Martin 000-21

My Martin 000-21 was made in 1953 in Nazareth, PA. It has 14 frets and a solid spruce top. The fret board is rosewood and the back is Brazilian rosewood with fancy binding down the middle. The grain in the wood over the entire instrument is especially striking. The instrument was a gift from my wife, and it had been previously owned by a good friend and gig partner, the late Bacel Kittle. At some point it must have been stripped and resprayed with some kind of inexpensive varnish. I took it to Lay's guitar shop in Akron/Barberton, and Dan Shinn recommended refinishing it, resetting the neck, and doing some fret work. Normally one would not refinish an instrument that was 50 years old, but he convinced me that it had been dealt with pretty harshly finish-wise and that refinishing would only improve it. He was right: his brother Joel put a beautiful nitro-cellulose finish on it, and this improved the tone considerably. It has the original Kluson tuners on it, and the neck is thin and comfortable. It's essentially the same as a 000-28 but without some of the fancier binding and inlay work.

The 000-21 is simply a great finger-picking guitar, especially for blues and Travis-style, but it's also great for bluegrass. The sound is full and bright. I like it almost as much as my 1959 0-18 (see the review for that). It is improving with age, and I sometimes set it up on a stand and play my boombox into it. After it was refinished, it was clearly a better-sounding instrument, especially in terms of sustain; in this respect it is far superior to recent-vintage D-35s, as demonstrated in an A/B test.

The neck was a bit angled where it met the body when I got it, but Dan Shinn at Lay's corrected that, and the action is really good now. The finishing that Joel Shinn did really brought out the high quality of the woodgrain.

I have played it live recently at a gig in the Sussel Gallery in the Ebert Art Museum on the College of Wooster (Ohio) campus with fiddler Charlene Adzima, specifically on Jay Ungar's piece "Ashokan Farewell" (the main theme in Ken Burns' PBS Civil War documentary). The fullness of the sound was noteworthy. It is a durable instrument, even though I baby it. In fact, I bought a new Martin Geib-style case for it (replacing the chipboard original!) that fits like a glove. It is dependable and I have no qualms about using it for a gig (as above) without a backup guitar.

The repairs mentioned above were not done under warranty, since I did not have any papers for the guitar. Lay's does exceptional work, and I can't say enough good things about this licensed Martin facility. Their work is guaranteed. Dan Shinn liked the way it came out so much that he said to contact him first if I ever decide to sell the guitar. I spent about $ 500 on the repairs, which had to be done, and these were well worth it. They have increased the value at least three-fold.

I've been playing guitar for over forty years. I own the Martin 0-18 mentioned above, a 1978 Gibson RB-250 Mastertone banjo, and a 1962 Gibson RB-100 banjo. The Martin 000-21 is irreplaceable, and if it were stolen or lost, I doubt that I could afford another. It would be depressing, to say the least, so I have it insured. I am especially fond of the guitar's playability, volume, and rich tonal quality. There is absolutely no reason not to like it. I still like playing my 0-18 a bit more (probably because I've had it since I was a teenager), but it's becoming more of a "toss up."

I would highly recommend getting one of these, if available, and bringing it up to specifications if it needs work; it's well worth it. But I'd only refinish it if you are confronting a situation like mine, where the instrument had been stripped and sprayed with sub-standard varnish. Prices seem to be in the $ 5000 range. The value can only improve, but the main reason for laying down that kind of bread would be, as always, if it suits you in terms of sound quality and playability, allowing for some minor adjustments in the hands of an expert luthier. It certainly suits me!

Made in 1946, 1947-model year guitar. Manufactured in Nazareth, PA. 14 fret neck. "Short-scale" neck. Wide-grained Spruce top, wonderfully figured Brazilian Rosewood back and sides (with old "Herringbone" purfling down the middle of the back). Neck appears to be mahogany. Body is 000-size which is very comfortable and light. The guitar came with a case that was thrashed by previous owner. Since it was not the original case, it went in the trash and the guitar now resides in a new, modern case. The orginal Martin tuners were bent and inoperable, so I replaced them with a nice set of Grovers.

Sound is crisp and airy as one would expect and desire from an old Martin. Clarity of tone is exceptional and the guitar always draws attention when I play it in public settings. I wouldn't dare amplify this instrument with anything but a high-quality mike and PA as nothing else does the sound justice. If I need electronic amplification I have other guitars for that. I play a wide variety of styles such as blues, ragtime, Celtic, slide, open-tunings and flatpicking and the guitar is wonderfully versatile for all styles. The short-scale neck makes playing it silky and easy. Bending notes, trills and hammer-ons are no problem at all.

This is an old guitar which has obviously been played hard. The back has the classic belt-buckle scratches in the lacquer, although the wood has not been damaged. The sound hole shows evidence of many years of playing with a pick as the wood has been worn away somewhat around the rosette. There are many small dings and scratches on the soundboard although again nothing seems to have gotten into the actual wood. This guitar isn't pretty... it is unique and plays and sounds fabulous. To a player, it is beautiful. When I bought the guitar the neck needed to be reset, the frets and the bridge needed replacement. All work was done at the Blue Guitar workship in San Diego in 1979 and the results speak for themselves as the guitar plays like a dream. When new, this was a beautiful example of Martin workmanship. The spruce top has unusually wide grain spacing.. in places 1/4". Although some might wonder if this is a good thing I can tell you that the top is flexible and lively and give the guitar it's airy, clear tone. The back and sides are made of Brazilian rosewood with black and red grain that is rarely seen anymore. The herringbone purfling down the center of the guitar's back hints at the guitar's ancestry from the glory days of the 20's and 30's. Obviously well-made as the guitar still plays and plays very well.

Is 56 years proof enough of how well-made and durable an old Martin can be? I wish I had more history on this instrument as it was obviously owned by someone who played it a lot.

Haven't had any dealings with Martin although I did write to them and they sent me back a letter stating when the guitar was made and first sold.

I've been playing for over 30 years. I own guitars by Taylor, Collings and National in addition to the Martin. There are times when the Martin gets neglected for a while, but when I pick it up again I wonder why... this guitar has a lot of history both before and since I've owned it. If stolen or lost I couldn't replace it and wouldn't try.