Guitar Hero- a collection of guitars, other instruments and rhymes

musashi

Site Moderator
Staff member
I am sure that many of you have played an instrument at some time in your life, and maybe you are a lifer. So, I thought I'd start a thread providing an outlet to talk about instruments, your experience with them, pictures of your instruments and even songs you have played or written. People acquire instruments for different reasons. And sometimes a deal comes your way that can't be passed up. Besides the undeniable joy that playing an instrument brings, guitars in particular have become good investments too. Like art, accumulating guitars can escalate into thousands of dollars.
Though I expect most of the conversation may be about stringed instruments, talk about any instrument you want to. Pictures would be helpful for context. What caused you to pick up an instrument? What kind of music do you primarily play? Are you a song writer? What songs have you played and why do you like them? Hell, post your amateur performance if you like. If you are a professional, please post your stuff on the butta radio thread.
So, hopefully this thread can offer a place to show pictures of instruments and talk about them. Let's see what you've got or what you are lusting for.

🤙mu
 
Here's a limited, special edition Larrivee P-09 Brazilian. Made in 2005, I picked it up in 2006. A parlor in very dark straight grain Brazilian back and sides, one of the first to come off the rack. Long before stump wood, the wood is very old, almost black from oxidation, coming from Jean's limited stash. Silver on the Brazilian-faced headstock and on the ebony fretboard. Abalone on the headstock, soundhole, bridgepins. Ivoroid binding on a mahogany neck and curly maple purfling. Tortoise pickguard on a beautiful piece of close-grained silked, sitka top.

larrivee p09 ft.jpg

larrivee p09 bk.jpg

larrivee p09 top.jpg

larrivee p09 bk close.jpg


🤙mu
 
Here's a limited, special edition Larrivee P-09 Brazilian. Made in 2005, I picked it up in 2006. A parlor in very dark straight grain Brazilian back and sides, one of the first to come off the rack. Long before stump wood, the wood is very old, almost black from oxidation, coming from Jean's limited stash. Silver on the Brazilian-faced headstock and on the ebony fretboard. Abalone on the headstock, soundhole, bridgepins. Ivoroid binding on a mahogany neck and curly maple purfling. Tortoise pickguard on a beautiful piece of close-grained silked, sitka top.

View attachment 55285

View attachment 55287

View attachment 55283

View attachment 55288


🤙mu
Quality!!
 
Collings guitars RIP Bill-


A friend of mine-
"With over two decades of experience, we have cut, processed, and shipped thousands of sets of Adirondack, both to individual luthiers and as a major supplier to companies such as CF Martin, Taylor, Gibson, Guild, Collings, Bedell, Santa Cruz, and Eastman. We only harvest and market true red spruce from pure stands in mixed hardwood forest growth. Much of our spruce comes from the Adirondack region harvested from high elevation, old growth trees."

John of Old Standard provided side and back wood too. He withheld the top master grade woods for himself and later offered them up to a select clientele. They chose the wood, adornments and selected the luthier who then built the guitar to John and customer specifications. Custom guitars are not cheap but as an inflation hedge, have been excellent investments.


🤙mu
 
Well, you'll never see one like this.
Note the perfect bookmatch of the wood (and the fact I had them leave off the problem prone center inlay).
It was my request to have the wood angled like it is and they nailed it at the custom shop in the layup and matching.
Sorry for the ceiling light glare, she's shiny so it's tough not to get it.
back.jpg
 
Yup but I have schallers to put on but the small screw hole doesn't line up perfectly.
Imma shopping for something better....the gotohs were the only gold ones Martin had in stock when they built it and they have a slightly offset small screw hole.
Sux huh ?
The Gotohs are not bad, I just want better.
 
Yea StewMac has them all in stock.
If I get around to mic'ing everything this time before ordering things might go better.
I have a digital mitutoyo so it'll be ok....I just have to tear one off the guitar to measure it up.
 
Yeah, the Stephen Stills model. The first guitar purchase was a rosewood Takemine. I later traded it in for a Guild D50. This was late 70’s. A friend inherited a pre-war Martin D18 that he lent me for several months. My other friend bot a Guild D40 and later got it ripped off. Many of us hung out at the local coffee shop which was a place where everyone jammed. We all knew licks from CSNnY, Dead, Eagles, and we played Traditional- old timey stuff in addition to blue grass. The first song I learned to play well was Shady Grove. I was so jazzed when I learned hammers and pull offs.
Ha @crazyhorse73, we had a guy in the group that played a cheap beat up Harmony back then, used to shame the hell out of us playin Robert Johnson and Howlin Wolf songs as we struggled playing G, C, D based songs. Ain’t the axe that plays, it’s the player. Always loved Jackson Browne- he was a tone monster!

