My 170 Year-Old Martin Guitar

Dean Metcalf talks about his vintage Martin acoustic guitar that was built in the late 1850s.
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Martin acoustic guitar
Vintage Guitar

[@otisgibbs]

Here's another cool guitar from Dean's collection! kzbin.info/www/bejne/qaO6aJZpibucgZo

[@Whitman1819]

$25 in 1850 is about $1,000. today...my oh my how the greed has taken over at Martin...sure wish they cost in that ballpark today....not the 10k they are trying to charge people for a D-45 a bit disgusting. People were a bit smarter back then and Martin would have gone broke if they tried to charge $250 for that guitar back then.

[@Whitman1819]

Very nice guitar though all that aside...congrats on getting it.

[@taylor-vl1re]

I did guitar repair in So. Connecticut for a while. A customer brought me in a guitar identical to this one. It was a real thrill to hold it, play it, and think about it's history. The guitar was in very good condition.The label in the soundhole said New York .The guitar had bar frets and came in a black coffin case which was almost as cool as the guitar. I talked to CF Martin Co. Nazareth, Pa. on the phone about it. The original C.F. Martin either built it or touched it somewhere along the way. Very Cool !......

[@ComfortRoller]

I restrung two Martin's for my neighbors grandmother when I was a kid. One was a prewar dreadnaught the other looked very similar to this. She said it was civil war era. What a treat to handle even for a 12yr old. Marquis went on one and gut on the other, the bridge surprised me it wasn't a tie off style I was used to for a gut. My dad kinda freaked when I walked in the house with not one but two classic Martins, after a trip to the music shop we played for about a half hour, and I took them back to her. 1983, I was 12/13 and didnt know about model #s yet. The sad thing is these awesome guitars belonged to a X boyfriend, poor guy to lose something like them to a X. So the moral- always pack your guitar when you leave your gals place, you just never know.

[@waynemiracle8928]

I absolutely LOVE these instrument videos. They are definitely my favorites!

[@leelane9929]

I have a 1950, 000-21 which I bought from a friend with neck separated from body for 180 bucks. Had a guitar builder put on the neck. It's my favorite Martin.

[@Greencheez-y]

I LOVE little parlor guitars. This is legitimately my dream guitar

[@explorn66]

Wow! Thanks for another great video. Love to hear about the history of guitars. Makes for good conversation with other music fans. Excellent stuff!

[@Squidward_Tikiland]

Old acoustics have built in reverb. Some time around age 50, a guitar is touched by the lord and given built in reverb.

[@miko3895]

My old martin was found in a trash can. It was a big body. Had a great sound for around a hundred years old. This was back in the 70s. My husband crushed it with his foot when he was angry at me. Still miss that guitar!

[@BotsWeekendCovers]

I hope you got a new husband and then another old Martin :)

[@richardabrams6070]

I trust you crushed your husband with YOUR foot.

[@NuanDaa]

Poor martin

[@shamslife9182]

Poor lady . Forget the guitar . We wish you love . Appreciate yourself and love and live freely

[@mikelord9860]

You were married to Loudon Wainwright III, were you?! I'm kidding, but he once threw his guitar in the fireplace in a fit of rage, after an argument. But destroying a Martin like that, he'll pay for that.

[@bartboop]

I lived in Indianapolis for 21 years. Thanks for sharing this treasure with me. I have never heard you just sit back this much. Dean is a treasure!

[@Mike583]

Dean has been on the B&T show for many years now, love his knowledge & comic genius! I'm really surprised to see him here with you,Otis! Keep On Truck'n!❤😎👍

[@otisgibbs]

Dean is an old dear friend. We've been buddies since way back in the early 90s. I'll probably give some backstory in a KZbin Member/Patreon video.

[@sayeager5559]

I was wondering if that was him. Heard him for years but have never seen him.

[@mikeoxlong1266]

Electric Amish

[@tednugentlives]

@@otisgibbs Truly lucky man. Its an enthralling history lesson and I learned a thing or two with Professor Dean, gratis.

