Vintage Timeline and Vintage Glossary

1796: Christian Frederick Martin was born into a long line of guitar and violinmakers in Markneukirchen, Germany.



1833: Martin left Germany to take up his craft at 196 Hudson St., NYC.



1838: Martin had a formal partnership with Charles Bruno and marketed guitars marked: C.F. Martin & Bruno on a paper label. John Coupa is mentioned many times in the 1830's sales books. He was a guitar teacher who had guitars made with Martin & Coupa on the label at least through 1851.

1839: C.F. Martin moved his family and business to Pennsylvania. Henry Schatz was a friend of C.F. Martin from Saxony, Germany. Schatz preceded Martin to Pennsylvania in 1835 and was probably a large influence in the Martin family moving to this area. There were guitars made with the Martin & Schatz label.

 Guitars were still distributed out of New York, so labels and stamps still indicated that location.

1840's: Some unusual features from this time period include a shield shape piece of wood inlaid in the back with the brand. Other guitars from the 1840's had a strip of wood marquetry around the center of the sides, dividing the sides into upper and lower halves. Martin first started experimenting with the X-bracing that eventually became the standard strutting pattern for almost all modern steel-strung guitars.



1852: Martin standardized body sizes. The largest was Size 1, the smallest Size 3.



1854: Larger and smaller body sizes, size 0 and 4 respectively, were added.



1856: Martin early style designations appeared. With these style designations, every Martin acquired a two-part model name with size number and style number separated by a hyphen.
 Early on, Style number 17 indicated rosewood back and sides and a spruce top with colored wood purfling around the soundhole and several layers of wood binding with rosewood on the outermost layer. Style 18 was also rosewood back and sides with only slightly fancier marquetry. Style 27 had a pearl sound hole ring with top edge trimmed with coloured wood inlaid in a diagonal pattern and outside binding of elephant ivory. Style 28 had a pearl sound hole ring and herringbone purfling (top edging). In the early days, the style number was also the PRICE!


1867: Martin took on partners and incorporated. The inside center strip stamp now read: "C.F. Martin & Co., New York." The headstock stamp did not change, and neck block stamp changed shortly thereafter. Even after Martin moved to his new home in Cherry Hill, near Nazareth, PA, his guitars were still sold through only one representative (Zoebisch) in New York, so the New York stamp remained. (All of the Martin neck block stamps were upside down from the first until about 1893, with the exception of some early Martins with a Spanish foot.) 
Saidel tuners appear at about the time of incorporation. Labels were made for Martins in coffin cases at this point, when the "& Co." was added. No labels in cases before that time. The labels listed the Size and Style designations of the guitar; this info was not stamped anywhere inside the guitar until much later. Martin made the coffin cases in three grades: Common, Fine, and Very Fine. Common usually went with Style 17, 18, and 20 guitars and had simpler hardware. Fine cases had "bolsters"(shaped blocks at the waist of the guitar.) Very Fine cases had upgraded hardware. Cases were lined with an early type of flannel. Martin cases lined with patterned fabric are the higher grade cases only. The black finish on the cases was a combination of shellac and lamp black. It is thought that the cases were sometimes discarded because of their somewhat morbid "coffin" appearance.

Early 1870s: (perhaps even the late 1860s); Martin used Cuban mahogany for the bridge plates.



1870's: Maple bridge plates appear again as a regular feature sometime in the 1870's.



1873: C.F Martin Sr. dies.



1875: First banjos from A.C. Fairbanks in Boston.



1877- early 1900s: The Martin factory foreman would often initial and date the underside of the guitar's top. (The best way to read this is to take a photo from the inside and then to flip the photo with Photoshop.)



1888: C.F. Martin Jr. dies. Company is now run by young Frank Henry Martin.



1895; Martin started buying celluloid sheets for pick guards. Pickguards were special order until 1930.



1898: NY City Zoebisch distribution deal ends. Martin company begins stamping their guitars "C.F. Martin & Co Nazareth, PA." and numbering their guitars (stamped on the neck block) beginning with number 8000 (because they estimated that they had built 8000 instruments up until that time.

)

1900: Thin shellac finishes on Martins. (pre-1900: French polish finishes)



1901: Martin stopped making wooden coffin cases and started using hand-tooled leather cases (or canvas cases for lesser models). The leather cases were branded "M&W" a brand that would later become Harptone. The design of this era case involved the case opening from the bottom. The nickname they were given is "bottom dumper" and many guitars ended up cracked after falling out of the bottom.



January 1, 1902: (0 size cases were $3.50 and 00 were $3.75).



1904: Martin began purchasing economy "duck" canvas cases

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1901: A.C. Fairbanks introduces the Whyte Laydie banjo tone ring.

1902: Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Co. is formed. Orville Gibson is not listed as a partner. In 1904, another agreement followed which documented the payment of $2,500 from the Partnership to Orville Gibson for the exclusive rights to his patent. The Gibson L-1 was one of the first acoustic guitars sold by Gibson. It was an archtop with round soundhole introduced in 1902. Early Gibsons are more valued as innovative and beautiful historical objects than as musical instruments.

1906: Style 17 was reintroduced around 1906 as the first cataloged style with mahogany back and sides, and a one-piece Spanish cedar neck with no diamond volute. Style 18 followed soon after in 1909.

1907: Martin built its first Ukes, without sales success. Originally these were quite "overbuilt" and heavy.



1914: Start of WWI.

July 28.

1915: Change to non-reverse tuners (tuner shaft and button above rather than below the gear.)

1916: Martin tried ukuleles again, riding the crest of the wave of the Pan Pacific Exposition and modeling their Ukes after the proven, successful Nunes instruments. These Ukes were all Mahogany, with corresponding Koa models appearing in 1920. A tremendous number of ukuleles were sold in the fifteen years of the initial fad, and increasing demand prompted Martin to add a new wing to its North Street factory in 1925. Production peaked in 1926, with Martin making over 14,000 ukuleles that year alone, allowing the funding of a second story to the new wing of the factory in 1927. Uke sales then tapered off in 1928, before slowing to a trickle as the Depression deepened in the early 1930s.



1916: Sears purchases the Harmony musical instrument company.



1916-1965: Martin switches to "long" or "through" saddles on bridges, likely for production efficiency. Prior to 1916 and after 1965 they used a shorter "drop in" saddle.



1918: End of WWI, November 11,1918: Martin starts supplying "keratol" hard shell guitar cases. Leather cases are soon phased out.

1918: Martin stops using ivory for body/neck bindings. It remains in use for nuts and saddles.

1918: First Gibson banjo, the tenor.

 Important historically, but not valuable instruments.

1919: Martin no longer stamps the company name on the neck block with the serial number.



