Please PM me on the U MGF if you have any comments/additions/corrections/requests.
-Mike (AKA elephantfan85)
Martin Timeline
* Bryan Kimsey
1920's Martin transitions away from pyramid long bridge to standard
long bridge on 18 & 28 series. Happens gradually starting in the
early 1920's. 17 series either never had pyramid bridge or
transitioned earlier.
1922-1923, Martin makes guitars for Wurlitzer. Some lack Martin
Serial #'s or markings of any kind.
1929 18+ series Martins fully switched over to nitro cellulose laquer
finish. Transition started in 1926 with O-17H according to
Longworth.
1929 Martin switches from long to belly bridge (Longworth 2nd ed page
84)
1930 Oct, first time size & model number stamped on neckblock. Happens at
or before serial number 44362
1932 Some 17 series models transition to 14 frets clear of body & non
slothead
1934 Most models switch to 14 fret clear of body and non slothead.
Sometime around here Martin starts putting the Matin decal on
the front of the peghead. For a short period of time they
continue to stamp the back of the peghead as well.
1934 Martin ends their use of bar frets on most models. (Most other
guitar makers had done so around the end of the 19th century)
Martins Hawain style guitars retain bar frets until at least
1938.
* 1938 D-18 #71539 has the rear-shifted X-brace with no popsicle brace
* 1938 change to rear-shifted X-brace
* 1939 D-28 #71968 has the rear-shifted X-brace with no popsicle brace
* 1939 D-18 #72618 and has a 1 3/4 nut with no popsicle brace
* 1939 switch to narrow necks (1 & 11/16ths) at serial #72740
1939 The #1 brace, inside near the neck block changes from 5/16ths of an
inch wide to 1/2 inch wide, making it roughly twice as wide.
* 1944 last scalloped brace guitar was #89926
* 1946 Sitka replaces Adirondack on the tops
* 1947 Last Herringbone D-28 #98233 in 1947
* 1947 Kluson deluxe tuners appear
* 1948 Sealed Kluson tuners appear
1953 "magic" spruce? (Stolen from "Jack"/JDE1776 of the UMGF)
Then, in reading the UMGF Vintage section today, I noticed that
luthier John Arnold has provided a copy of a short piece by luthier
Dana Bourgeois concerning an interview with C. F. Martin III in 1984.
The interview was in preparation for an article by Eric Schoenberg
and Bob Green on the history of the OM model and was published in
the March 1985 issue of Guitar Player.
Bourgeois was asked to sit in on the interview, and I found the last
two paragraphs of his recollections especially interesting:
"One footnote that I do remember distinctly is that Mr. Martin said
that in '52 or '53 the Martin Co. bought a large supply of Engelmann
spruce in the form of government surplus of building material. Though
he preferred Red Spruce, it was no longer available after the mid-40s
because all of the large stands had been decimated. Mr. Martin would
have liked to switch from Sitka to Engelmann because he felt that
Engelmann was closer to Red Spruce than Sitka was. He could not, however,
find anyone who was cutting Engelmann commercially, so they went back to
Sitka."
This nugget of information caught my attention because for many years I
have owned a '53 D-28. I have always puzzled over the rich golden color
of its top. I have also seen a few Martins from that year on various
dealers price lists labeled as having tops made of Appalachian or
Adirondack spruce.
Of course, aside from the color of the tops, the anecdote does not in
itself prove anything. But it at least suggests how the story might have
gotten started.
More from gabarnier at the UMGF
"Aircraft spruce must meet these specifics:
For Sitka spruce to meet government specification MIL-S-6073, it goes
through a series of inspections, starting with experts who supervise the
sawing and milling of the lumber at the source. The lumber is kiln-dried
to another government specification, AN-W-2. This spec says the wood must
is that the bridge plate change did not apply to smaller body instruments
(at least not universally). I've had several 000-18, 000-28 and 00-18
instruments from 1968 into the early 70s and all of them had SMALL MAPLE
bridge plates. I recently had a '71 000-28 in that had a large rosewood
plate, but it appeared to be a replacement."
1965 Martin switches to short drop-in saddle (On D-18's, likely others as well)
1966 Boltaron binding started. White replaced ivoroid and black replaced tortoise.
1967 Black acetate pickguards first used. Replace tortoise colored celluloid
Following two entries from 1988 Longworth pages 57-58
"1968 rosewood bridgeplates on all guitars #235586" and
"1969 rosewood bridgeplates are larger on "D" guitars #242454
* 1969 Brazillian rosewood is replaced by Indian. The first Indian guitars
were 4 D-28's ser# 243644-47. The change in regular production started
with #254498
John Arnold on the UMGF made the following observation in regards to
BRW on 6/24/05 at 12:27 am
Re: Any 1970 Brazillians??
I have personal knowledge of two 1970 Brazilian
rosewood D-28's. The first one I saw was #265783, which I retopped with red
spruce in 1993. I showed the guitar to Mike Longworth around that time, since
he claimed to have never seen one. He noted the serial number.
I saw the second one about a year later. It is serial number 265941.
There are reportedly several D-35's with mixed woods in the 3-piece back.
I saw D-35 #258962, which has a Brazilian rosewood center wedge in the back.
FWIW, many post-1969 Martins have some Brazilian rosewood....in the bridge,
bridgeplate, fingerboard, or peghead veneer.
Link
1972 Starting in 1972 Martin includes cases in the base price of most/all of their
guitars. Prior to this they cost extra, and thus you'll see many different
cases with Martins before this time. It is possible that the thermoplastic
cases were the first ones Martin offered as part of the base price as they
were first offered around this time.
1985 Martin finishes phasing in adjustable truss rods.
1988 Maple bridgeplates on all guitars #478093 (This entry from 1988
Longworth pages 57-58)
2001 (From mac1588 on the UMGF 3/12/2005)
Here's my unbderstanding about the first use of Micarta fingerboards and bridges
on standard production 16 Series GT models:
Unbound fingerboard: serial no. 832338, a D-16GT.
Bound fingerboard: serial no. 836629
Both were made in 2001.
As far as I know, the full gloss models such as the SP's have never used Micarta.
2003 Martin converts from glued in to drop in long saddles. Happens
before serail # 942xxx
Glued in saddles have square/straight ends, dropin have rounded.
~2003 Martin starts producing guitar necks with "wings". Basically
The pegheads have wood splices on the portions that stick
out. This is not easily visible from the front due to
the peghead veneer. As with many other changes, this one is
made to preserve dwindling wood supplies. In this case
Mahogany.
2005 Martin switches to bone nuts and saddles as of the following
serial numbers.
STYLE STARTING SERIAL #
OOO18 1017801
OOO28 1015735
D18 1014107
D28 1014117
D35 1014309
D40 1014167
D41 1013985
D41SPEC 1015921
D42 1014360
D42K 1016124
D42K2 1014177
D45 1014362
D1228 1015871
HD28 1014131
HD35 1014145
J40 1014181
J41SPEC 1025243
OM21 1016278
OM35 1021237
OM42 1015753
OO18V 1016465
OOO28EC 1014184
OOO28VS 1014345
D18V 1014297
D18VS 1017372
D45V 1014364
HD28LSV ALWAYS BONE
HD28V 1014138
HD28VS 1018703
OM18V 1014156
OM28V 1015728
MINI 1013968
2005 Martin starts using Spanish Ceder in many necks rather then Mahogany.