C. F. Martin 0-18T Flat Top Tenor Guitar (1953)
LOADING IMAGES
This item has been sold.
Item # 10091
Prices subject to change without notice.
C. F. Martin 0-18T Model Flat Top Tenor Guitar (1953), made in Nazareth, PA, serial # 132736, natural lacquer finish, mahogany back, sides and neck, spruce top, rosewood fingerboard, original brown canvas gig bag case.
The Martin 0-18T is one of the finest and most popular tenor guitars ever made, a lovely and well-balanced design. This is a well-worn with some amateur finish work but still a good player. It dates to the early 1950's just before the "Folk' boom in acoustic instruments really took off. The Kingston Trio hit BIG in 1958-9, and the 0-18T was along for the ride in the hands of group member Nick Reynolds. Folk groups who emulated the Trio's sound wanted one in their arsenal and the model definitely had a boost in popularity for a few years.
The 0-18T shows typical Style 18 Martin features including a spruce top, mahogany back and sides, rosewood belly bridge and fingerboard, teardrop celluloid pickguard and 14 fret 23" scale neck. The Brazilian rosewood-faced headstock has a small "C. F. Martin" decal logo and open back Grover Sta-Tite tuners.
The Martin tenor has experienced upswings and downtimes in popularity over the last century. Designed in the late 1920s for tenor banjoists getting pushed out of work by the guitar, tenor guitars like this 0-18T can be tuned in the "correct" fifths tenor tuning (C-G-D-A) or simply as the higher four guitar strings (D-G-B-E) or beyond. In either case they offer a range of possibilities to this day still not fully explored. In the 1930's long before the Kingston Trio Rabon Delmore used small tenor Martin models including the 0-18T to play deftly picked leads on the Delmore Brothers' records, and many others have explored them since.
Overall length is 35 1/2 in. (90.2 cm.), 13 1/2 in. (34.3 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 1/8 in. (10.5 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 23 in. (584 mm.). Width of nut is 1 1/4 in. (32 mm.).
For 70 years along this Martin is in fairly good shape, although it has had some repair making it more of a "gigger" than a collectible piece. The original lacquer finish survives intact on the neck; the top has some fairly random touch-up work over the still visible original finish while the back and sides have a rather scrubby looking complete overfinish. The guitar has been played well since with dings, dents and scrapes but no heavy wear.
There is a sealed jack hole on the lower bout side, plugged and painted over. There are two other grain cracks in the side around this spot that have been properly sealed: one along the binding near the top, the other closer to the waist. Another previously repaired grain split runs between the pickguard and the bridge, where the pickguard is known to peel up over time. Internally, all original bracing and the original bridge plate are intact, with what appears to be a pair of factory installed cleats along the center seam.
The original bridge and saddle have been lowered. The frets are original; the first four have noticeable divots, not enough to affect playability. A newer strap button has been installed at the heel. A set of the original open back Kluson tuners have been restored, and a small plaque with the guitar's production year was at some point glued on the back of the headstock. Although cosmetically this little Martin has seen better days, someone loved it along the way. It is still is a sweet and wonderful sounding guitar with many more years ahead. It resides in a period chipboard case, with the original gig bag inside for good measure. Very Good + Condition.
The Martin 0-18T is one of the finest and most popular tenor guitars ever made, a lovely and well-balanced design. This is a well-worn with some amateur finish work but still a good player. It dates to the early 1950's just before the "Folk' boom in acoustic instruments really took off. The Kingston Trio hit BIG in 1958-9, and the 0-18T was along for the ride in the hands of group member Nick Reynolds. Folk groups who emulated the Trio's sound wanted one in their arsenal and the model definitely had a boost in popularity for a few years.
The 0-18T shows typical Style 18 Martin features including a spruce top, mahogany back and sides, rosewood belly bridge and fingerboard, teardrop celluloid pickguard and 14 fret 23" scale neck. The Brazilian rosewood-faced headstock has a small "C. F. Martin" decal logo and open back Grover Sta-Tite tuners.
The Martin tenor has experienced upswings and downtimes in popularity over the last century. Designed in the late 1920s for tenor banjoists getting pushed out of work by the guitar, tenor guitars like this 0-18T can be tuned in the "correct" fifths tenor tuning (C-G-D-A) or simply as the higher four guitar strings (D-G-B-E) or beyond. In either case they offer a range of possibilities to this day still not fully explored. In the 1930's long before the Kingston Trio Rabon Delmore used small tenor Martin models including the 0-18T to play deftly picked leads on the Delmore Brothers' records, and many others have explored them since.
Overall length is 35 1/2 in. (90.2 cm.), 13 1/2 in. (34.3 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 1/8 in. (10.5 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 23 in. (584 mm.). Width of nut is 1 1/4 in. (32 mm.).
For 70 years along this Martin is in fairly good shape, although it has had some repair making it more of a "gigger" than a collectible piece. The original lacquer finish survives intact on the neck; the top has some fairly random touch-up work over the still visible original finish while the back and sides have a rather scrubby looking complete overfinish. The guitar has been played well since with dings, dents and scrapes but no heavy wear.
There is a sealed jack hole on the lower bout side, plugged and painted over. There are two other grain cracks in the side around this spot that have been properly sealed: one along the binding near the top, the other closer to the waist. Another previously repaired grain split runs between the pickguard and the bridge, where the pickguard is known to peel up over time. Internally, all original bracing and the original bridge plate are intact, with what appears to be a pair of factory installed cleats along the center seam.
The original bridge and saddle have been lowered. The frets are original; the first four have noticeable divots, not enough to affect playability. A newer strap button has been installed at the heel. A set of the original open back Kluson tuners have been restored, and a small plaque with the guitar's production year was at some point glued on the back of the headstock. Although cosmetically this little Martin has seen better days, someone loved it along the way. It is still is a sweet and wonderful sounding guitar with many more years ahead. It resides in a period chipboard case, with the original gig bag inside for good measure. Very Good + Condition.