1919: Semi-gloss shellac, also experiments with sitka spruce (darker, tight grain) tops.



1919: less expensive guitars style 21 and below got rounded headstock slots.



1919-1920: Bridges on some styles (like 0-18K) could be pyramids in rosewood. Rosewood fingerboards too.

1919: Martin introduces Koa wood versions of its ukuleles, including the top of the line Style 3K (K=Koa wood), which had a "kite" inlay on headstock, a "bowtie" pearl inlay on the 7th fret, a "striped" plastic nut, and ebony friction tuning pegs. All these Style 3 elements were eliminated just a couple years later.

Style 3 was the first Martin ukulele with a fingerboard that extended over the body to the soundhole, giving players access to 17 frets.

The super fancy Style 5 did not come out until 1922, so the 3K was the fanciest uke until then.



1920: Bridge pins are Bakelite, with no collar under the head. They are short, and have a 3 degree taper. Martin also begins to use hardshell black cases in the early '20s.

1920's: Martin did not have enough "curly" figured koa wood for all Hawaiian style guitars. So they used the figured wood for the higher styles. 18 style instruments often got plain koa which more resembles mahogany.



1921; Production of the size 1 in styles 21 and above ended.



1921: Gibson employee Ted McHugh, a woodworker who had previously sung in a group with Orville Gibson, invents two of the most important innovations in guitar history – the adjustable truss rod and the height-adjustable bridge. To this day, all Gibson instruments are still equipped with McHugh’s truss rod, and traditional jazz guitars still utilize the bridge he designed.



1922: Style 17 guitars now made with mahogany tops.

1922-1924: The "Loar era" at Gibson. Musician and "Acoustic Engineer" Lloyd Loar was tasked with reviving demand for Gibson mandolins, and attempted to do so by drastically improving the mandolins and the entire product line. Loar oversaw the introduction of longer scale instruments with carved/hand-voiced tops and violin-style f-holes vs. oval central sound holes. While his innovations were eventually heralded as game-changers, that was long after he was dismissed from Gibson. His design changes were expensive and he was unsuccessful in the (likely impossible) job of extending the dying mandolin orchestra craze. His last attempted innovation at Gibson was to try to interest them in electrified instruments. They didn't bite.



1923: High-gloss shellac finishes on Martins.



1923: Martin began designating the lower end models (Style 17) as: "Regulated for Steel Strings." Largely this was a matter of making the tops just a hair thicker and altering the nut (thinner slots). Martin's process was always to change the less expensive guitars first and then eventually incorporate the change into higher models. By 1928 all guitars were built for steel.



1923: Around this time, on Martins, an ebony bar reinforcement was added under the fingerboard, probably to help with the added tension of steel strings.



1924: Martin built some guitars for Wurlitzer. From March 1922 to December 5th of 1922. They had no serial number, no Martin stamp, and some models differed slightly from standard Martin production specs. After 12/5/22, the Wurlitzer guitars had Martin stamps and serial numbers, and conformed to production specs for existing Martin models.



1925: Gibson mandolins change away from the old style pick guards that are attached via a clamp on the side of the body.

1926: Gibson reintroduces the L-1 as their first flat top guitar. The earliest of these had arched backs (likely using leftover backs.) This "peanut-shaped" body style became identified with seminal bluesman Robert Johnson, as one of the only photos of Johnson shows him playing an L-1.

1926: The plain wing rectangular bridge replaced the pyramid bridge on Style 18 Martins.

1926: (some models starting with the 0-17), 1929 (most models): Clear nitrocellulose lacquer finishes.



1927: In an effort to make a louder guitar, John Dopyera invents the resonator and starts hand-building tricones with his brother Rudy. National Guitar Co. is soon formed.



1927: Martin 17H introduced; made exclusively with a high nut and flush frets for slide playing.



1927: Martin bridge plates are now slightly thicker to help withstand steel strings.

1928: Martin made 72 Paramount Model "L" resonator guitars with serial numbers that ranged from 100 to 170

.

1928: Martin 00-40H introduced; made exclusively with a high nut and flush frets. Flush bar frets continued on Hawaiian style guitars after other models were changed to T frets and steel neck rods.



1928: Ebony neck reinforcement was beefed up. (still less than half the size of the wartime rods.) The compression created by the bar frets kept the neck straight, not the ebony bar.



1928-1929: Gibson experiments with "A" and "H" bracing in their new flat top acoustic guitars. Eventually they decide on X bracing for the upper-end guitars. Lower-end guitars are "straight braced" (ladder braced.)



1929: Production pickguards introduced.



1929: Plain-wing rectangular bridge replaces the pyramid on Style 21 Martins.

Late 1929: pyramid replaced by belly bridge on styles other than 17. Bridgeplates do not change.



1929, September: U.S. Stock market crashes.



1929 All Martin tops just a fraction thicker.



1929-1931: Twelve 000-18 guitars were made with mahogany tops: 4 in 1929, 7 in 1930 and one in 1931.

1929-1934: The new 14-fret neck models have a 1-3/4" wide nut width (prior to this, 12-fret neck models had a 1-7/8" wide neck width).



1929: Gibson re-vamped their banjo line, and starting using a 1-piece flange vs. the “tube and plate” 2-piece design. Flat head tone rings were also introduced in '29, though very few banjos have them.



1930 to 1933: Belly bridges have a compensated (angled) saddle 1/8" from the font on the treble side, and 3/16" on the bass side.



1930: Martin developed the "belly" bridge, with a larger footprint of exactly 6"x1" and more mass towards the back of the bridge, which extends to 1 3/8", to withstand greater tension from heavier steel strings. The belly bridges built from 1931 to 1933 have a compensated saddle placed 1/8" from the font on the treble side, and 3/16" on the bass side. Sometime in the mid 1930's, Martin moved the bass end of the saddle back again to 1/4" from the front of the bridge on belly bridge guitars. The straight rectangular bridges remained at about 3/16" however. While all Martin guitars built in 1929 were made with rectangular or pyramid bridges, a number of Martins from before 1930 can be seen with original looking belly bridges, which is the cause of some confusion: Due to slow sales from the depression era economy, Martin still had a number of unsold instruments with serial numbers stamped in 1929 remaining in their factory for another two or three years, many of which were still unfinished, without bridge attached, or "in the white." Martin fitted these with belly bridges before they left the factory, and additionally asked dealers to return unsold guitars which they retrofitted with belly bridges to ensure that they were strong enough to hold steel strings.

1930: All Martin styles have nitrocellulose lacquer finish.

