Martin Custom Shop 18 Style Dreadnought Sinker Mahogany, Adirondack Spruce

In the winter of 2019, we spent some time at the Martin Guitar Factory learning about the features and benefits of Sinker Mahogany. The wood used on the back and sides of this guitar is hand selected by Russo Music from a batch of premium Belize Mahogany that had been pulled from the murky, muddy depths of the Central American river system. For hundreds of years, these timbers have been washed over by sediment as they aged to perfection on the floor of these former logging highways. The logs are excavated by locals in Belize and processed at the Martin Factory for use by the Martin Custom Shop.

This dreadnought, 18-style guitar pays homage to the classic 14-fret D-18 by using premium materials paired with understated accoutrement. The back and sides are Sinker Mahogany set # 394, hand selected by Russo Music at the Martin Factory for its beautiful grain pattern, striation, and hue variation. The grain is mostly straight, with a mild curved flair complimenting the curve of the sides from shoulder to bout. The top is Adirondack Spruce, with a color variation from light to dark, topped with an aging toner and a gloss finish. The result is a well-balanced D-18 from E to e and just downright loud.

The hardwood neck is satin finish, with a low oval profile and high-performance taper. The fingerboard is black ebony with a 1 ¾” nut width that spreads to 2 1/8” at the 12th fret. Inlays are small old style 18 dots in abalone. The Sinker Mahogany headplate sports the Old Style Gold decal and the ultra-accurate Grover Nickel V97 StaTite 18:1 tuning machines.

This simply designed dreadnought is a testament to what can be accomplished by summing the best parts. Sinker and Adi, on a big dread simply cannot be beat.