Where does Martin guitars get their mahogany?

We were excited to learn that Martin had obtained a small quantity of mahogany from trees that had been cut in virgin forests in Belize in Central America between 1880 and 1920. The Central American mahogany is the species used by Martin on the pre-World War II golden era instruments.

Where does Martin guitars get their wood?

The wood is quite valuable but the paper pulp industry buys and harvests Sitka spruce in the Pacific Northwest and sometimes they harvest trees that have no business being made into pulp.

What wood do Martin guitars use?

The most common top tonewood is Spruce. Martin uses a variety of different types of Spruce including Sitka, Engelmann, Adirondack, Red and Italian Alpine, each with their own distinct tonal characteristics.

Where does Gibson get its mahogany?

Gibson has set up a global commodity chain that supplies them with 'sustainably certified' mahogany by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) grown in Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and Fiji.

Where are Martin guitars manufactured?

Martin guitars are made in Nazareth, Pennsylvania with the exception of the X Series, Backpacker Series, Road Series, Dreadnought Junior, PA5 models, and select ukuleles which are made in our plant in Mexico.

The basics of Tone Woods

Are any Martin Guitars made in China?

Low-End Martin guitars are made in Navojoa, Mexico. Martin guitars are not made in China and never have been.

What mahogany does Martin use?

The Central American mahogany is the species used by Martin on the pre-World War II golden era instruments. This wood is of the same genus, but a different species than the South American mahogany most commonly used today.

What wood is the Les Paul made out of?

Its typical design features a solid mahogany body with a carved maple top and a single cutaway, a mahogany set-in neck with a rosewood fretboard, two pickups with independent volume and tone controls, and a stoptail bridge, although variants exist.

Why are Martin guitars so hard to play?

The problem is that every Martin I've played has been orders of magnitude more difficult to play than the comparable Taylors. The person at the music shop says that it's because Martin ships their guitars with high action and heavy strings opposed to Taylor who ships them with lower action and lighter strings.

Which Martins are made in Mexico?

All Backpackers, S0 ukes and little Martins (LXM, LX-1 etc.) are made in Mexico. Most of the full-size X series guitars are also made there and they expect all X-series production to be in Mexico by the end of the year. All of Martin's strings are made in Mexico.

What does D stand for in Martin guitars?

In the example above, it's a “D” which stands for Dreadnought and that indicates the size and shape of the guitar All of our prefixes, in order from smallest to largest, are: LX = Little Martin. DJr = Dreadnought Junior. 0 = Concert. 00 = Grand Concert.

When did Martin stop using Brazilian rosewood?

Supplies grew extremely thin in the late 1960s, however, and Martin and others stopped using Brazilian rosewood in 1969, moving over to Indian rosewood, then other varieties. In 1992, Brazilian rosewood was added to the CITES treaty, strictly banning its exportation.

When did Martin start using Sitka?

Nice guitars! I suppose we should point out once more, that Martin did experiment with Sitka in 1919, as John and Willi have confirmed in the past.

Does Martin make guitars with Brazilian rosewood?

6-String Acoustic Guitar with Ebony Fingerboard. Made in the USA.

What wood is a telecaster made of?

Overall design. The archetypical Fender Telecaster is a solid-body electric guitar with a flat asymmetric single-cutaway body; the body is usually made from alder or ash.

What kind of wood does Epiphone use?

Typically, Epiphone uses a very thin maple veneer, which is common for many companies when using a figured or flamed maple; however, Epiphone still uses a thin maple veneer when using plain maple tops too. Both Gibson and Epiphone use several pieces of wood glued together to form the body of their guitars.

Is nyatoh mahogany?

Nyatoh is sometimes referred to as “eastern mahogany,” though it's not true mahogany (from the genus Swietenia). Nyatoh is often sold as “nato,” though it's not true nato wood (from the genus Mora).

How old is sinker mahogany?

Some of the recovered trees are over 400 years old! Using this wood is very sustainable, because you do not have to cut down growing trees.

What is Sapele wood for guitars?

Sapele is a hardwood tonewood with fine grain. It offers a warm tone with sustaining lower-mids and pronounced high-end. Sapele is popular in the sides/backs of acoustic and hollowbody electric guitars but doesn't see much use in solid bodies, fretboards or necks.

What type of wood is Siris?

Siris: Martin DRSG

It's an Indian tonewood (that's also known as 'East Indian walnut') and is marginally lighter and more dense than its rosewood brethren.

How can you tell if a Martin guitar is real?

Martin guitars have rounded off corners with the bridge saddle fitting tight, a counterfeit model will have sharp edges which have been crudely cut. The bridge plate of an authentic Martin has a solid piece of wood right underneath the bridge.

Are Martin guitars worth it?

Martin makes wonderful acoustic guitars, and they are definitely an investment. They are a bit on the expensive end of the price range, but it is said that with age Martin guitars sound better and better.