1978 Martin D-28 Dreadnought Guitar

June 02, 2019

1978 Martin D-28 Dreadnought Guitar

Update 7/27/19: I've just shaved the braces (tonebars and x below the bridge) to more of a '50s-weight, tapered style. This has given the guitar more volume, punch, sauciness, and has revoiced it to favor a lower-mids oomf. It really punches-out and sounds more mid-'50s in flavor. I've updated the video clip so you can hear it.

The D-28! Iconic! And this one has a silky-looking top, too... and just the right amount of wear and tear to be lovable. Compared with the usual '70s Martin voice (mids, mids, mids, and pushy highs), this one has a bit more sweetness and directness to the voice that will have Gibson players giving a second look at it. It's plain-spoken and relaxed.

A customer sent this in for trade or consignment, and when I popped it out of the case I was pleased to see that it was in good health and the action was spot-on. Work had been done to fix a damaged/cracked area on the upper-bout top/side, though that blends nicely with the look of the guitar.

Work included: a fret level/dress, mild cleaning, light shave of the lower-bout braces, and setup with 54w-12 gauges. The neck's straight and it plays with bang-on 3/32" EA and 1/16" DGBE action at the 12th fret. While the tone of this guitar is great as-is, players looking for more bass/lower-mids might consider a shave of the lower-bout braces, which I'd do on the house if desired.

Scale length: 25 3/8"

Nut width: 1 11/16"

String spacing at nut: 1 7/16"

String spacing at bridge: 2 1/8"

Body length: 19 7/8"

Lower bout width: 15 1/2"

Upper bout width: 11 3/8"

Side depth at endpin: 4 15/16"

Top wood: solid spruce

Back/sides wood: solid Indian rosewood

Bracing type: x-braced

Fretboard: ebony

Bridge: ebony

Neck feel: slim-to-medium C-shape, ~14-16" radius board

Condition notes: I think it has a tiny bit of overspray on the top to hide some playwear here and there, but it's not banzai! The pickguard is a replacement but it looks like good-quality Tortoloid or Tortis example. The saddle is also replacement and the saddle slot looks like it was enlarged a little. The tuners are the right age for the guitar but I'm not sure if they're original to it. The upper-bout cluster of repairs includes some finish damage and repairs to several small cracks. It's a non-issue. The bridge pins are also replacements and the endpin area has an old pickup jack/strap button but it's not connected to anything. There's a small bridge plate maple cap installed, too, just in the pinhole area.