1932 C. F. Martin 0-18 Shaded Dark

SALE PENDING: 51917. Here is a seductive player with an enchanting voice once abandoned in a barn near London Ontario. The restoration began in a fine shop in Canada and continued here outside Seattle by Mark Tossman. Listed in the Martin dealer catalog as “0-18 Special” this was the first production model to incorporate a 1 ¾” nut with the shorter 24.9” scale, 14-frets clear of the body, belly bridge, solid headstock, pickguard and the iconic decal still familiar today. An incredible number of repair hours have returned this dark beauty back into great playing condition. Several frets were replaced to give the neck its proper relief (“just a gnat’s ass worth” in Mark’s words), the neck was reset, intonation corrected and set up with medium low action. There are two cracks emanating from the bridge toward the lower bout, one hairline in the upper bout, and one on the back, all repaired and stabilized. There is some slight bellying but the bridge and saddle are sitting proudly where they should be and all is architecturally solid and stable. The bridge plate was replaced at Folkway Music in Canada. Bridge, tuners, and finish are all original. It’s a fine fingerpicker with a sound that is woody, balanced and articulate with a nice resonance on the bass end. Not too shabby on the flatpicking side either; a good little dog with a big bark. The bar frets give it bite and the “modified V” neck has a very comfortable modern feel. It ships with a very nice, great fitting Guardian “vintage series” hard case.