1930, April: OM model bridges change from pyramid to belly after serial number 42070. The first (and only) OM-18 guitars with "straight" bridges (style 18 did not get pyramid bridge) were serials 41034 and 41035. There were 102 OM-28s and 2 OM-45s made with pyramid bridges. The first OM-28 with belly bridge is 42070. The first OM-45 with belly bridge is 42125.



The smaller 1" bridgeplate was used in conjunction with the belly bridge in 1930 and part of 1931. The pyramid bridge was discontinued around April 1930.

1930, Oct.: first time size & model number stamped on neck block. Happens sometime after serial number 43900 and before or at 44362.



1931: Rickenbacker had success with the “frying pan” which likely was the first electric lap steel guitar ever produced.



1931, March: The transition to the large pickguard on Martin OM's; likely towards the end of the month. Serial 46020 stamped on February 27 has a small pickguard.

1931: The first "Dreadnaught" guitars were marketed. Production was extremely limited, and all were 12-fret-to-the-body guitars until 1934.



1931: Martin first offers optional sunburst finish.

1931, June: Switch from banjo to side tuners on Martin OM, late June 1931.

1931: celluloid bridge pins introduced. Longer pins with a collar; 5 degree taper. The bridge pin round head diameter from 1931 until mid-1939 was about 0.320".



1932: June; headstock logo began. This is gold metallic ink only, no black. Silkscreened.



1932: The bridgeplate widened from 1" to 1 3/8" and changed to hexagonal (clipped back corners) (My late'32 1-17 has this clipped corner plate.)



1932: Some 17 series models transition to 14 frets clear of body with solid headstock.



1932; Production of the size 1 in style 17 ended.

1932: "The" Gibson headstock logos and hand-rubbed Cremona Brown finishes are largely discontinued (but you never know with Gibson...)



1929-1934: "Red Line" cases were made by Geib exclusively for Gibson. (They were listed as a standard black case; the catalog never mentioned the red pin stripe around the outside.) The striped aeroplane cloth tweed cases were available in the same dates and were extra-price options for a few larger guitars and most electric instruments.

1934 January:

#55260 is the first 14-fret to the body Martin D-28.

1934 March; The Martin headstock decal transfer, gold with black outline, became standard on all guitars. Shortly after, a smaller size two-color decal transfer was made for use on slotted headstocks, mandolins and ukuleles.



Late 1934; Martin changed from Bar frets to T-frets and added a steel T-shaped steel bar inside the neck. Hawaiian style guitars kept bar frets until at least 1938. T frets were introduced on a lot of 00-17 guitars #57305-57329.

mid 1930's; Martin moved the bass end of the saddle to 1/4" from the front of the bridge on belly bridge guitars. The straight rectangular bridges remained at about 3/16" on the bass end.



1934: 14 fret neck standard on all flat tops models except the 000-21 (it became 14 fret in 1938).



Early 1934: Most models were changed from a 12-fret-to-the-body with a slotted peghead to a 14-fret with a solid peghead around 1934 (except the OM series, which was always 14 fret and began in1929/1930 and the style 17 and 18 models which were available in 14-fret style in 1932). Basically if the guitar has a 14 fret neck, it will have a solid peghead. If it has a 12 fret neck, it will have a slot peg head.

 Only exception is

the 000-21 (it became 14 fret in 1938).

1934: Style 18 specs: 000-18 reintroduced (replaces OM-18) with 14 frets clear of the body, 24.5" scale. Early '34 000-18 were long scale.Dreadnaughts are now made with a 14-fret neck and become the only long-scale guitar. "D" size guitars start to be produced in larger quantities: 51 D-18's and 62 D-28's produced in 1934.



1934: Black plastic binding replaces wood on styles 18, 21.

April 5, 1934: The first 14 fret D-18 guitars were made under shop order 578 (serial numbers 55921-55923)

1934: The Dopyera Brothers ("DoBro") secured a controlling interest in both National and Dobro and merged the two companies.



1934: Gibson introduces the "Jumbo," Gibson's attempt to compete with Martin's "D" series of guitars that were introduced in 1932. The Jumbo was only made for three years and was then replaced by the J-35. The differences between the two models is subtle - the Jumbo has a pearl "Gibson" logo (the J-35's is silk screened), slight body size and bracing differences, neck binding (1935 only), and tuner differences. Also the Jumbo has nearly no body depth taper where the J-35 has about one inch of body depth taper. First year Jumbos have unbound fingerboard.

March 1935: switch to rosewood fretboard and bridge for 00-18. (switch back to ebony in 1936; X-brace changed to the "rear shifted" position in 1936; popsicle brace beginning in 1939; switch back to rosewood fretboard and bridge in 1940.)



1935: The first Gibson amplifiers were built in Chicago by Lyon & Healy Company and were sold as companions to the early electric Hawaiian guitars.



1935: Martin stamp in back of peghead discontinued.



Around 1935: On Gibson banjos, a new flattop tone ring was designed with a top portion deeper than that of its predecessor. Because the “tone chamber” portion was larger, it was not interchangeable with the arch-top tone rings. The flattop tone ring was available as an option, but not promoted as a standard tone chamber system until the announcement of the top-tension models. These had 20 holes although some have been found undrilled. The flat top tone ring has become a holy grail for banjo players since being adopted by Earl Scruggs.



1935; Style 15 guitars are switched from a flat matte finish to dark gloss. Only offered in size 00 until 1940. The full pre-war production of 0-15 Martins ran from March,1940 to October, 1943."Tortoise Fiberloid" was standard for 0-15 headstock veneers from their first run in March, 1940 until at least March,1943, which would mean at least 1,680 tortoise headstock 0-15's were made.



1935 -1936: Martin Style 18 guitar specs: 0-18, 00-18, 000-18: most with rosewood fingerboards (some with ebony). Tortoise outer body binding used on some Style 18 models. Body size 000-18 and smaller used tortoise first, with D-18 models getting tortoise outer body binding around 1938. But either black or tortoise can be seen in 1936-1938 on Style 18 models. 000-18 guitars in 1936 can be found with either ebony or rosewood fingerboards/bridges.



1935: bracing on 00 and smaller guitars is shifted to the rear (this happened in late '38 on 000 and D sizes.)

1936: The average wage for hourly workers in manufacturing was $23/week. (A Martin D-28 sold for $100 without a case. That's 4-1/2 weeks pay to pay for a D-28.)



1937: Martin model 18H (H for "Hawaiian") introduced; made exclusively with a high nut and flush frets. even though other models now had T-frets and steel rods.



1937: Grover G-98 tuners on Martin guitars change from 6:1 to 12:1 ratio.



1937-39: shift back to ebony bridge and fingerboard for 000 and smaller.



