All were double cutaway guitars with the lower treble bout offset from the upper treble bout. There were 3 versions of the guitar the E-18, the EM-18 and the EB-18. The headstock was sort of a variation of the old Stauffer Martin design with the exception the tuners were 3 per side.
In 1974 Martin went back to producing a domestic series of electric guitars designated the E series. Their sales were dismal and discontinued in the mid 1970’s. They were copies of well known electric guitar shapes with a self-styled headstock. By 1973 Martin added solidbody and hollow body electric guitars to its lineup under the Sigma and SS logo made by the Japanese company Tokai. All models were available in black or burgundy finishes.Īround 1970 Martin followed the pack and outsourced a less expensive version of its acoustic guitar under the Sigma brand. These guitars bore the Martin M trapeze tailpiece. Martin also made 12 string versions of the GT-75 sans the Bigsby. The GT-75 was similarly equipped to the G-70 however there were twin cutaways on the upper bout. The bridges were now made of chrome and adjustable. The tailpiece was a Bigsby with a large V in its base. The neck joined the guitar at the 16th fret. As with its predecessor, this model bore two DeArmond humbucking pickups. The upper bout had an inward curve into the neck. The GT-70 had a single cutaway on the lower bout. The guitars inlays had dot position markers and the headstock was redesigned and bound. The 22 fret rosewood fretboard was bound. These were thinline guitars with two F-holes and a neck that joined the body at the 15th fret. Two models were available this time, the GT-70 and GT-75. However Martin stayed the course and created a new series of electrics dubbed the GT series that became available the following year. In fact, but for the color of the covering and grill cloth these amps were virtually identical.īy late 1965 the Martin F series was discontinued due to lack of interest. The Martin Model 110T and 112T were made by the DeArmond Company. The F-50 and F-55 models both had trapeze tail pieces with a large M cut into the base that was mounted above the guitar’s top. They also had dual volume and tone controls. The F-55 and F-65 included a neck and bridge DeArmond Humbucking pickups and a toggle switch mounted on the upper treble bout. The F-50 bore a single humbucking pickup at the bottom of the neck and a single volume and tone control on the lower bout. Like most archtops, the pickguard was elevated. Another unusual feature on this series was the use of a clear Plexiglas adjustable bridge.
The headstock was a typical Martin shaped with 3 plus 3 style tuners. The necks were glued into the instrument and processed a 20-fret rosewood fingerboard which joined the body at the 14th fret. The cutaways on these were different than any guitar of the day as they were wide and stood at almost a right angle from the neck and had a modified Florentine shape. All had a sort of dreadnaught shape, though the lower bout was wider. The tops and backs were maple plywood with the tops being bound. The bodies measured slightly less than 2” in thickness. They were designated models F-50, F-55 and F-65. These guitars were available for purchase as of 1962. In 1961 prototypes of a Martin thinline guitar was being developed. The D-28E and the 00-18E were produced through 1964.į-55 - F-65 - F-50 from the A Marshall Collection The D-18E was discontinued within a year. Subsequently they sound thinner than a typical X braced Martin.Īlthough Martin guitars did not become expensive until around 1973, electric guitar pickups that are screwed into a Martin acoustic guitar and holes drilled into the top and ladder bracing? That is a sacrilege! This changed the sound when the guitar was played acoustically. The D-28E had gold plated Grover Roto tuners.īesides the pickups the biggest difference between the electric and acoustic models of this series was, due to the pickups mounting, the electrics were made with transverse bracing on the top. The D-18E and the 00-18E had mahogany back and sides and the D-28E had rosewood back and sides. There was a single volume and tone controls for this model.Īll of these guitars had the same accoutrements as their acoustic cousins. The 00-18E had only one similar DeArmond that was mounted at the bottom of the neck.