moment), but they are excellent guitars. I'd like one - even though 70's Gibsons give me the dry heaves😖

Properly constructed, a 1970's Gibson acoustic can be a real sleeper. My luthier had a couple completely unassembled 70's flattops that he got from the Kalamazoo plant just prior to the move. They turned out to be amazing. He didn't change the components, but did give attention to the kind of details that employees during the 70's weren't allowed to do. That said, there are plenty of regular production examples out there, reasonably priced, and if you have the patience to play a bunch of them you might find a good'n.

None of the 70's Gibsons bear much resemblance to those that came before or after. If you're looking for a nice J-45 and a birth year J-45, you may be indulging two separate quests.

1970's Epi's were kind of a slap in the face to many of us who were familiar with the Kalamazoo-made line. Also, quite a few Gibson employees weren't too pleased about seeing production moved to Japan, as I'm sure you can understand. At one time, Forest Fretworks - later purchased by Pete Moreno and renamed Moreno's Guitar Clinic - in Oshtemo had a rehab contract w/Gibson to make Jap Epi's w/flaws and defects saleable. The place was literally piled with sadly unplayable instruments. They worked hard in there, but could never get ahead of the incoming disasters. Long ago, but not forgotten.

Yeah, the grain is striking. If I fell across a killer J-60, it might sedate the Martin lust that's been annoying me lately.

I'll see if I have any information and let you know - if somebody else doesn't beat me to it....

Photos?

That pretty much matches my evaluation. Nothing wrong with a touch of paranoia - a well-earned lesson from having survived the 1960's and 1980's in my opinion and experience. Far too often, they really are out to getcha😱

Good to hear all went well☺

True enough. It's always a problem, but less if you're performing solo😕

55 degrees wouldn't be an issue for me; 40 degrees would be pushing it. Truthfully, I worry more about extreme heat. In either case, in your position, I'd be inclined to play the Epi.

And there it jolly well is. According to him, he plays music for the people - told him I'd rather play for God, but he didn't appear to take it charitably☺

My priest is cool, but the music director fancies himself to be the 'star' of the service and no pickers or strummers need apply!

Wish mine would ask me to play guitar!😇

With winter coming, you might consider which Taylor would burn longest in an emergency. Just joking, of course😄

👍

Hell, I feel like I'm ALWAYS a rambling mess. The D-25b is one I've not encountered or heard of previously. Something to watch for, now that I know there's such a thing out there. I'll try to give you a heads-up if I fall across an early 70's that might work for you. Personally, I tend to prefer mid-late 70's, and none of the hog tops lend themselves to what I do - though if they fit your needs, you can't do much better. And I agree that the hog tops with ply are better than the all-solid mahogany: it's gotta be that arched back!

Then, I wouldn't worry. It was produced at about the same time as my D-35 and that's the only guitar I ever bought new that I esteemed highly enough to keep. People who are playing newer Guilds have told me that they wish theirs sounded like mine - I always advise 'em to keep playing theirs for nearly 40 years and they won't be disappointed😁

When I looked for info a few minutes back, one thing I DID find stated that minor anomalies of that sort aren't uncommon within that time frame. My guess is that the logo isn't wrong, just not typical.

VERY cool! In your position, I'd be inclined to go for it👍 Was unable to locate any further information that would apply. Be sure to keep updates coming😐

I've seen maybe one other hog top/arch back D-25, but don't recall from which part of the 1970's it hailed. The idea of the D-25 was originally to use spruce tops that didn't measure up to Guild's usual cosmetic standards by staining them to a dark mahogany or cherry shade. Same notion by which Gibson used to separate J-45 and J-50 tops. Later, the hog top D-25 emerged, interspersed with the occasional maple. Nothing wrong with either variety, but the hog sound and the spruce sound can be subtly different (consider the difference with vintage Martin 15 series guitars and 18 series guitars when both used standard bracing). This isn't a bad thing, necessarily, depending on what sound potential you prefer. The white logo, to my knowledge, wasn't used on D-25 models in the 1970's. My '78 D-35 has one in MOP, but that's part of the custom inlay I had done a year or so after purchase. So the D-25 pictured could be wearing either anomaly or aftermarket headstock inlay. I can't imagine that either would be at all negative. On a whim, I'm going to check for Guild serial number info and such and will report back with whatever I can or can't find. Hope this helps!