1938: Dreadnaught change to rear-shifted X-bracing (D-18 #71539 has the rear-shifted X-brace with no popsicle brace.) The transition to rear-shifted bracing on 000's and D's was in September of 1938, somewhere in the serial range of 71100-71300.



1939: D-28 #71968 has the rear-shifted X-brace with no popsicle brace. Popsicle brace first appeared on 14-fret dreadnought Martins in mid 1939, between serial numbers 72618 and 72702. Earlier 12-fret guitars had always had the popsicle brace.



1939: Martin switch to narrow nut width (1- 11/16") at serial #72740 for 000 and D models. Style 17 models with 14-fret body may have changed earlier.

mid-1939: the round head of bridge pins was reduced to about 0.300", and this size was used until the unslotted pins ended in 1945. The shaft size was slightly increased at this time too. The pre-1939 style pins have a more bulbous head, where the 1939-1945 style's head is more slender.



1940-41: Bridgplates switch from hexagonal to modern trapezoid, both 1- 3/8" wide, but the trapaziods are now thicker than the hexagonal plates were.

1940; an 0-sized style 15 guitar is now offered in a semi-gloss finish



1940: Style 18 specs: 0-18, 00-18, 000-18: rosewood fingerboard standard (D-18 still uses ebony).

1940: Les Paul began experimenting at the Epiphone guitar factory workshop after-hours. Using a length of common 4″ x 4″ pine lumber with a bridge, guitar neck, strings and pickup attached. He later added “wings” from an old Epiphone hollow-body guitar, sawn lengthwise with “The Log” in the middle, that allowed it to be played sitting down. This achieved his two main goals, no feedback and more sustain. This was possibly the first solid body electric guitar that was designed for "Spanish" (not Hawaiian lap style) playing.

1941: USA enters World War II in April.



1942: Ebony neck reinforcement started to be implemented during WW2 (serial #80585) due to steel shortages. Wartime ebony bars are twice the size of those found in pre-1934 bar fret necks, as the bar frets added enough tension to hold the neck straight.

Between 1942-1945: Gibson employed women to manufacture guitars. “Women produced nearly 25,000 guitars during World War II, yet Gibson denied ever building instruments over this period,” according to a 2013 history of the company. Gibson folklore has also claimed its guitars were made by “seasoned craftsmen” who were “too old for war." This period is known as the Banner headstock period, with "Only a Gibson is Good Enough" emblazoned on the headstocks. The instruments were also characterized by big necks (some in 1943-44 with maple rather than metal truss rods), 1-3/4" nuts, small rectangular bridges, and lots of variation in specs due to shortages (some with mahogany tops, some with maple back/sides, etc.)

1942: Last Martin pre-WW2 style 45 guitar, serial #83107.



1943: Style 21 bridge pins (black plastic with white dots) were now slotted.



1944: CMI (Chicago Musical Instruments) buys Gibson.

Action: Term used to describe the height of the strings above the fretboard. The farther the strings are from the frets, generally, the harder the instrument is to play. High action could potentially indicate the need for a neck reset. The majority of vintage guitars need a neck reset after years of string tension has affected the geometry. This is a $500 job and requires expertise, so figure that into your value!

Adirondack (Red) Spruce: Used for most prewar instrument tops (soundboards). Has a very high strength to weight ratio (stiff and light), so can be planed thin and still withstand string tension. This wood was used in the war in airplanes and there was not enough left for instrument makers to use after the mid 1940s. Second growth trees were deemed large enough to serve as guitar tops in the 1980s. A guitar with an Adirondack top is considered more valuable.

B-string or pickguard crack: The pickguards on vintage Martins are made of celluloid, which is a notoriously unstable material. Martin guards were chemically bonded to the raw top wood before the finish was applied. No air contact reaches the underside of the pickguard that is bonded to the wood. The top of the pickguard, does interact with air and temperature over time, and can cause the guard to off-gas and shrink/cup. The shrinkage can be powerful enough to pull cracks into the instrument top along grain lines. The most common place to see this crack is on the inside edge of the guard, right under and parallel to the B string. I'd say 6 out of 10 guitars have this issue. A crack can also commonly occur in the wood next to the outside edge of the guard. These cracks are eyesores but not important structurally, so they don't devalue the guitar a great deal, especially if the guitar has other issues.

Bar Frets: Just as the name implies, bar style frets are simple bars of metal inlaid into slots in the fingerboard. The thickness of the bar fret material varied, but is always just a hair thicker than the slot it is hammered into, which provides the compression needed to maintain a straight neck. If a neck bows, the frets near the midpoint of the bow can be replaced with slightly thicker ones to force less relief into the neck. Bar frets are exceedingly expensive to replace and require far more expertise than modern frets. On Martins, bar frets gave way to modern, typical T-frets (on all but Hawaiian guitars) in 1934. T-frets have a "tang" that is pounded into the fingerboard. This tang forms the vertical of what looks like a "T" when viewed from the edge. A Martin that should have bar frets but has a replaced fretboard with T frets is a potential disaster and a very expensive ($1400) proposition to correct.) Bar frets that have been worn low are expensive and time-consuming to replace ($1000).

Bellying: The slight 'swelling' or bulging of the instrument top just behind the bridge; a distortion caused by string tension over time. This can be caused by over humidification or loose braces too. A little "belly" is OK, as it is good that the top is under tension. I can show you tests for this.

Binding: The plastic, ivory or hardwood strip that borders many guitar tops, sometimes the back and sometimes the fingerboard. It is there because it looks good, but also to take the "hit" and ensure that a blow to the edge surface does not crack the major structural element that it is bound around. Martin replaced ivory with plastic for bindings in 1918. Also see "Purfling."

Bookmatched

"Bone": Short for Herringbone. This is the purfling trim found on a pre-war Martin D-28.

Bout: The "shoulders" or side curve area of the guitar. An acoustic guitar has 4 "bouts"; upper and lower on the bass side and upper and lower bouts on the treble side.

Break angle: When the string passes over the bridge saddle and then disappears under the bridge pin, the angle of the string between the two is the break angle. A higher bridge saddle causes the strings to run at a steeper angle in this area. the amount of break angle determines, in part, how much down-pressure the strings are putting on the bridge, and how much the strings/bridge are "driving" vibrations into the top. This is why it is a bad idea, sound-wise, to shave the bridge saddle or bridge down.

