Martin Guitar will celebrate the company’s two millionth guitar, to be unveiled at Winter NAMM 2017 in Anaheim, CA from Jan. 19 - 22, 2017. To commemorate this milestone model, C. F. Martin & Co. has partnered with America’s premier watchmaker RGM Watch Co., another Pennsylvania-based company, to create a one-of-a-kind model that will have a custom working RGM timepiece built into the headstock of the guitar.
Martin Guitar and RGM will also collaborate on the limited edition D-200 Deluxe. This collector’s model is limited to only 50 guitars, and each model will feature a beautiful watch theme throughout the design, including the pickguard, which has pearl inlays of watch gears. The guitar will also come with a custom RGM watch.
Two Millionth Guitar
Martin Guitar's two millionth guitar will feature a D-45 style body, with the back and sides constructed from Brazilian rosewood. The top is crafted from highly figured bearclaw Engelmann spruce. The intriguing aspect of the guitar is the use of a watch motif to mark the anniversary, replete with decorative gears, guilloché (a process of cutting geometric patterns into metal), decorative inlays and a working watch embedded within the headstock. In order to bring this idea to life, Martin recruited the help of notable watchmakers, Roland G. Murphy of RGM. Chris Martin IV, Chairman and CEO of Martin Guitar, saw the value in what RGM brought to the table, “The two millionth guitar is complicated, particularly because it incorporates an actual watch into the design. But once you’re excited, you sort of put aside the hurdles that you have to jump over.”
D-200 Deluxe
After 184 years, and in celebration of the two millionth serial number milestone, C. F. Martin & Co. is introduces the D-200 Deluxe. In collaboration with renowned watchmaker Roland G. Murphy (RGM), this unprecedented instrument is symbolic of the passage of time with a unique watch theme displayed throughout the many highly decorative aspects of the model. A classic 14-fret Style 45 Dreadnought is the basis. The top is crafted from highly figured bearclaw Engelmann spruce that features an aluminum rosette with guilloché engraving—a process of cutting geometric patterns into metal that also appears on the stainless steel tuning machine buttons of the edition.
The guitar's back of rare pre-CITES Brazilian rosewood, is inlaid with watch gears cut from reconstituted stone, mother-of-pearl, bloodwood, Hawaiian koa and ebony. The soundboard inlays feature a minute track in mother-of-pearl, birdseye maple, flamed Hawaiian koa and ebony, and a pickguard with pearl inlaid watch gears. Another decorative detail is the triple-strand abalone pearl striping that bisects the length of each side, referencing the early Spanish-inspired instruments of C. F. Martin Sr. The maple bound ebony fingerboard showcases watch gear mechanisms with the highest level of delicate inlay art. Each guitar is furnished with a newly designed wearable edition watch from RGM that references details from the D-200 guitar design and bears a matching serial number with each edition instrument. Lastly, each guitar comes in a premium aluminum Zero Manufacturing attaché case with a built-in hygrometer that allows the interior environment of the case to be seen without the need to open the case. (MSRP: $149,999)
For more information, visit martinguitar.com.
