Martin Kenny Wayne Shepherd Signature Acoustic/Electric Guitar, JC-16KWS, Prototype #2 of 3

Martin Kenny Wayne Shepherd Signature Acoustic/Electric Guitar, JC-16KWS, Prototype #2 of 3

Some background…. In October 2008, Christies, New York, auctioned several Martin factory-owned guitars as part of campaign to raise funds for environmental causes.  Included in that auction was this 2000 Kenny Wayne Shepherd acoustic-electric, the second of three prototypes produced for Shepherd before Martin began the limited production of his signature JC-16KWS guitar.  I was the high bidder and received it soon after the auction.  It essentially remained in its case at my home for the next year.

In early 2010, I attempted to do a basic setup and discovered that the truss rod nut was seized.  I brought it to a local Martin authorized repair luthier, who confirmed the problem, and contacted the Martin factory.  A Martin representative advised that, although the guitar was a prototype and sold at auction, it was considered “new” to me and if I registered it, I would be eligible for warranty service at the factory.

As Nazareth, PA is a short drive from my home, I delivered the guitar to Martin in March 2010, and met with a factory rep, who turned out to be the same tech who had worked with KWS on the design prototypes for the guitar.  Kenny had been at the Martin factory to try out the prototypes around 2000. The one you’re looking at, #2, evolved from Martin’s efforts to perfect the blue inlay and piano black finishes on this model, as these were, at the time, rare colors for Martin, especially the black.  Warranty service was subsequently performed at the factory with a neck reset and the guitar was set to factory specs. Martin may still retain Prototype #1. Kenny had prototype #3, and used it as a stage guitar (along with other Martins), according to his online gear reviews.

This guitar has remained essentially unplayed and safely stored away in my non-smoking home. Never gigged, although it’s built to be a stage guitar.  I’ve treated it as my “collectable” and regularly checked case humidity, overall condition, and had pro setups performed periodically. From the inside out, it is in excellent-plus condition, with a few, very light scratches on the pickguard. A tiny bit of the blue inlay on the body seems slightly uneven in color in a few places - hardly noticeable - and may be due to aging (this is a 15 year old guitar, with a five year old neck reset).  Body, neck, front, back and sides are immaculate (see pics). It really is a beautiful guitar. It sounds fantastic too, either acoustically or amplified.  

Note: Only the prototypes have a volute on the back of the neck at the headstock.  Serial number is 773698.

Shipped in OHSC, with original documentation. As this is not a production guitar, it did come with the usual Martin case candy when I received it from Christies.  I’ve included auction docs, warranty work emails, and a new set of Martin strings.

CAREFULLY packed in an acoustic guitar shipping box.  Sorry, no international shipping.  ALL SALES FINAL, so please ask questions before purchase!  Happy to address any concerns, and supply additional photos if needed. Thanks for looking!