[@chrisbrowning6102]

That's an amazing axe. First acoustic of that vintage that I've ever seen with metal strings. Very informative walk through from Dean. Good stuff.

[@clydehannah1056]

Another Great Show Mr. Gibbs! Thank you so much for the wonderful things you do

[@g2guns562]

Thank you Otis Gibbs, appreciate the guitar 🎸 lesson Never knew there was so much about old guitars Awesome friend you have thanks again love old history on about anything

[@spaert]

I get the feeling it'd be fun to know Dean. Seems like a great guy - smart and has a good personality. Great interview. Love that old Martin and the history behind it. Thanks to Dean for sharing the knowledge wealth. And to you, Otis, for putting the interview out. Nicely done.

[@Ivearted]

Thank you so much for sharing this!!!!

[@DavidLee-rx6uo]

Otis you never cease to amaze! Awesome video

[@HSet77]

Wow: that old guitar looks healthy. This reminds me of the time - in 1973 - when I was volunteering in the Folk Music Dept.of the Library of Congress .They put me into a little closet size room to work on stuff. In the corner was a very old guitar - If I remember correctly, it missing a string or two - maybe a late 19th century Martin. I was told it was former Folk dept. Director Alan Lomax's guitar. I asked about fixing it - they said not in their budget... I strummed it a bit - but I was a novice banjo player back then, not a guitar player.

[@madwheels65]

Great video. Really love experiencing old instruments. Always reminds me of the movie The Red Violin. That guitar has seen some things and it is in the hands of someone who really appreciates it. Let’s hope it lives on for another 147 years.

[@ernieb3626]

Wow Otis that is so cool. To me holding a Guitar like that is like time travel. Thankyou to you and Dean for making this video. It is wonderful. God Bless you Both and well see you on down the Line. Much love

[@MashaT22]

Id like to suggest a video on the subject of what’s illegal and legal regarding banned materials like woods, ivory, etc. in terms of buying, selling, and traveling with them (like if someone were to move or want to take it for professional gigs. This guitar should also get shown on Jeremy The Guitar Hunter’s channel. It deserves to be seen by more people! 😉

[@davidstotsenburgh4510]

cool, I live not too far from Nazareth,Pa

[@sevenmileridgeband]

Very cool. thanks for posting!!!

[@tonyindiana]

Yeah boy! It’s always nice to learn what it is I’m listening to. Starting to watch or read interviews of good players and there equipment. This hear helped a lot to. Hope to catch you out there someday Otis. Remember the first time I heard Damn me, I gotta see this fella. I’m in the Indy area and always late

[@chuckschillingvideos]

Beautiful git. Smallbody guitars like this are the (relatively) affordable way to enter the vintage guitar market. Everybody loves dreadnoughts and overlooks how great and balanced these parlor guitars are.

[@JacquesTreehorn]

My father gave a couple Martins to the Country Music Hall of Fame that belonged to Blue Sky Boys. They were stoked to get them but they have not been displayed yet as far as I know. They were prewar guitar and mandolin. Both brothers were in the war. One in the Pacific and one in Europe. After the war they were not as popular as prewar and the Blue Grass style had changed.

[@unclemark8939]

That is one beautiful guitar and lucky it has the X bracing , cause the steel strings sound so good on parlour guitars (to my ears) . The condition is amazing for its age and when you played at the beginning i could clearly hear the depth of tone this guitar has. Thanks for sharing this and have fun playing that little beauty.

[@beverlymichael5830]

I totally love Martin guitars. I still have my 1969 D18 I got as soon as I got my first full time job. I wanted a Martin since I was 10 and I can’t say how much I went to the local music store in Muncie and looked at their Martins and finally got to bring my first one home. It’s in perfect condition only thing done was new frets about 10 years ago. And now I own four Martins including a Brazilian Golden Era D28. What a sound. I really enjoyed hearing about this fine guitar. What a treasure.

[@jonathannewby5795]

Fascinating. A few years ago I visited a musical instruments auction where there was a nice late nineteenth-century guitar (not classical) with a very pronounced v-shaped neck, and nice decoration, at a low price. Should've bought it. So well done for buying the Martin.

