Martin 000-18 1934

How often do you see one of these, as terrific as this and at such an attractive price, come on the market? Once in a very blue moon is how often. So solid and so playable and so nicely played-in, this 1934 Martin 000-18 is one of the very first to be made after some of the Orchestra Model specs were modified for easier playability. The major change was to bring the scale length down to what became, and still is, the more comfy 24.9”. This particular 000-18 may have been a transitional example as it’s got that wonderful 1-3/4” nut width but for some reason the string spacing at the bridge is 2-3/8”, more common for a 12-fret Martin. The result, no matter what you want to call it, is an absolutely fabulous pre-war Martin to pick up and play, hands-on. It’s had the benefits of what most 90-year-old Martins want, a very professional neck reset and a few very minor side cracks taken care of, quite solidly and nearly invisibly. There is one very thin coat of lacquer applied to the top and sides and also to the back of the neck, thankfully part of making some ancient capo digs go away; it feels so great and so even to play. Original bar frets, beautifully gone over, original Grover tuners. Absolutely perfect ebony bridge, so good it was quite a while before it occurred to me that it might have been done by the same unknown party who did the rest, including a small reinforcement of the bridge plate.