NUD: Martin / Wurlitzer

jim275

Active member
Joined
May 25, 2018
Messages
42
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Location
PA, USA
Well, I finally gave in to the little voice that tells me “You live in PA, you need a Martin”.

I’ve been waiting for something different or special and I found this one. It’s a Wurlitzer #835 built by Martin (1922-1926). I have the King/Walsh book for reference but realized that there aren’t too many examples of these on the internet, so I thought I’d do a post for this one.

It’s basically a Style 0 with a few minor differences. The rosette colors alternate opposite of the standard Martins and the nut and saddle should be maple. This one has the Martin stamp on the back of the headstock and the Wurlitzer stamp inside the soundhole. The nut has been replaced and the original wood peg tuners were upgraded to these Wavery Pat. Pend. Ivoroid tuners.

I gave the uke a mild cleaning, adjusted the tuners and strung it up with M600’s. The action sits just above 3mm at the 12th fret. The neck is straight and the bar frets play smooth without a buzz. I’m not the connoisseur of tone but imagine that it's similar to other vintage Martins. What I can say is that it has the a bright, cheery tone that makes me happy.
 

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Beautiful! I bet it’s a joy to play a ukulele that old.
 
Very nice. Looks like it's in great shape. It's perfect if it makes you happy. Great score.

If I may ask, what was the connection to Wurlitzer? Is it referring to the organ/jukebox company?
 
Very nice. Looks like it's in great shape. It's perfect if it makes you happy. Great score.

If I may ask, what was the connection to Wurlitzer? Is it referring to the organ/jukebox company?

Wurlitzer had a number of different instruments available besides organs, etc. Most of them, like the ukulele above, were made by other companies and branded with the Wurlitzer mark. I owned a few Wurlitzer banjos years back..
 
Nice score! Congrats!
 
I love the way it looks. I have a Martin 1922-1926, it's the most fun uke to play!
 
Nice find. It is a revelation just how good those old Martins are.
 
Congratulations. I guess you lucked out!
 
Congratulations. Nothing quite like those old Martins.

Classics that have withstood the test of time and are better today than when they were made.
 
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