❌SOLD❌ Martin D-18GE 1934 Golden Era Dreadnought Natural, 2005

Built during 2005, this Martin D-18GE 1934 Golden Era Dreadnought sports an Adirondack Spruce top and a Natural finish.

Martin’s Golden Era D-18 models were built during 1995, and then from 2000 to 2016, when they were replaced by the Authentic series. The Golden Era series present the best features of instruments in that era, as distinct from being exact reproductions of specific guitars. A notable departure from true ‘Vintage Spec’ is that the pickguard is affixed to the finish, not the top. This change prevents the classic top-crack between the pickguard and bridge. Another difference is that the small amount of Rosewood on this guitar – the head plate – is East Indian, not Brazilian.

One of the key factors making this a ‘1934’ style guitar is the use of Adirondack Spruce for the top. Adirondack was used almost exclusively for guitar tops until the 1940’s, for Martin around 1946 when they finally used up their stocks and shifted to Sitka Spruce. Adirondack Spruce is slightly stronger under load than variants like Sitka. Consequently after the US entered WW2, it was redirected for use in aircraft construction elements. This rapidly led to overharvesting, and regrowth to the sizes necessary for guitar tops has only happened in the last decade or so.

This Martin D-18GE 1934 is in good, clean condition with Adirondack Spruce top, Mahogany for the sides, back, and V-profile neck with a headstock overlay of Indian Rosewood. The bridge and fingerboard are Ebony. For hardware, metal button Waverly tuners are installed and there is a strap pin on the treble side of the heel. There are no pickups or other electronics installed.

This is a lovely guitar with a great sound and well-developed voice. Fret wear is minor and the finish has only a couple of light pressure marks.

This Martin D-18GE 1934 guitar is sold with an excellent SKB TSA style molded flight case, which contains a digital temperature / humidity gauge.