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Exquisite, and a joy to play (… the top level, largest guitar that Martin made at the turn of the 20th century– with tone that shows off what Frank Henry Martin was proud of when he personally signed the inside of this instrument in April, 1903…) -
This fine Brazilian Rosewood 12-fret Martin is a joy to play, and it’s properly set up for steel strings. The grandson of C. F. Martin, Sr., Frank Henry Martin oversaw the Martin business from 1880 until well into twentieth century, and was responsible for the creation of the Style 0. I’m sure he loved this guitar–he personally signed the instrument, in cursive, under the top: “# 10082 Oct. 17th, 1905 F.H.M.” This 0-21 combines the exquisite tone of a 100 year old Martin, with some wonderful restoration. Guitar was refinished, probably decades ago, and it is a beautiful, French polish finish that has all the earmarks of an original finish. You can see the pores and saw marks in the Brazilian rosewood. No heavy-handed finish here, it’s a natural finish that lets the grain and color of the wood come through. And the tone, too, that sweet tone you can only get from Brazilian this old. The ebony pyramid bridge is a replacement, and features a compensated saddle, so intonation is dead on. (The bridge plate is the original small maple plate, in perfect condition.) Original tuners. Crack-free top and sides. There is only one very small crack, on the back, about 3 inches long, professionally repaired. The neck was set recently by Tony Nobles, and the original bar frets dressed. It plays, and sounds, like a late 20’s 12-fret Brazilian rosewood Martin. -
A beautiful example of one of the rarest prewar Martin ukuleles. This is a prewar Martin C-1. (All Concert Model ukuleles from Martin– with the exception of few special orders– were style 1). Officially called the Concert model ukulele, it’s larger than the many soprano size ukes. It’s very rare to find a prewar C-1 on the market– and much rarer still to find a pre-1933. This instrument was made between 1925 and 1933– because of the Martin stamp on the back of the headstock and the lack of the (post-1933) Martin decal on the front of the headstock. This is currently the only Martin C-1 from the late 1920’s on the market. And the tone and playability are perfect. Louder, and more bell like tone than a Martin Style 1 soprano uke. Martin concert ukuleles are the same body size as taropatch (1918-1932) but with four strings only. While the taropatch had been offered with four strings since its introduction, the new concert model was different in that it had a narrower neck and a standard soprano-size bridge. It was added to the standard catalog that year and by 1927 it was outselling all taropatch models combined. Concerts ukuleles are tuned the same as the sopranos but because of the larger body have a deeper and richer sound, and a slightly longer, easier to play scale length of 14 3/4". The Concert Ukulele from Martin–while rare to find a prewar example– is considered the ideal size for players– larger than the tiny soprano but not too big like the Martin Tenor uke. This one has a rich, beautiful tone, and it’s almost unplayed condition. The action is perfect. There is one small crack on top–but it’s essentially “cleated” by the orignal bridde plate and does not need addressing, and a smaller finish crack that does not go through to the inside). The braces and all else inside: pristine. And it even comes in its original canvas case. Like most Martin ukes, the mahogany bridge had some wear on the string slots. So we created a new, replacement, 100% historically correct replacement bridge. Original patent tuners Original ebony nut Brazilian rosewood fretboard Style 1: all mahogany, with brazilian binding on top Total length: 23 ¼ inches Body length: 11 inches Body width upper bout: 5 ¾ inches Body width lower bout: 7 5/8 inches Scale length: 14 ¾ inches Price: with original case. $2150.