1940 Martin D-18

Certain guitars have long been the standard by which all others are judged; the Pre-war Martin D-18 is always one of them. This mid-1940 example represents a beautifully played-in original 14-fret mahogany Dreadnought that has seen endless imitations but very few peers since its birth. While the guitar shows quite a bit of playwear it remains in excellent playing condition and offers the expected fantastic sound one expects. The power and depth of a Dreadnought combines with the sweetness, sparkle, and singing character of the best pre-WWII mahogany Martins in a magical mix, making this an exceptionally versatile flat-top guitar suited to practically any musical situation. This D-18 shows the classic pre-war features of the model, introduced in this form in late 1934 and widely imitated ever since.

The top is made of tight-grained Adirondack spruce, its Honduras mahogany back & sides have aged nicely, bound on the edge with celluloid. The the ebony belly bridge is perfect. The pickguard is made of tortoise celluloid in a small “teardrop” shape, it’s a design that often proved too small to fully protect the top from the ravages of enthusiastic picking. The neck was replaced 2-3 decades ago w/a mahogany classical neck w/its original unbound ebony fingerboard discreetly inlaid with small mixed-size pearl dots. The original tuners are open back individual Grover units with metal buttons. This D-18 serial # 74116 was stamped on January 9, 1940 and cleared final inspection on May 21st that year. This guitar has a celluloid headstock veneer that appears to have been used on only one batch of D-18s. The tuners are period factory installed Grover G-98 pointed plate tuners. We have sent this beautiful 1940 D-18 back to the factory in Nazereth Pa. to have Martin put a brand new vintage type neck on it & using its original ebony dot inlaid fingerboard, open back Grover tuners & its ultra rare Tortoise Headstock overlay. This was just verified by Martin Guru, “Greig Hutton”, who also told us that the booking ledger states a D-18 was ordered by William C. Brehm in Los Angeles on August 22, 1941. What make this so special is its just 1 of 4 known ever from 1940 w/a factory tortoise headstock overlay as used occasionally on their 0-15 & 0-17’s from 1940 to give them a richer appearance. It also sports its original matching tortoise bindings on both sides of its body (all D-18’s had simple black binding all over). It’ll be ready sometime this year.

In 1940 the price of a new D-18 was $65 (without case), a sizable expense for many Americans at the time. They sold decently by contemporary standards, with 377 shipped that year. By the 1950s Martin was building two or three times that amount every year; pre-war examples were far scarcer even then. Today at 85 years young, finding a 1940 example even as well preserved as this one is a fairly rare occurrence. In the minds of most acoustic guitar players, collectors, and historians, very few instruments approach the pre-war Martin Dreadnought in terms of sound and historical importance. Compared to all that’s come down the pike since, this is still one of the finest performing or recording guitars imaginable. While the rosewood D-28 is optimized for power and bass response, the D-18 is often a more versatile instrument combining the mellow depth of the Dreadnought with a crisp, slightly dry mahogany ring. This is a truly great early pre-war example, well played over the decades but also well-cared for and ready for many more years of enjoyment.