[@jond.2868]

I can't believe you brought this to my attention. This is Amazing. Show more really old guitars and instruments. fiddle's, violin's. trumpets and whatever. That guitar is remarkable. A guitar that old, still playable and sounding very nice. Unbelievable!

[@Yrksman]

From that era I have a Martin 2-27 from 1857-67, the back strip says 1857 or later and C F Martin stamp 1867 or earlier. Great little guitar. I also have a Martin Parlor from circa 1840.

[@johnfern]

I came across an old 1917 Martin guitar at a garage sale. It was in such rough shape, buried underneath a pile of junk. I got it for a dollar, and wrote and recorded a song, "Since 1917." Nobody wanted to restore it since it was really rough. I got a few offers for the neck, but wanted to keep it intact. My nephew who is really into wood working and building guitars took it, in exchange (partly) for making me a custom guitar. I love my custom and glad I got a song out of the old Martin.

[@toddgreenwood9631]

Hi John. Great story ... but ... I went to your channel to hear the song "Since 1917" ... couldn't find the song. Please let me know if you ever load it or if it's loaded and I just messed up. Cheers. Todd

[@johnfern]

@@toddgreenwood9631 Sorry about that, If you search on youtube for "Since 1917" it will come up as a audio recording from my cd baby albums. Thanks for your interest though, and I hope to do a version for my channel soon. Hope you have a great weekend!

[@toddgreenwood9631]

@@johnfernHa. Just bugging ya. I'll see if I can find it. I did love your other stuff. Especially the originals. Good work. You have a great weekend also. Todd

[@johnfern]

@@toddgreenwood9631 Thanks so much! Checked out some vids on your channel. Loads of talent!

[@toddgreenwood9631]

@@johnfern Oooo. Nice! Thanks for taking a look.

[@mario7frankielee]

wonderful review thank you otis

[@telebender]

Damn, time to get your Marty Robbins on with that sweet, wee thing!!! Very jealous; I love 21 series Martins and this one is so cool. It's a functional piece of art, that imho, can hold its own with any of the sculptures or paintings by the great master's. Dean was way too funny and informative in this; would love to see more of him and cool guit-boxes on here. Love your instrument/amp vids, Otis! Have a great weekend.

[@micemr76]

Great video great guitar, ty for sharing

[@Josh-oj1pd]

So cool! Thanks 👍

[@ericlong9085]

Beautiful looking guitar

[@Pinstriped5120]

God I love old guitars! Thanks for posting this one! Hopefully in another 100 years someone else will be asking the question where has this old guitar been?

[@michaelkienhofer6394]

Sweet ole Martin Thanks !

[@joeurbanowski321]

Otis.. I’m not big-time into acoustics… but this old man..? Whoooaaa..!!! I believe that mojo is only accumulated through time… some powerful mojo here..!👍🏼❤️ .. and ya know.? I used to be “a little bit old..”…. But now.. I’m “really old”…! 🤣🤣🤣

[@joyceb.sachsesachse1242]

OTIS , LOVE the history .....You are the best.....

[@pnomis]

I have a Martin Wurlitzer from 1922. It is an 0-21 equivalent and looks very similar. It has a different rosette and different strip down the back and it doesn't have a volute. It is Xbraced and I string it with metal 11s. What I find amazing is that mine is 70 years later than yours but there are hardly any changes in the design.

[@stephenhenion8304]

That sound is Fantastic! Good Score!!🎵🎶🎵.... no back story from George?

[@dereksaulby8219]

Old acoustics, Martin in particular get me all sorts of excited

[@RebelTheUncanny1]

So beautiful.

[@guitarhiker4449]

Super cool old Martin! Piece of history! I almost bought a similar mid 1800's classical acoustic once but it wasn't a Martin lol. But it had that patina and the same body style etc. Shows how much i know though cause i would have just thrown nickel acoustic strings on it lol. Not a good idea! Lol.. Thanks for sharing! Rock on!

[@orestlysak9986]

That Martin articulates words ! What an instrument !

