Martin Custom Shop Expert 00028 1937 Ambertone

Martin's Custom Shop Expert series exists to do one thing exceptionally well: recreate the great instruments of Martin's golden age with the accuracy and feel of the originals, at a price that keeps them within reach. This 1937 000-28 is a faithful tribute to one of the most beloved Martins of the pre-war era, wearing a vintage low gloss Ambertone Burst finish with Stage 1 aging that gives it the warm, mellow look of a guitar that has already lived a little.

At its heart is a top of solid Adirondack spruce, the tonewood that powered Martin's most revered pre-war guitars, paired with solid East Indian rosewood back and sides. Braced with scalloped X-bracing in the period style, it is built to deliver the dry, powerful and articulate voice that makes these 1930s instruments so sought after.

The vintage-correct details are everywhere you look. Herringbone purfling frames the top, with cream binding, a tortoise pickguard and a rosewood headstock overlay completing the pre-war aesthetic. The ebony fingerboard carries an elegant abalone long diamond and squares inlay, while an ebony belly bridge and open-gear Waverly tuners finish the package. The mahogany neck is carved to a Modified V profile that fills the hand in the best pre-war way.

With its perfectly balanced 000 body, 24.9 inch short scale and wide 1 13/16 inch nut, the 000-28 is a fingerstyle player's dream: articulate and responsive, with a wonderfully even voice that blends woody warmth, clear trebles and a focus that suits everything from delicate fingerpicking to light strumming. It records superbly and rewards a nuanced touch, yet has plenty of projection. It comes supplied in a hardshell case with its Certificate of Authenticity, booklet and a TFOA Passport.

This guitar has been carefully inspected for condition and playability, then set up to our Gold Standard by a luthier. We make sure it arrives in your hands exactly as it should: sounding its best, playing effortlessly and ready to be enjoyed from the very first note.