🤙mu
 
That looks like a D28 standard with the open tuners and pyramid at the base of the headstock, I don't recall D45s being like that but I could be wrong.
Note the inlay strip down the center of the back....right at the base of the neck that small white triangle shaped overlay ?
Every old Martin I've seen separates there over time and that's why I omitted it on mine.

You mean a Harmony like this old 1962 Archtone of mine ?
I reset the neck and did some tweaks, it's a fantastic blues guitar, just not very loud in comparison to a dreadnaught.
harmony.JPG
 
Last edited:
That looks like a D28 standard with the open tuners and pyramid at the base of the headstock, I don't recall D45s being like that but I could be wrong.
Note the inlay strip down the center of the back....right at the base of the neck that small white triangle shaped overlay ?
Every old Martin I've seen separates there over time and that's why I omitted it on mine.

You mean a Harmony like this old 1962 Archtone of mine ?
I reset the neck and did some tweaks, it's a fantastic blues guitar, just not very loud in comparison to a dreadnaught.
View attachment 55312
That has a very Howlin Wolf, Hubert Sumlin feel to it. Nice mate. Absolute classic!! Now I'm getting jealous!!
Unfortunately on the Martin webpage when you hover over the picture it turns to a picture of the back of the guitar.
Pretty sure I was hovering over the D-45. You can check anyway. I love all guitars, not fussy, there is good in everyone.
 
That old Harmony is fun as hell to play.
It's got a very straight neck and very low action and I run it with extra light strings because I don't trust that old sucker to put up with much string tension.
So...it has this really twangy blues sound that's great for slapping or popping the strings on and it'll let you bend so far it's unreal.
I suck with a slide but I bet it'd be perfect with someone that can really work one.
Oh, someone gave it to me with a neck that was broken in half and broken away from the body and bet me $50 I couldn't fix it.
So, I basically got $50 to take it the way I see it.
 
Here's a Martin I picked up years ago. No one in my circle knew anything about it. We all thought we knew our s*t about pre-war Martins but we could not find similar models from the 1930's. It did not have the Martin logo printed on the front of the headstock, it was stamped CF Martin on the back of the headstock. It did not have a serial number on the block, it just said CF Martin New York. On the back brace, it said the same thing. Classic pyramid style bridge. The carve out on the headstock wasn't rounded but cut straight. It had ivory pegs. Martin orig. made these guitars in NY, before they moved to Nazareth, Pennsylvania. Thought it was an aught series, come to find out, it is probably an 1880's style/size 1 in brazilian and adi. I am in the process of getting an appraisal thru Gruhn in Nashville to determine value. It does need a neck reset which is about $500 from Martin. I think the frets are okay but if they need to be replaced that will be another $1000. It has such an awesome piece of brazilian on it but the adi top does have a slight crack that might need repair. For being over 100 years old, it is in remarkable shape. A testament to fine craftsmanship. I found a link to the old coffin cases used to store these guitars in. That was where the information on the guitar would have been found. Unfortunately the case did not come with the guitar. http://www.vintagemartin.com/coffincases.html

martin 1 ft.jpg
martin 1 top.jpg
martin 1 side.jpg
martin 1 back.jpg
martin 1 neck.jpg
martin 1 head.jpg
martin 1 sideneck.jpg
Martin93_2.517_78.jpg
Martin93_2.517_75.jpg

🤙mu
 
Last edited:
Take a pic of this area even if it doesn't show anything and post it.
BTW...
Unhappy with the overcrowded living conditions in New York, Martin and his wife decided to move to Pennsylvania, where they purchased eight acres of land near Nazareth in 1839.
That means it's from 1833-1839 since it's tagged New York.
Send Martin those pics, they will guaranteed want to buy it themselves and will pull out some very deep pockets.
serial.jpg
 
Last edited:
Here is the back of a Martin D-45 Peacock to commemorate serial #750,000. 22 karat gold and thousands of inlay pieces. Workmanship is amazing, priced at the time $350,000, it is not for sale as it is part of Martin's permanent collection on display at the factory museum.

d45 peacock.jpg

🤙mu
 
I'm not Mark Twain but if would provide a more comfortable retirement, let's go! I'm guessing it's probably worth under 5k but Gruhn will let me know in a few weeks. It's nice to dream though ;)

🤙mu
 
Most of the early Nazareth Martins had a black painted neck of which yours is not.
Seriously, send the pics straight to martin and I bet they get right back to you.
BTW it's a size 2 ½-17 series
Another thing is to get one of those dental mirrors and look up under the top....month and year are marked there.
 
Last edited:
I thought it a 2 but those measure 18" body, 12"" lower bout. This measure 18.75 body, 12.75" lower bout. Martin thinks it is a size 1. I'll get the skinny soon.

🤙mu
 
Back
Top