Bridgeplate: On an acoustic flat top guitar with a pin-bridge, the strings disappear into the body of the guitar through holes in the bridge. On the underside of the top, the string balls sit against the bridge plate, a thin strip of wood (usually maple) glued to the underside of the top directly below the bridge. The bridge pins trap the string balls against the plate. There is often wear on the plate cause by the string balls eating into the wood. Since the bridge and plate area is "where the rubber meets the road" in terms of transmitting vibration into the top, the bridge plate is an important structural element (especially when it's tucked under the X braces as they were on Martins until 1948. Gibson bridgplates were never "tucked.") Martin switched the plates to rosewood in the late 60's and made them larger soon after. This is often cited as a reason why Martins from the '70s and '80s are considered inferior to their predecessors.

Bridge Saddle: On an acoustic flat-top guitar, the bridge is the piece of wood (usually ebony or rosewood) where the strings terminate and go inside the guitar body. The saddle is the (usually) white strip of bone or ivory that the strings go over before going inside the guitar. Sometimes the saddle is just a fret wire. The height of the saddle can be adjusted, but its top should sit at least a 16th" above the bridge surface. A saddle that runs perfectly perpendicular to the strings is "non compensated." That positioning was meant for slide playing or classical playing with nylon or gut strings. An angled saddle ("compensated) indicates that the guitar was probably built to handle steel strings and is angled to compensate for the varying thicknesses of the steel strings so that each is better intonated and the guitar plays in-tune all the way up the fretboard.

Compensation: See "Bridge Saddle" above.

Conversions: There are 3 main "conversions" in the vintage instrument world. The first is converting an acoustic guitar that was built for Hawaiian-style (aka lap steel) playing to a standard "Spanish" configuration. This usually involves resetting the neck, lowering the nut and the bridge saddle and sometimes "radiusing" the fretboard so that it has an arch along its width. Since Hawaiian playing involves sliding a "steel" along the strings, and not depressing them to meet a fret, the geometry desired is quite different. In some cases, Hawaiian style guitars came with no frets and very wide, or square-shaped necks with flat fingerboards. These issues can be addressed in a conversion as well, by reshaping and refinishing the neck. A conversion of this kind is a double-edged sword as you are trading originality for playability.

The second conversion would be to take an old arch top or classical guitar, usually a Martin with Brazilian rosewood back and sides, and to then re-top/re-brace it as a steel-string, flat top guitar. If the guitar's original top is cracked or in poor condition, it is a better conversion candidate. The resulting converted guitar will be likely worth more than the original, but conversions are not cheap. In the best case, it can make an unused, poor sounding guitar into something that sounds and plays great, while sacrificing the originality of the instrument. Finally another conversion has to do with banjos. There are very few tenor or plectrum banjo players around today, but lots of old 4-string banjos. If the pot and tone rings are high quality enough, it can be worth the cost to re-neck these instruments to become 5 stringers, for the more popular frailing, clawhammer or bluegrass styles of playing. The original neck can be kept, so the banjo could be reconverted back to original at a later date when big band jazz resurges (and hell freezes over?) Again, the instrument quality must warrant the considerable expense of conversion in order to be worth doing.

Dreadnaught: “Dread”, as it is sometimes referred to, is Martin's biggest size vintage guitar with a wide waist. The shape was originally developed Martin & Co. in 1916, and introduced under the Martin name in 1931 as the models D-1 and D-2. The various Martin Dreadnought models we are more familiar with today are identified with names that have the letter “D” followed by a number, ie. D-18, D-28, D-35, and the flagship D-45, etc, that allude to the level of ornamentation and the materials used in the instrument's construction - the higher the number, the more ornate the instrument.

Drop-in or "closed" saddle: In Martin's early days the bridge saddles fit into a short, closed-ended slot on the top of the bridge ebony bridge. When the "belly" bridge was introduced in 1929, the saddles were longer and open-ended, running the length of the raised middle bridge section and not "closed in" by ebony on the ends. Long saddles were glued in place. Drop-in saddles were re-introduced in 1965 as a labor-saving change, but with a benefit: different height saddles can be dropped in to compensate for climates (or the change of seasons) that can make the top rise or fall due to higher/lower humidity. Traveling musicians appreciate this.

Geib & Schaefer: One of the early case makers, most associated with Gibson guitars (not Martin). Geib manufacture is signified by one large raised diamond on the case pocket cover. (If there is a rivet in the middle of the diamond that means it is pre-1922.) Velour interiors (shiny fur) are more valuable than felt.

Harptone / Bulls Head: One of the early case makers, manufacture is signified by two overlapping large raised diamonds on the case pocket cover. Often the Bull's Head trademark is stamped (lightly) into the case exterior.

P.A.F: "Patent Applied For" refers to Gibson's outstanding "humbucking" pickups developed by Seth Lover in 1957.

Purfling: The thin strips of plastic or wood (ebony, maple, rosewood) that run inside the outer bindings (usually simple plastic, rosewood or ivory) on the very edge of the guitar top. These are decorative and just add to the instrument's appearance and fanciness. When something is said to be "triple bound" that would usually mean a binding along with two different color strips of wood or plastic usually in a "white-black-white" configuration. However there is other more intricate marquetry that can be used as purfling; Martin's "herringbone" is perhaps the most famous, found out "28" style guitars (like a D-28.) On the highest end Martin instruments, the purfling is abalone and the style number is high (like a 00-40 or 000-45.)

Note Separation: fancy term for "clarity." When two or more notes are played together, this is the sensation that both can be heard clearly on their own.

Scale length: The distance between the nut and the bridge saddle; basically the active string length. Longer scale exerts more tension on the instrument in order to bring it up to pitch but also makes the instrument louder/more powerful sounding. A shorter scale length is typically easier to fret since there is less string tension. Gibsons are typically short scale. Martin D and OM-size guitars are long-scale, and in the early 1900's there were long scale versions of 00 and 000 sized Martins.

Endpin: Usually a plastic strap button inserted (by friction) into the tail end of the guitar. Sometimes the hole has been enlarged and the button replaced by an input jack for a pick up. That's OK on a modern guitar, but is a negative on a vintage instrument. Also, if a guitar is dropped on its endpin, the pin can act as a wedge and crack the end-block of the guitar, leaving a tell-tale crack running on either side of the pin. So it is best to remove the pin, or put padding on either side of it when shipping.

Forward-shifted "advanced" bracing: This refers to the distance between the edge of the soundhole and where the two X braces cross, under the top of Martin guitars. Since the onset of X-bracing, in the mid 1800's, the braces crossed about 1" from the sound hole. This spacing is known as "forward shifted" but that is a misnomer... it's just where the braces were originally situated. In the late '30s, the bracing was "rear shifted" so that the X was closer to the bridge. Probably this was done to better counteract the stress of heavy steel strings. Braces stayed rear-shifted until modern times where a buyer is now offered a variety of placements. Rear-shifted bracing on 00 guitars began in 1935. 000-size guitars began with serial number 71470 in 1938. For Dreadnoughts the shift took place in September of 1938, Serial number range of 71100 to 71300.

