Martin | 1-21 | 1869-1887 |
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Luthier Facts :
Name: Martin
Location: Nazereth, PA
Wait list: Sockists Worldwide
Taking Orders?: Yes, standard & customs
RIYL: Martin have set the benchmark for a lot of builders and manufacturers.
Note: (RIYL) Recommended If You Like
- Model: 1-21 style
- Type: 1 parlor
- Year: 1869-1887
- Top: Red spruce
- Back and sides: Brazilian rosewood
- Neck: Cedar
- Total length: 37 3/4
- Body length: 18 7/8
- Upper bout: 9 1/4
- Lower bout 12 3/4
- Depth upper bout: 3 3/8
- Depth lower bout: 4 3/16
- Bridge:Ebony
- Binding: Rosewood
- Rosette: Herringbone
- Backstrip: Herringbone
- Purfling: Line
- Headstock: Rosewood
- Scale Length: 24.9”
- Nut width: 1 7/8”
- Twelfth fret width:2 5/16”
This is an example of a 19th century 21 style guitar with the Spruce/Brazilian rosewood tonewoods, cedar neck, line purfling, herringbone rosette and backstrip. The Brazilian has nice spiderwebbing and it is in a reasonable state of repair with filled top cracks being the most obvious repairs. In it’s favor, it does boast the original wooden coffin style case!
The prior owner Randy Cole has this to say about this guitar “This fine mid to late 19th Century Martin is in uncommonly nice condition. The instrument has been recently gone over by the noted luthier Sylvain Courcelles, and is in great playing order, and sounds absolutely breathtaking. A few repairs were made, most notably, two cracks were cleated and filled on the lower bout of the guitar’s top, a few minor cracks in the Brazilian rosewood were properly repaired, and the original ebony pyramid bridge was properly reinstalled.
The guitar is in its original condition, with a impressively well preserved interior (looks like a 20 year old instrument on the inside), and beautiful original hand applied varnish, which is in excellent condition.
This instrument had principally one owner for the first 70 plus years of its life, the gentleman passed away in 1949 at the age of 87. I actually have a photo of the original owner with dates and cemetery location, which I will include with the guitar. The instrument was un-played from approximately 1940, due to the original owner’s declining health, and to a lifted bridge.
When I acquired the guitar, it was safely stowed in its original coffin case, with a set of strings on it that could be no newer than the late 30′s. Strings have unusual spiral wrapped ‘ball’ stops at the bridge end. More such strings were stowed in the case, and are included in this sale.
According to my edition of Philip Gura’s ‘C.F. Martin and His Guitars’, this instrument was made after 1869, when the herringbone sound hole ring became more intricate in design.
The herringbone perfling is set between two groups of five rings rather than two groups of three rings as was the first version of the style 21, which was introduced in 1860.
I believe I have identified the ring pattern correctly, I welcome comments. The instrument is branded C.F. Martin & Co. New York, which indicates that it was made prior to Frank Henry Martin’s takeover of the company in 1888, at which time the branding was changed to Nazareth PA.
The guitar sounds just fabulous. It is dark, dark, dark, as well as extremely sensitive and loud. Very rich voice on this little one. Action is a touch high, but there is plenty of bridge and saddle to adjust. Intonation is excellent at the 12th fret. Neck angle at heel is correct, and the top shows almost no distortion. Neck is remarkably comfortable, with a very gentle, low profile shape. It should be noted that the marks on the back of the neck are cosmetic only, these are surface depressions in the wood, not signs of any repair or modification.”
Pictures kind courtesy of Randy Cole see more here
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I have a 1-21 that came down through my family…maybe a little more top wear than yours but still a sweet player. I looked inside the top with a mirror and somoene in the shop had written 1885 in pencil. Checked in yours?
I found a 1-21 just like yours in a little musicstore here in Chile 6 years ago.God only knows how it got down here. It needed a little work, but it’s now restored and a beautyfull instrument both soundwise and also optically. I just love the tone.
Hallo,
I am a beginning Luthier and mine first acoustic guitar is almost finished(Plan Lowden)
The next project will be an vintage mid -19th century martin guitar ( plan 57 ordered by guild of american luthiers).Only the problem is originally it was a guitar with nylon strings and now I want to build the guitar
as a steelstring. can you advices me how solved this problem. one option is to use X bracing like orther steelstrings or reinforced the brigde plate just under the brigde.Top spruce and back and sides Honduras Mahogany (I prefere the raggtime and delta blues sound).An very important thing is the bracing aspecially
for the sound. may be can you advice me for this project or you can recommand me to the specialist luthiers.
Nice Day, Erik /Netherlands.
Hi Erik,
Thank you for your reply. I would recommend trying to get in touch with Jack Spira or John Greven who are well versed in building smaller guitars!
The bridge on my 1958 00-28G is not a pyramid type. It has rounded ends and I have not seen any like it.It also needs a reset and I don’t want to use it if it is not correct thanks roger
Hi Eric. The Martin 1-21 is a X-braced guitar. CF Martin experimented with X-bracing in 1958, even though steel strings were first used in the 1920′s. He was originally from Germany. Antonio Torre, the father of the spanish guitar build his Guitar around the same time, 1850′s. Today the known classical guitar follows Torres design basically, even though there is some innovation now. Some people have used the 1-21 with very light silk and steel strings. I just use nylon strings, Still, its got more of a folky tone then a spanish tone to it. It’sjust different schools of guitar making I suppose. I build a classical guitar according to torres plans, basically and it came out very nice and it’s owned now by Carlos Perez , he liked it very much. My style is more folky instead of classical. I cannot play my style of music on a classical guitar. It just does’nt sound quite right, but it does on the Martin. But at the sam time I’m fascinated of the tonal quality of a classical guitar. Best regards.
[...] Modern Guitar Innovations – 1850 – X-Bracing Posted by Dan When: 1850s What: X Bracing. Who: Martin Guitars. Guitar innovation was going on throughout Europe and America at the same time that Torres was experimenting on the design of the classical guitar. The fan bracing of Torres was innovative and is still used on classical guitars today. But alternatives would eventually prove important for flat top guitars. Martin’s X bracing was a different solution to the problem of getting more vibrations and volume from the top of the guitar. It may not have been as good for gut stringed guitars. But when steel strings started being substituted for gut strings, near the end of the 19th century, the X-bracing proved the better design. Example of a 19th century martin. [...]
I have an 1869 Martin model 21 I picked up in Oklahoma years ago. I might be interested in selling it.
Does anyone have any idea what it might be worth? It is very playable. All the details same as the pictures on this site.
Hello,
We have a beautiful Martin that looks like the one shown in the pictures. I believe ours is a model 2-27 however. The ring around the soundhole is much more elaborate than the one shown here. It really is in excellent condition and sounds beautiful (although we don’t play it). Anyone interested in it?
I am interested in your 2-27. Do you have pics?