[@brendonleary]

I would really love to hear that guitar played properly. I bet there are acres of tones to be found in that little box. That rosewood.... drool. And those old solid necks are tone factories too. Dream guitar.

[@aarond23]

Dean from the Bob and Tom show :) Indy legend.

[@dainhuston]

Wow cool old guitar the stories it could tell

[@garytrew2766]

That martin reminds me of a Spanish classical guitar I had and wish I still did.

[@Richard_Lush]

I loved that! Man you could teach😄

[@mslaerik66]

love the Martin !

[@johnsears4197]

Love the guitar

[@annarmijo2730]

There are cool Otis videos and then there are very, very cool Otis videos. This would be the latter.

[@markn3936]

Hey Otis. I'm tagging along with the wife on business to Nashville. Any guitar shops, record stores and maybe one non-touristy live venue. Thanks Bub.

[@BOBBRADLEYCHANNEL]

Rumbleseat, Gruhns, Carters.

[@markn3936]

@@BOBBRADLEYCHANNEL Thank you. Gonna be a kid in a candy store.

[@rwgamelb1]

Great vid. I have an 1840-45 Model 2 very similar but has the nickel steel nut (which dates it to those years). Also has the original 'coffin' case. Incredible sound, though I only run nylon strings and really like the sound. My guitar has had some restoration work done on it, someone at one point had fitted a tailpiece and a floating bridge, so the restorer put a new ebony pyramid bridge on it. You'd be pushed to see it's not original. The rosewood was called 'Rio' rosewood at the time, I assume it was from close to Rio de Janeiro. All in all, beautiful pre-war guitars.

[@FCain-mf4tf]

Wish he would place it next to a modern guitar size for perception purposes. Like a 000 or a Dreadnought Martin.

[@Goomer]

love that

[@wildcolonialman]

Fabulous.

[@stevej.longariello3384]

That guitar was made in the old Spanish Tradition. If not for the tuners I would say that this was an old classical guitar. Thanks for sharing. Cool videos

[@peterbroderson6080]

I have a similar aged Martin 1-21 according to G Gruhn ,and use silk and steel super lights then tune down after each uses.

[@jcdpt74]

That triangular thing on the top of the neck on the back martin still uses but only on the D-28 and D-45's. None of their other guitars have it.

[@daviswall3319]

Gotta love a Martin !

[@ardenevox]

I love that Mr. Metcalf is so scrupulous about Brazilian rosewood and ivory. Really conscious. Great tour of this little pup ca 1850. Nice camera work on the neck joint and the pyramid bridge etc. "10 guitar players have 37 opinions."

[@softsouthernknight]

Yes, would love to see Martin make the 0-21 standard again.

[@vrmn11]

I have a very good friend that has a Martin from 1867. It is a 2-20. I have played it several times. It is a so very cool guitar. It belongs to one friend, and its in the care of another friend. We have dubbed it grandpa Martin

[@JKlasen]

Always tuned into anything Martin!

[@otisgibbs]

Hell yeah, Jim! : )

[@neilbeni7744]

You could say nothing in this vid and I'd still watch that guitar and be satisfied 🤣 I love old stuff and like you I can't help but wonder where it's been and how the hell did it survive...

[@williamperkins7318]

I can listen to musicians talk about their instruments all day.

[@SSJIndy]

The mention of letters under the strings reminded me about the late Dick Dale also having markings on his guitar for some reason "G E A B A" although on the pick guard.

[@groverlongwire858]

Incredible

[@paulsimmons5726]

Great Jumpin’ Galaxies!!! Whatever you do, don’t loan that guitar to Mr Tarantino for any movie scenes, LOL! Beautiful guitar and a fantastic video, Rattlesnake George always has some cool stuff “in the back!” So does Norm… Again, thanks for posting!

[@josephmckenna4289]

FYI The tech to grow genuine Ivory in a petri dish IS HERE in 2022! Has someone done it yet? I don't know. Nice video!

[@imannonymous7707]

wow, dang thats sweet

[@jeffborders8140]

Looks and sounds great for 170 years old.