Markneukirchen, Germany: A town that was known for producing and exporting large quantities of no-name instruments in the 1800's. If you have a lovely, small and old no-name guitar, it is likely one of these. If search under "Markneukirchen guitar" you'll likely see photos that look somewhat like your instrument. Most have little other than sentimental value so the economics of restoration aren't too good. But I'd like to see it..!

Reverse tuners: Worm gear is below main gear. Would indicate tuners from the 1800's. Well made tuners that are engraved and made of steel are fairly valuable.

Gut strings: Originally made of cat or goat "gut", these strings have a softer, classical sound (and exert far less tension) than steel strings. Nylon is the common substitute now. Martin built their guitars for gut strings until the mid-1920's. Most modern players use/want steel string guitars, so gut string guitars are generally less valuable, since there is a far smaller audience for that sound.

Slotted bridge pins: On post war instruments, instead of ramping (slotting) the bridge, slotted pins were used. This meant less work for the factory. The difference in tone between slotted/non-slotted pins and ramped/non ramped bridge is fairly marginal, but everything matters some, and all the little things add up.

Ramping: Slotting the bridge behind the saddle so that the strings have a more gradual entry into the guitar body. This is often combined with bridge pins that don't have slots, making for maximum contact/fit and best transmission of vibration.

Through saddle or "open" saddle: See "Drop-in Saddle" above.

Slotted headstock: Ebonized: Cheaper wood dyed black to look like ebony. Very common on fingerboards on lesser brands. Never on Martins... sometimes on Gibsons. When cracked, it can be very unstable and hard to repair. Friction tuners or pegs: Pegs that run straight through a solid guitar, banjo or uke headstock and that are slightly conical so that they "grab" in the holes in the headstock. The pegs hold the strings in tune but the cheaper ones can slip easily and can be imprecise and difficult to work with. MASTERTONE: A Gibson trademark mostly associated with banjos and used to indicate the upper level line that included a tone ring in the construction. Also the Mastertone name was put on lower-end instruments that were not marketed under the Gibson name. Gibson had many "brand" names like this. Kalamazzo and Recording King are others. Mustache bridge: ice cream cone heel: Celluloid Intonation: Nut Fingerboard radius chipboard case arched top case, double X brace. tucked bridgeplate The Golden Era: For me, this was the period when Martin instruments were at their best; 1924-1945. Some people put a finer point on it and say 1929-1939. This has to do with materials, bracing, workmanship and construction. Pre-war: instruments made before America's entry into WWII, in 1941. popsicle brace f-holes archtop thinline

MOTS: "Mother Of Toilet Seat." One of my favorite descriptive terms. It's plastic meant to look like pearl.

Parend: The lovely decorative ivoroid inlay at the lower top edge of Martin's style 3 ukulele. This was eliminated and reintroduced at various times.

Volute or neck dart: Before Martin necks were made from one piece of mahogany, they were made of spanish cedar and were two pieces. The neck shaft and peg head were separate pieces glued together and held by the volute. Since the early 1900's the volute has been vestigial only and is found on style 28 and above Martin guitars.

Truss rod: Patented by Gibson in the early '20s this adjustable metal rod inside the neck can be used to straighten most curves that develop in the neck. Truss rods do not affect the neck angle, they are used to adjust the neck straightness.

The presence of a truss rod on a Gibson is an indicator that the instrument was made after the early '20s and possibly during the Loar period ('21-'24). Aside from the ability to adjust the bow (or relief) in the neck, a truss rod is a badge that the instrument was made at a time when Gibson was making better instruments.

Ebony rod: Wood rod used to stiffen the neck in Martin guitars and to help keep it straight under string tension. First used in the '20s, this was changed to a non-adjustable steel rod in 1934. During WWII, and in the early '50s, shortages of steel necessitated a return to the ebony rod. Martin didn't start using an adjustable metal truss rod until the 1980s. A strong magnet can help determine if a guitar has a metal rod.

X-brace

Ladder bracing

Fan bracing

Tone bars

finger brace

heel cap

pin bridge

tie bridge bridge

reset

zero fret

headstock wings

herringbone

rosette

lining

quarter-sawn:

cleat:

kerfing

pores

grain runout

center seam

hide glue

french polish

shellac

Chris Knutsen: Built highly distinctive stringed instruments from the late 1800s through the 1920's. To me, Knutsen was the "Salvador Dali of luthiery." He was an eccentric who took chances, and also an entrepreneur who had an eye for trends and the ability to shift his focus to whatever style instrument would sell. Many of his guitar designs had original features that were the first of their kind, and for the time (or ANY time) were highly creative. All were hand made without a factory or molds, so each instrument is one-of-a-kind, yet all are immediately identifiable. The total number of instruments he built (350-400) is a range that makes them rare and potentially highly collectable. There are books on Knutsen and detailed websites, so there is a recognized history and provenance, which is important in terms of collectability. Knutsen basically came up with the gold standard design for the symphony harp guitar (a design whose potential was realized by Dyer/The Larson Bros., who initially built harp guitars built under Knutsen's design patent), and the hollow neck lap steel (Knutsen likely taught Weissenborn how to build them.) The great Micheal Hedges played a black, teardrop-body Knutsen harp guitar (with a replaced headstock) to great effect, so there is at least some "celebrity" player who used a Knutsen. Construction quality was not to Martin standards and could be somewhat crude (or, commonly, crude AND sublime within the same instrument.) Builds were "consistently inconsistent" but always functional, often X-braced and of quality materials. Many Knutsen builds are now 100 years old, with the wood being far older than that. Finishes were all hand-varnished. For more on Knutsen, I'd highly recommend Jonathan Kellerman's fantastic book: With Strings Attached, where he devotes as many of the coffee table-quality photos and stories to Knutsen as he does to Martin and Gibson.

Ted McCarty

Herman Weissenborn

Frank Henry Martin: From 1888 until 1945 Frank Henry Martin guided the company through its Golden Era. He took back control of sales from the outside distributor that the company had used for years, introduced the 000 size, style 45, Dreadnoughts, the shift to steel strings, and the 14-fret neck. He also guided the company through the ukulele, mandolin and Hawaiian booms. If you have a Martin from the early 1900's you may find the "F.H.M." initials and a date penciled under the top. (it takes a mirror or photoshop to make the image read right!)

Orville Gibson:

John Deichman

Mike Longworth

Larson Brothers

Leo Fender

Paul Bigsby

Consalvi: Perhaps the best pearl engraver who ever lived. Worked for Fairbanks Banjos, roughly 1902-1906. He also did many early Cole banjos after 1890 or 1891 as well as some Bay State, Howe-Orme and Vega instruments. Washburn Oliver Ditson. His hand is recognizable, so if you have an instrument made during his working life it is something to check into.

