Martin 00-28 21259 (1924)

This 1924 Martin 00-28 sits in rarified territory. It's in magnificent condition, and exhibits the pure, wondrous sound that has brought countless guitarists into the vintage-only fold.

A 12-fret 00 is often held up as the ideal small-bodied guitar here at TME. As an addition to the stable of a dreadnought player, they can be revelatory. Players reap the benefits of a smaller, shallower body in conjunction with a short scale. It's a perfect fingerstyle platform, and also prized by genre-hopping multi-instrumentalists like Norman Blake who demand warmth, responsiveness, and depth of sound no matter what style of music they're asked to play.

This 00-28 is a poster child for all the aforementioned acclaim. Its sound is wide open and breathy, its responsiveness immediate and greatly satisfying. Just picking the open B string makes the whole guitar resonate endlessly, and its balance and fullness everywhere on the fingerboard would be the envy of anyone brave enough to make guitars in the modern era. It's truly a world-class example of the 1920's Martin sound.

To state the obvious and purely superficial ~ this guitar looks great too. Its components, aside from the saddle, are all original. And its 102-year old original finish exhibits gorgeous texture and patina. Aside from a neck reset performed by luthier, Tom Crandall, there are no repairs or modifications to speak of. We are confident calling its overall condition "excellent."

Price includes a Guardian-brand hard case. Expedited shipping required.