[@davidstotsenburgh4510]

Another interesting tidbit about CF Martin, is by law up until the late 1840's he couldn't live in Nazereth where his factory was. He wasn't Moravian and had to leave town at nite or be arrested.

[@jackpeters9349]

Being afolk singer must pay more than I thouhght

[@mikeglasgow9618]

@@jackpeters9349 no..... you're right. Unless you make it to the top. Most pay about 100 to 150 per night. At that rate. You would need to be playing 7 nights a week.

[@Last_one_before_I_go]

Great story.

[@paulthomasmiller1842]

If that guitar could talk. Oh the stories she would tell. Thanks for sharing.

[@danielmims8467]

Beautiful guitar I bet that thing sings

[@CR33TE11]

And here I thought I had something special with my 67 year old Gibson

[@mikeglasgow9618]

Love the old Jim Stafford JOKE. " My mom used to make me practice guitar while the other kids were out playing Footbal. It all paid off in the end. I CAN KICK THIS GUITAR 60 YARDS ! "

[@bjorntannberg1581]

What a beautiful old lady!

[@willmorrison1022]

Here is a guide to how much a Martin cost when it first came out. If it has a letter followed by a number, the number is the price. SO a D 18 when it first came out was $18. This guitar in the video would have been $21. A guitar with all the inlays was a $45 guitar (as in D45). Of course, that doesn't count anymore, but that was the original denomination. Nice guitar. Keep an eye on the neck. While the top might have been braced for steel strings, the neck wasn't. Everyone I've seen with this type of guitar that put steel strings on it used silk & steels, with are even lighter than light gauge, so less tension. My Martin is a D18 that I got first hand back in 1972. She's still hanging in there, sounds great, plays like a dream, still. I have other acoustics, but she's my favorite.

[@scottfulps2065]

This is real treasure. Serious treasure.

[@louieo.blevinsmusic4197]

“We’re not worthy, we’re not worthy!” -Wayne’s World. Weird to see no pick guard on a Martin tho since nowadays they love their bluegrass players. When my father gave me his I had to lower the action a good bit as a finger picker. I agree with buddy, not a fan of the ivory (roll tide/decent human being) but it was made even before jackass Edison literally shocked an elephant to death with a crowd watching. Beautiful guitar and grateful for buddy showing it to us.

[@tjingram1207]

Sweet

[@brianhawkins3401]

The Electric Amish will live in my heart forever...

[@caseysmith544]

Oldest Gutar I have seen was one of the early pickup Resonator Guitars from 1949--1950 that needed fixing, there might be no saving that guitar from lack of care and maintenance over the years.

[@bench7434]

When quality of workmanship meet music.170 years

[@crazydave507]

That guitar is so pretty.

[@jasperjoppegeers8448]

Wow, amazed it can still handle steel strings! 😀

[@giulioluzzardi7632]

I would have to turn the "Recording" machine on and catch that guitars sound for 90mins for the future listeners and players so this instruments unique tone could be enjoyed forever.

[@phiddlephart7026]

Do you know any bands/guitarist that use really old guitars today?

[@scottkidwellmusic9175]

Wow! What a guitar, and what a piece of history. Love the story and the humor! Thank you 🙏 Makes my '68 Takamine nylon string seem a little.... new 🤣😂 Be good to you 🤍💛

[@caseysmith544]

There is a new wood coming from Brazill that is fast growing hardwood that is very very similar to Rosewood tone that is like a weed tree, similar to some native trees in the USA and that other wood is even cooler looking. Not sure if the tree is native or not and if not, I do not care if they deplete the stash due to its weed/invasive like nature.

[@thefounding5879]

Martins are great guitars! Hands down! I have a 1905 Washburn that has been X-braced and has steel strings on it. Nobody cares………. It is 117 years old and is looked at like it is pawn shop garbage. I need to make a video of it and show the world a different guitar. Martin’s are cool but not the only “old”guitar around that sound amazing!

[@stratocaster1greg]

I thought my 36 National was old. I milled a mammoth ivory nut for my ES-125 it made the shop smell like an old wet horse.

[@joebloggs8636]

Dam!!!

[@billdauphine951]

' have to ask....what's it worth ? ($)