During my recent Martin factory tour I was offered my choice of 14 select pre-built Martin Custom Shop guitars, including this Martin 0014F.
Here’s a Martin Custom Shop D-21, built during 2016 that features a spectacular body set of Goncalo Alves or Tigerwood, a South American hardwood found between Mexico and Brazil.
This Gibson LG-2 produced just after World War Two ended. Because there’s no serial number or any production numbers, we’re dating it by features. The LG-2 was introduced in 1942, with a Firestripe pickguard (changed to faux tortoise in 1943) and a Banner logo – the famous “Only a Gibson is Good Enough” banner. This banner was discontinued shortly after at the end of the war, in 1946, but the Script ‘Gibson’ logo was maintained until 1948. So, this example dates to 1946 or possibly 1947.
Like a Southern Jumbo, the Gibson Northern Jumbo features a slope-shouldered dreadnought body, with a Sitka Spruce top and Mahogany for the back, sides and neck. The fingerboard and bridge are Rosewood, with Mother of Pearl used for the inlays. A Firestripe type pickguard was stock. The top has a sunburst finish, on some promotional materials referred to as ‘Maple BUrst’, and the body has a dark tint. The rear of the headstock carries a decal of a Maple Leaf and ‘Limited Edition’ below. The truss rod cover is engraved ‘NORTHERN JUMBO’. As typical of Gibson acoustics of the period, an L R Baggs pickup system is discreetly installed, and the tuners are Grover Roto-Matics with nickel finish.
Here, we have a Bourgeois Aged Tone (AT) Mahogany D, built during 2013 at the Lewiston, Maine shop pairing an Adirondack Spruce top with tropical Mahogany for the back, sides and neck, with Ebony for the bridge and unbound fingerboard. The head plate is Indian Rosewood and carries a Bourgeois logo in Mother of Pearl, and the tail wedge is Ziricote. Waverly open gear tuning machines are the only metal parts. Fossilized mammoth ivory is used for the nut and saddle. Hot Hide Glue is used in the construction, which contributes to the ‘Vintage’ tone and also makes certain repairs much easier.
The Douglas Harrison GB model has become a standard single cutaway, carved top chambered body thinline guitar intended for jazz guitarists. This model was designed in collaboration with the late Toronto jazz player Gary Benson to meet the needs of a working player.
