1963 Martin 5-16 Excellent, GigBag, $2,495.00

This is an exceptionally rare post-war Martin, and a most charming one at that. The slightly (but not much) plainer version of their 5-18, beloved by such luminaries as Marty Robbins and Bobbie Gentry, it is what is called a Terz guitar, “terz” being German for “third" in that traditionally, guitars of this size were tuned a musical third higher. This form goes back to the 19th-century, but it seems that no one who ever got a Martin like this, started in the 1930s, ever tuned it high; they always tune them to standard pitch and have an extremely cool, full-blown top-quality Martin guitar, albeit relatively small. This one is no exception, and in order to get these guitars to play correctly at standard pitch one uses medium gauge (.013) strings so as to keep the tension correct. You can also of course tune it high using standard lights or extra-lights. Now for what’s really great about this particular example: for starters, Martin only ever made about a hundred of them, in 1962 and 1963, and that was it. It differs from a 5-18 only in that it has a satin finish and no pickguard, and that’s all. The nut and saddle are still the original, untouched genuine ivory on this one and it has no issues whatsoever; it’s just a pure, fabulous, way small Martin, and being as how even we have only seen one other, ever, in all our years at this, I can’t imagine ever coming across another, certainly not this nice. $2495 w/bag