C. F. Martin & Co. (Martin Guitar) announces the release of seven special edition models: DSS Hops and Barley, CS-SC-2022, Custom Major Kealakai, D-Robert Goetzl 2, D-Robert Goetzl 5, D-42 Special, D-17 Squadron. Each instrument is a testament to Martin’s artistry and craftsmanship.
About the Models:
DSS Hops and Barley
This limited-edition instrument is sure to become a collector’s dream guitar. It pays homage to the special grains made famous for their use in beer making. The instrument is crafted with highly flamed walnut back and sides, which produces a balanced sound that mellows to a warm tone over time. The top is made with sinker redwood and is complemented with a Guatemalan rosewood headplate and pickguard. The headstock, fingerboard, rosette, pickguard, and bridge are adorned with a combination of abalone, mother-of-pearl, and wood inlay, which depict hops and barley in various forms. The instrument combines some Authentic build features like a dovetail neck joint, hide glue construction, and a 1931 old-style logo. It also includes modern features like Liquidmetal® bridge pins and a comfortable high-performance taper neck. This model is limited to 100 instruments and includes a paper label signed by C. F. Martin IV. List price: $12,999.
CS-SC-2022
The Custom Shop SC-2022 is packed with custom features, and it’s the first Nazareth-made instrument with the revolutionary SC body style. It includes East Indian rosewood back and sides for a bigger and bassier sound than its predecessors, and it has a VINTAGE TONE SYSTEM® (VTS) top to give it that coveted aged Martin tone. It includes Liquidmetal® bridge pins, which add volume and style, and it comes with Fishman® Aura® VT Blend electronics. The look is further enhanced with European flamed maple binding around the top and the fingerboard and gold open-gear tuners. The CS-SC-2022, with its patented Sure Align® neck system, gives you full access to all frets so you can comfortably reach those high notes. It’s also equipped with a low-profile velocity neck barrel that ergonomically accommodates your hand as you move up the neck, giving you the comfort and playability of an electric. Another patented feature is the internal soundboard recurve to add more bass response. This model is limited to 300 instruments. List price: $7,999.
Custom Major Kealakai
Major Kealakai was a guitar, trombone, and flute player trained by the Royal Hawaiian Band and was inducted into the Hawaiian Music Hall of Fame in 1996. in 1916, Martin made the Major a unique custom guitar that was wider, deeper, and longer than a 000. Designed to be louder to help fill concert halls, this historic guitar was the precursor to the Dreadnought. Martin honors Major Kealakai with this limited-edition 12-fret custom instrument. It features a vintage gloss finished sinker mahogany back and sides that are complemented with Madagascar rosewood binding and a vintage gloss-finished Adirondack spruce VINTAGE TONE SYSTEM® (VTS) top. It also includes a dovetail neck joint, hide glue construction, an authentic 1931 neck shape and 1931 X-bracing, and a slotted headstock with Golden Age relic nickel side-mount tuners. This limited-edition gem comes with a quality hardshell case. List price: $7,999.
D-Robert Goetzl 2 (Eagle) and D-Robert Goetzl 5 (White Tiger)
These two custom one-of-a-kind art guitars were created to honor treasured species from the animal kingdom and feature original artwork by artist Robert Goetzl hand-painted on the soundboard. One model features an American Eagle, and the other features a White Tiger. The D-Robert Goetzl models feature full-gloss-finished East Indian rosewood back and sides with a Sitka spruce top and forward-shifted scalloped X-bracing for a full and balanced sound. They also include an ebony fingerboard and bridge and a stylized script logo on the headstock. Each model includes a paper label signed by the artist. List price: $12,499.
D-42 Special
In conjunction with former Martin employee Dick Boak, Martin Guitar is proud to introduce a stunning high-end Dreadnought model: the D-42 Special. The idea for this model began nearly 25 years ago when Martin installed its first laser engraving machine, and Boak began experimenting with various ways to utilize it. Boak created an intricate pen and ink illustration of a complex floral design that was meant to be laser engraved into a tortoise pickguard, but the material proved unable to be safely engraved. Fast-forward 23 years, Boak came across his original illustration and thought it would make a beautiful piece if inlaid with pearl. He was right! Working with Bill Seymour and Jeremy Chism at Pearlworks, the trio modified the artwork to allow for the detailed pearl inlay work.
The model also features premium-grade East Indian rosewood back and sides, with the highest grade of Sitka spruce selected for the soundboard. Scalloped forward-shifted X-bracing ensures the open projection for which Martin guitars are prized. Additional vintage-inspired appointments include antique white bindings; abalone inlay along the perimeter of the top, fingerboard extension, and rosette; a full gloss finish with top aging toner; and nickel open-gear tuning machines with butterbean knobs. This model is limited to 100 instruments. List price: $12,199.
D-17 Squadron
The artwork, with its unmistakable toothy grin, was executed by Robert F. Goetzl and inspired by the WWII squadron planes that were painted and made famous by the legendary American Volunteer Group, the Flying Tigers. The body shape and style are built on the foundation of a D-17, and the artwork is digitally applied on the Sitka spruce top. This guitar is sure to turn heads wherever you go. List price: $1,999.
