Vintage vs Modern

Scooter1552

Active member
Joined
Nov 20, 2016
Messages
32
Reaction score
1
Location
Spokane, WA
IMG_0364.jpgIMG_0366.jpgI am fortunate to own a vintage Martina T1 and a 7 year old Pono RT-E and would like to share some of the differences between them. Both instruments are fine examples of craftsmanship and are a pleasure to play. The Martin is fine boned and fragile feeling. Very light and delicate. The Pono is chunky and more robust feeling in the hands but only compared to the Martin. The Martin neck is thinner and narrow feeling but still easy to play and tends to be more forgiving than the Pono. Both have wonderful but unique sounds. The mahogany Martin is warmer and more mellow, the Pono brighter but very balanced with the rosewood and cedar. The Pono is much easier to tune due to modern tuners but that inconvenience is the price of admission to vintage instruments and actually becomes enjoyable over time. I love both of these ukes and enjoy being able experience both the old and the new.
 
Scooter, thanks for posting. Do you know what year the vintage T1 is from? And is it Koa or Mahogany?

You should find a Martin dealer near you and compare your vintage T1 to a T1...It would be interesting to hear about the differences in those models.
 
My T1 was made in early the early 60's judging from the made in USA stamp on the inside that was added in 1960 and the tortoise shell binding which was changed to black ivoroid in 64 or 65.
Unfortunately the dealers near me that carry Martins don't carry their ukulele line.
 
The Martin has the stamp and red speckles in the binding so it's 61-65, 66 went to solid black binding. Also it's a 14 fret neck which is the more modern vintage build, less seen and probably the more sought after version. I have a 12 version that just sings. Enjoy!
 
Top Bottom