| Title: | GUITARnotes - Where Every Note has Emotion |
| Notice: | Discussion of the finer stringed instruments |
| Moderator: | KDX200::COOPER |
| Created: | Thu Aug 14 1986 |
| Last Modified: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Last Successful Update: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Number of topics: | 3280 |
| Total number of notes: | 61432 |
I ran into a guy who owned a Herringbone D28, 1945 vintage, sunburst,
with D45 logo on the head.
The guitar has two splits in the back, not wide, but there.
The asking price when it was on the wall in a London music shop was
7500 pounds (say $12000).
I saw the guitar again this weekend, in the hands of another dealer at
5500 pounds ($8,800).
The original owner traded it to the original dealer for a Santa Cruz
Tony Rice model AND a D-18.
I reckon he got a good deal.
All the D28 had going for it was its rarity I reckon.
Unfortunately I did not get to play it, but if I see it again I will.
The second dealer reckoned that the splits in the back were not serious
but I think this is a lot of baloney. If they didn't matter, the
manufacturers would use any old wood - but they don't, so that must
mean something (!?)
And I know that if I play my HD28 when I am sitting down and hold it
away from my body so the back is free to vibrate, the difference is
dramatic from when I "hug" it.
andy
| T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2893.1 | LEDS::BURATI | hubba hubba | Mon Feb 21 1994 13:54 | 3 | |
FWIW, I remeber reading once about a blind listening test that concluded
that generally speaking cracks in a grand piano's sound board did not
significantly change the sound of the instrument.
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| 2893.2 | E::EVANS | Mon Feb 21 1994 14:37 | 18 | ||
> I ran into a guy who owned a Herringbone D28, 1945 vintage, sunburst,
> with D45 logo on the head.
>
> The guitar has two splits in the back, not wide, but there.
Hmmm.... There are several things here that would make me pause. First, I'd
check on the date when they switched from herringbone to plastic - it probably
was in 1945. However, Martin switched to ebony for neck reinforcement during
the late war years and this may be one of those instruments. As for sunburst,
I never cared for this on a Martin (better on an electric or a Gibson). I
have never heard of a D45 treatment on the headstock on a D28 - this sounds
very unusual. Finally, splits in the back means repair work is needed which
means money. This sounds like one of those instruments that bring big money
based on the name and the period of manufacture, but may not be worth the
asking price ($8800 in this case).
Jim
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| 2893.3 | CHEFS::IMMSA | adrift on the sea of heartbreak | Tue Feb 22 1994 08:33 | 9 | |
My point exactly.
I think the dealer went out on a limb.....
Rather him than me and to be frank, having seen both the Santa Cruz and
the D28 (but not the D18 which I assume was a standard model), I know
which two I would rather have!!
andy
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| 2893.4 | Some Info | DV1994::malkoski | Fri Feb 25 1994 12:07 | 16 | |
Check the serial # and be sure it was a 1945. Martin stopped making herringbone D-28's in 1946. Any of these guitars CAN be worth a lot. The cracks in the back may not be all that serious. If repaired properly - and if the guitar is original and has NOT been refinished - it could be worth much more than $8,800. Martin made about 1,100 D-28 herrinbones between 1934 and 1946. Sunburst examples are quite rare. An example in excellent condition can fetch $22,000+. Condition is everything. Even refinished, which is the reall no-no, these guitars are hignly prized, not just because they tend to make good bluegrass guitars (they tend to be real boomers which make them really hard to mic) but because there is a certain aura about them. I have a 1939 and had a 1941. I also own a 1971 D-28 and a 1991 Santa Cruz Tony Rice Brazilian. I actually prefer the Santa Cruz to them all. But some of my friends wouldn't trade their D-28 herringbones for anything. It's a matter of taste. Paul | |||||