1926 Martin 0-21 Acoustic Guitar – Used

This 0-21 was built in 1926, the transitional period in the evolution of Martin’s steel-string guitars: it’s early enough that old features like wood binding and all-wood rosettes were still standard, but they’d been building guitars for steel strings long enough that examples like this are comfortable with modern strings (this particular instrument has been in the same family for many decades and was originally played Hawaiian style). In summary, despite its age and 19th Century appearance, it’s ready for the long haul with steel strings.

This is a remarkably original 100-years-old Style 21 Martin, with it’s original tuners, frets, bridge, and shellac-varnish finish. It’s a great example of how big a lightly braced small guitar can sound, and it’s doubtful any blindfolded listener would guess its size. The bass response and warm tone just don’t give those “small guitar speaking” signals to your ear. All internal bracing is original, including the bridge plate. The only crack is a hairline to bass side lower bout. Recent work includes a proper neck reset that was done here at Gryphon. Comes in a new-old-stock Martin hardshell case made for 12-fret 0 models.

This guitar was stored for many years without being touched, as a result the finish on the bass side was apparently affected by the case lining. Much of the light texture to the finish in this area could be removed, but the result would be those areas having a different patina than the rest of the guitar.