John Dopyera: In 1925, Dopyera was asked by vaudeville promoter George Beauchamp to create a guitar that could be heard over other instruments in an orchestra. Dopyera invented a guitar with three aluminum "speaker" cones mounted beneath the bridge. This guitar, now called the Tricone, was loud, rich and metallic. John, his brothers Rudy and Emil, Beauchamp and others, founded the National String Instrument Corporation to manufacture this new "resophonic" guitar, which was sold mainly to players of Hawaiian music and jazz. Most often the guitars were played with a slide (also known as a "steel".) After a few years and a falling out with National, the three brothers left the corporation and started a new company, Dobro (The name was derived from the "Do" in Dopyera and "bro" from Brothers.) Dobros were single-cone instruments with a different bridge arrangement than that of National instruments. After Dobro won a lawsuit brought by National, National was dissolved and the two companies were eventually combined. In terms of value the original National Tricones are sought after and valued based on their condition, originality and level of appointments (styles 1(plain) through 4(fancy engraving)) (I've had a mythical Deluxe "style 5" but that's another story). Since most of these guitars were built for Hawaiian lap playing, they had square necks. The minority had standard round necks. After the Hawaiian craze ended the tricone found its "true" calling as a round neck blues guitar played with a bottle neck. So, today, the round necks are far more valuable than the square necks.

Coordinator rods: One of Gibson's developments for attaching the neck to the banjo rim; two brass rods that attached to two screws in the heel of the banjo neck. The rods secured the neck to the rim and provided a means for correcting the neck angle & "action."

Flange: On banjos with resonator backs, the flange fills the space between the pot and the front edge of the resonator, which has a much wider diameter than the banjo pot.

Lloyd Loar: Loar was not an instrument builder. He was a musician who had an intense interest in musical acoustics, At Gibson, he guided the design and development, including the 'Master Model" instruments and 'Mastertone" banjos. Loar was highly influenced by the work of the great violin makers and sought to incorporate their building practices into Gibson's fretted instruments. His major contribution was the introduction of tap tuning. This process ensured the correct stiffness of the soundboards, backboards, and tone bars by tuning them to specific notes. Realizing that stiffness and pitch were inextricably related, tap tuning ensured reliable and repeatable construction from instrument to instrument. Further, the size of the f-holes was adjusted to tune the air chamber to a specific note. Tap tuning was difficult in a manufacturing environment and Gibson dropped it after Loar's departure in December,1924. The Loar era at Gibson, when he personally signed Master Model instrument labels, was from 1922-1924. Instruments made during this time period are more valuable than those before and after.

Tone Ring: or "tone chamber" on a banjo is a cast metal ring that sits on top of the wood rim to add rigidity and mass to the "pot"(circular wooden banjo body) and to enhance the vibrations of the head. There are many designs of tonering and one must look inside the banjo, right next to the head, to see/photograph it. On older Fairbanks/Vega banjos, the most well known rings were the Tubaphone and Whyte Laydie. On Gibson banjos there are the Archtop, Ballbearing, 40-hole and Flat Head tone rings. Older and cheaper banjos might have a "spun over" pot, where the nickel plated metal on the outside of the pot overlaps the pot edge and the head sits on that metal. The type of tone ring is a major factor on the value of a banjo.



Late 1944: serial #89926 = According to Martin, this is the approximate last scalloped braced guitar made. Though some models have been seen after this number with scalloped braces, and before this number with tapered braces.



Late 1944 to about 1949: Martin bracing was now tapered (slightly shaved/shaped) instead of fully scalloped. Braces were tapered less and less each year and gradually evolved into "straight" braces by 1949. This is why 1945-1949 Martins are still regarded as "better" than their 1950's and later counterparts, but not as good as the 1944 and prior scalloped-braced guitars.



1945: Either Adirondack Red Spruce or Sitka for guitar tops. (Supplies of appropriately-sized Red Spruce had dwindled due to wartime use in airplanes/gliders.) This goes for Gibson and Martin. Red Spruce can often be distinguished from Sitka Spruce on Martin guitars by the appearance of lighter sapwood, which could be placed at either side, but was generally placed by Martin at the middle of the top, forming a light colored band. Sapwood never appears on Sitka. Sapwood is seen most often on Martins from the 1940's, when more larger guitars were built. The Red spruce trees were quite small, as opposed to the relatively giant Sitka trees, so it became difficult to find enough wide enough logs to accommodate 000 and Dreadnaught guitars without using the sapwood.



1945: World War II ends, 14 August (V-J Day), the formal surrender of Japan (September 2).

1945: Brass frets common (shortage of steel due to the war).



1945: Bridge pins now slotted.



Tortoise dot bridge pins, often referred to as "red dot" pins, appeared in about 1945 and were in use until 1966 on style 28 and 35 Martin guitars.

1945: Transition back to steel reenforcement rods; "T" bars, in the necks. Some say these were the same bars used for the blades of kids' sleds.

1946: Last year of possible 1-3/4" nut on a Gibson guitar.



1946: Gibson guitars no longer have the "Only a Gibson is Good Enough" headstock banner, but the Gibson name is still in the earlier era

script font.



1946: As supplies of their preferred sources of Adirondack spruce dried up, (even the last smaller pieces used to create four-piece tops,) Martin began using Sitka spruce from the Northwest. The Sitka used in this first year of 1946 has a distinctive dark brownish tone, and tends to have the distinctive light swirls in the wood known as "bear claw."



1947: Gibson switches to block letters on headstock logo. Early '47 still uses the script.



1947: Rosewood fingerboard and bridge replaces ebony on Martin D-18.



1947: Rosewood neck heel cap replaces ebony on all Martins. (Prior to that, the caps can be lighter colored and mistaken for rosewood, but they should be ebony.)



1947: Last Herringbone D-28 #98233 in 1947 99992-100240 = Last style 28 guitars made with a "zipper" center back marquetry (mid 1947).

1948: last year for Gibson rectangular bridges.



1948: Bridgeplates are no longer notched into ("tucked under") 
the X-braces. Braces are no longer fully tapered.



1949, Winter: B.B. King played at a dance hall in Twist, Arkansas. The hall was heated by a burning barrel, a fairly common practice at the time. During a performance, two men began to fight, knocking over the burning barrel and sending burning fuel across the floor. The hall burst into flames, and the building was evacuated. Once outside, King realized that he had left his guitar inside so he went back into the burning building to retrieve his beloved $30 Gibson guitar. King learned the next day that the two men that started the fire, had been fighting over a woman named Lucille. King named that guitar, and every guitar he subsequently owned "Lucille", as a reminder to never again to do something as stupid as run into a burning building or fight over a woman.



