Post by CTGull on Dec 22, 2020 10:53:04 GMT -5
His Story – This is one of three 0000 size Martin guitars he’s had. The others being a MC-28 (sold) and his favorite MC-37K, a cutaway body with an oval soundhole and Koa back and sides. The key feature though is the neck profile, which is the old Martin neck before they had different (and thinner) neck profiles to choose from – it’s a thick full neck. Not everybody likes them, but he does.
Martin 0000’s sound a bit less bassy, a bit better balanced than the Martin Dreadnaughts, without much sacrifice in volume, and plenty of headroom. So they’re great fingerpickers. But they’re also a lot more comfortable to play, especially sitting down, and he’s got 4 tears in his right shoulder, and doubtless less than perfect posture when playing, so his days with dreads might be numbered.
In any case, the action is 1/64” over Martin spec (bluegrassers would love it), very little saddle left, and the binding has come loose at the waist in a couple of spots (not unusual) and the guitar is a little dry. It’s a gorgeous guitar, and one he would keep, but the neck is a Low Profile, and he prefers the older thicker neck. But it needs a little love first. So it’s off to CTGull for a neck reset and a little work on the bindings.
A little history on the M/0000 series – David Bromberg’s was the first M, an old Martin F-7 archtop converted to a flat top and changing to a long scale neck - done at Umanov’s in NYC in the 60s. So good that Martin started making them, and the M-38 was the first model. It is the same size top as the Martin J (their jumbo which is smaller than Gibson’s), but has the thinner 000/OM body depth. M/0000 players include Tom Paxton, Arlo Guthrie, Steve Goodman, Steve Howe, Jorma Kaukonen.
My Observations – He brought it to my house in an unusual Martin case, with twist locks. It sounds very similar to my 1972 Yamaha FG-140 with a little less volume and doesn’t have the typical muddy bass of a dread. I definitely like the body shape, the way the tighter waist sits securely on your leg vs. a dreadnaught. Even though the lower bout is about the same size as a dread, it doesn’t feel like it because of the thinner depth. The neck projects 1/8” below the top of the bridge. The action is 7/64” low E & 3/32” high E. The saddle sticks out .06”. The binding is loose on the front upper waist and the rear lower waist. The guitar is slightly under humidified, there’s some “corrugation” in the finish, the belly behind the bridge is 1/16", and there is a 1/32" dip between the bridge & the edge of the body. I made (2) soapbox humidifiers and put them in the headstock area of the case. It’ll stay in there for a week and check the measurements again.
Not much to say here!!
You can see the rippling in the finish from a lack of humidity.
Even more in this corner.
The top is very slightly sunken.
Low saddle.
Some divots in the frets.
Fancy!
WOW!!!
More WOW!!!
The volute you only get on the higher end Martin's.
Bear claw.
Silking. This top has it all!!
The M-38 to the left of it's poorer 20 year older brother, the 1972 Yamaha FG-140.
I'm kind of surprised to see the strings so deep in a Martin nut unless it has been done in the last 38 years.
The strings are a little high.
Loose binding on the upper front waist.
Side view.
Loose binding on the back lower waist.
Side view.
Martin 0000’s sound a bit less bassy, a bit better balanced than the Martin Dreadnaughts, without much sacrifice in volume, and plenty of headroom. So they’re great fingerpickers. But they’re also a lot more comfortable to play, especially sitting down, and he’s got 4 tears in his right shoulder, and doubtless less than perfect posture when playing, so his days with dreads might be numbered.
In any case, the action is 1/64” over Martin spec (bluegrassers would love it), very little saddle left, and the binding has come loose at the waist in a couple of spots (not unusual) and the guitar is a little dry. It’s a gorgeous guitar, and one he would keep, but the neck is a Low Profile, and he prefers the older thicker neck. But it needs a little love first. So it’s off to CTGull for a neck reset and a little work on the bindings.
A little history on the M/0000 series – David Bromberg’s was the first M, an old Martin F-7 archtop converted to a flat top and changing to a long scale neck - done at Umanov’s in NYC in the 60s. So good that Martin started making them, and the M-38 was the first model. It is the same size top as the Martin J (their jumbo which is smaller than Gibson’s), but has the thinner 000/OM body depth. M/0000 players include Tom Paxton, Arlo Guthrie, Steve Goodman, Steve Howe, Jorma Kaukonen.
My Observations – He brought it to my house in an unusual Martin case, with twist locks. It sounds very similar to my 1972 Yamaha FG-140 with a little less volume and doesn’t have the typical muddy bass of a dread. I definitely like the body shape, the way the tighter waist sits securely on your leg vs. a dreadnaught. Even though the lower bout is about the same size as a dread, it doesn’t feel like it because of the thinner depth. The neck projects 1/8” below the top of the bridge. The action is 7/64” low E & 3/32” high E. The saddle sticks out .06”. The binding is loose on the front upper waist and the rear lower waist. The guitar is slightly under humidified, there’s some “corrugation” in the finish, the belly behind the bridge is 1/16", and there is a 1/32" dip between the bridge & the edge of the body. I made (2) soapbox humidifiers and put them in the headstock area of the case. It’ll stay in there for a week and check the measurements again.
Not much to say here!!
You can see the rippling in the finish from a lack of humidity.
Even more in this corner.
The top is very slightly sunken.
Low saddle.
Some divots in the frets.
Fancy!
WOW!!!
More WOW!!!
The volute you only get on the higher end Martin's.
Bear claw.
Silking. This top has it all!!
The M-38 to the left of it's poorer 20 year older brother, the 1972 Yamaha FG-140.
I'm kind of surprised to see the strings so deep in a Martin nut unless it has been done in the last 38 years.
The strings are a little high.
Loose binding on the upper front waist.
Side view.
Loose binding on the back lower waist.
Side view.
