Martin 000-18

The Martin 000-18—by today’s standards—is a small-bodied flattop guitar similar in many respects to its larger D-18 cousin. However, its origins stem from guitarists of the early 1900s that wanted a longer necked instrument with a larger body. First introduced in 1911 as the “000” series with 12-frets clearing the body, the 14-fret Martin version (then called OM-18) made its appearance in 1930. By 1933, the name reverted back to 000-18. Today’s Martin 000-18 is a small bodied Orchestra-size flattop with a sitka spruce top and standard “X” pattern bracing. Its mahogany back/sides (the 000-28 features rosewood back/sides) give it a warmth and ability to produce lower frequencies. The neck and bridge are made from rosewood. The 1 11/16” bone nut width lends itself to fingerstyle playing as does its 24.9” scale length. American folk hero Woody Guthrie used a 000-18. The main points of distinction for 000’s from OM’s on newer era Martins are their shorter scale length (24.9" vs. 25.4") and thinness at the nut (1 11/16" vs. 1 3/4")