1950: Gibson peg heads now have even thickness instead of being tapered.



1952: Gibson introduces the Les Paul Gold Top to compete with Fender's solid body electrics.



1953: Some Martin guitars (133352-133376, 133427-133451, 133577-13360, 133727-133751) made with ebony neck rod due to steel strike in '52. Also, an estimated 20% - 35% have 'mystery' tops (CF Martin III said Martin used Engelmann Spruce in 1953, but other evidence strongly suggests Red Spruce. Red Spruce is indicated by wider grain lines that vary greatly in width as viewed across the top. Sitka grain is usually tighter and more regularly spaced.)



1954: A Gibson acoustic guitar now has laminated sides, so would no longer have side support strips inside.

1954: Fender introduces the Stratocaster.



1955: The transition year from teardrop to the larger 2-point pickguard on Gibson guitars

1955: At Gibson, Seth Lover invents P.A.F (Patent Applied For) Humbucking pickup. These were standard on Gibson Les Pauls in 1957. This innovation in pickups became the flagship pickup design most associated with Gibson. These pickups had a different sound, and reduced the hum associated with the single coil P-90 pickup, which had been used up until then.



1955: Bracing changes to unscalloped on Gibson Guitars. This has a big effect on the tone. Also pickguards change to a larger shape and are no longer the "teardrop" shape.



1955: Bracing on Martin "D" guitars is shifted farther reward (3/8") in '55. Does not effect value greatly.

1957: Supposedly some 'mystery' spruce used at Martin in this year.



1957: CMI, which had already bought Gibson, buys Epiphone (mostly for their basses.)

1957: First year of "ADJ" (Adjustable) bridges on Gibson guitars. These are deemed undesirable as they add a great deal of weight to the bridge area and provide a less direct connection between the strings and the guitar top. (But the Beatles' Gibsons had them!)

1958: Gibson Les Paul models first major design changes. The new model, called the Les Paul Standard, featured a new cherry-red sunburst finish. The “burst” was born. These Les Paul guitars from 1958-1960 are now considered the best Les Pauls Gibson ever made. Only about 1,700 Standards were actually made. (It is not uncommon to find a vintage Les Paul Gold Top that has had the gold finish removed and refinished to look like a burst.) In actuality, the 1958-1960 Les Paul Standards were not anywhere as successful as Gibson had hoped. They were considered to be too heavy and old-fashioned, and they initially did not find favor amongst guitarists. Gibson was marketing to an older, jazz-oriented audience rather than younger players. It was not until later, when these guitars were available used, that many rock players realized just how good they were.



1958: Still feeling the pressure from Fender, Gibson produced two new designs: the Explorer and Flying V. These were very modernistic guitars that Gibson hoped would appeal to the younger players. The original run for these guitars were done in Korina wood. Both did not sell well initially.



1961: Due to lack of sales, The Gibson Les Paul model was radically changed to the SG ("Solid Guitar") styling. Les Paul did not approve of the new look and demanded that his name be removed. It was, by 1963.



1964: 196228 = Last guitar made at Martin's North street factory June 25, 1964. (new factory July 6, 1964)



1964: The Beatles first appearance on the Ed Sullivan show. John played a Rickenbacker 325 Capri, George had a Gretsch Country Gentleman and Paul was playing the now iconic Hofner violin shaped bass. This one appearance had a major impact on sales for these three guitar makers almost immediately.



1964: Sept.: Martin switched from hide glue to white glue.

1965: January: Fender is officially sold to CBS. this is where the term "pre-CBS" comes from. Neck plate serial number begin with "L" during the transition period until late '65. An "L" serial number is considered "pre-CBS." In late '65 the large script "F" is centered on neck plates and indicates the CBS era.

1965: Martin switch to "drop in" bridge saddle vs. "long" saddle; SN 200601 was the recorded switch, early 1965.



​

1965: Gibson headstock angle changes from 17º to 15º meaning there is less down pressure/break angle at the nut. This is not a good thing. Gibson 1-11/16" standard nut width is gradually decreased to 1-9/16" until the end of the decade. Again, this is not considered a good thing. Neck profile decreases to a thin profile in mid 1960. Gibson necks were shaped by hand all through this time period so there are many exceptions to the rule. Epiphone nut width decreased to 1 9/16" two years before the Gibson brand instruments even though they were manufactured on the same line.

1966: Ted McCarty leaves Gibson.



1967: Gretsch is bought by Baldwin. Production moves from NY to Arkansas

.

1968: Fender starts using poly finishes instead of nitro-cellulose. This is a being negative in terms of guitar weight, resonance and collectibility.

1968: Martin replaced maple with rosewood bridgeplate at serial #235586. Size unchanged.



1968: Les Paul returned to the Gibson as endorser in 1968 and with the new Gibson Les Paul Deluxe. Gibson was trying to respond to players looking for the 1958-1960 style Les Paul models they were seeing their rock heroes play. Unfortunately the new Gibson Les Paul Deluxe did not have the same finish, and it did not have P.A.F. Humbuckers. Instead, Mini-Humbucker pickups were used in order to use a surplus supply of Epiphone Mini-Humbucker pickups. This was not that popular with players at the time. So you'll find many vintage Gibson Les Paul Deluxe guitars routed out for full size humbuckers.

1969: Martin substitutes large rosewood bridgeplate (3-1/4") for small rosewood bridgeplate at serial #242454 on Martin D models. BAD change! Smaller guitars had the smaller rosewood plates for some time after that.



1969: For most collectors, 1969 marks the end of Martin collectability, as Indian rosewood back and sides replaces Brazilian (Brazilian rosewood ended at serial #254497.)



1969, December: Gibson parent company, Chicago Musical Instruments, taken over by the South American brewing conglomerate ECL. Gibson remained under the control of CMI until 1974 when it became a subsidiary of Norlin Musical Instruments. This began an era characterized by corporate mismanagement and decreasing product quality.



1970: Epiphone production moved to Japan and Korea; indicated by 7 digit serial #.



1970; Elephant ivory discontinued for use in bridge saddles and nuts on Martin guitars.



1971: The light blue plastic "steal me" case with Martin embossed in the top is introduced. So a guitar that is original to the case is beyond the last year of collectability (1969).

1971- 1976: Martin bridges were placed in the wrong spot on the tops. Intonation is sharp.



1989: Don Young and McGregor Gaines started the National Reso-Phonic Guitar Company in 1989 after doing restorations for a number of years on vintage Nationals.