A genuine wartime Martin with elite pearl appointments, early tapered bracing, and verified factory documentation. One of 25 000-18s built on Shop Order 461 — and the second serial number in that batch.

This is the kind of vintage Martin that doesn’t come around often. Serial number 91367 was stamped on May 10, 1945 and completed on August 13, 1945 at C.F. Martin & Co. in Nazareth, Pennsylvania — the closing months of World War II. Factory records confirm it was the second 000-18 in a batch of 25 built under Shop Order 461. The original handwritten shop order is pictured in the listing photos.

What makes this guitar exceptional is not just its age or its documented provenance — it’s the Style 42 appointments that were added to what began as a Style 18 body. Abalone purfling encircles the top perimeter and the sound hole rosette. The Brazilian rosewood fingerboard carries the classic Martin “snowflake” and “cat’s eye” (slotted square) pearl inlays normally reserved for the highest-tier pre-war instruments. The result is a guitar with the warm, woody voice of a wartime 000-18 dressed in the visual elegance of a pre-war 42.

When the Pearl Was Added:

Under UV examination, the nitrocellulose lacquer over and around the pearl inlay shows the same aged green-amber fluorescence as the rest of the top and fingerboard — meaning the finish over the pearl work has aged in lockstep with the original guitar finish. That points strongly to the appointments being added early in this guitar’s life, not as a modern restoration. The most plausible scenario is a period-correct, expertly inlaid conversion done during the mid-20th-century vintage revival. These conversions were popularized by Mike Longworth and are prized pieces. Although there are no records of the conversion, and this guitar does not have Mike's distinguishing historical markings, the work is exquisite, and the beautiful abalone appointments make this 000-18 stand out in the crowd!

Internal inspection reveals features that place this guitar in rare company:

•Early tapered X-bracing. Martin officially transitioned from scalloped to tapered bracing in late 1944, so the early tapped braces inside a guitar stamped in May 1945 are a bit more refined than the later years' models, making it resonate and lighter. This indicates a transitional build, which makes it very desirable, stable, and playable.

•Linen side reinforcement strips running vertically along the interior mahogany sides — a true wartime hallmark used to stabilize the thin, lightweight mahogany Martin was working with during the material shortages of 1944–45.

•Featherweight body, at 3.9lbs., it is consistent with the thin-sanded tops and lighter bracing of the early 1940s.

Specifications:

•Model: 000-18

•Year: 1945 (Shop Order 461, stamped 5/10/45, completed 8/13/45)

•Serial Number: 91367

•Body: 14-fret Auditorium (000), 15” lower bout

•Top: Solid Pacific Northwest Sitka spruce — although this isn’t an Adirondack spruce top, it does have many of the aging characteristics and silking and grain patterns of Adirondack. Only close expert analysis could conclusively determine that this is indeed a Sitka top.   

•Back & Sides: Solid Honduran mahogany

•Neck: Mahogany with ebony reinforcement (no steel truss rod — period-correct wartime spec)

•Fingerboard: Brazilian rosewood with snowflake and cat’s eye pearl inlays

•Bridge: Ebony belly bridge with white pins, pearl dots

•Purfling: Full abalone around the top perimeter and sound hole rosette

•Bracing: Early Refined Tapered X (transitional)

•Scale Length: 24.9”

•Nut Width: 1-11/16”

•Tuners: Period-correct open-back with cream buttons

•Wight: 3.9lbs.

This is an 80-year-old instrument that has been played, loved, and properly maintained. UV analysis confirms a professional neck reset (visible darkening at the heel) — a standard and necessary procedure for a Martin of this age, and the right move for long-term playability. The action is dialed in, the neck is straight, and the guitar plays beautifully up and down the fingerboard.

A modern LR Baggs Anthem dual-source pickup system has been installed for stage use. It’s a clean, professional install, and the guitar is fully stage-ready out of the case.

The original lacquer is intact and shows the natural patina you’d expect from eight decades of life. No major cracks, no refinish.

The combination of a thin spruce top, refined tapered-style bracing, mahogany back and sides, and that featherweight construction produces the voice these wartime 000-18s are famous for — a dry, woody growl with a punchy midrange, fast response, and beautiful note separation. It rewards fingerstyle and flatpicking equally and records exceptionally well. It does not bark like a dreadnought; it speaks, and it carries.

Comes With:

•Original case (shows honest wear consistent with the guitar)

•Photograph of the original Shop Order 461 documentation

You are looking at a documented 1945 Martin 000-18 with verified factory records, early tapered bracing in a wartime-stamped body, Style 42 pearl appointments applied early in the guitar’s life, a proper neck reset, and a modern pickup system that makes it gig-ready. It carries the documentation, the construction markers, and the voice that serious collectors and players look for.

Buyer is welcome to request additional photographs and detail shots. Questions welcome before purchase.