1920's Martin Style 2 Soprano Gets A Worthy Case (Bargain), And A Facelift

joejeweler

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As long as i had all the pics uploaded for my post on adding Grover friction tuners to my C. 1920's Martin Style 2 without altering the actual tapered peg holes on the peghead, found here: ( http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/f...rover-Tuners-amp-NO-Uke-Peghead-Modifications )

.....i thought i would offer another tip and some addition work i did.

This heavy duty violin case i picked up at a Salvation Army store about 10 years ago,....maybe $5.00 Always thought it would get some use someday. I did remove the 2 bow hold down catches and a tube so there would be no chance of contacting the Martin. There is a velcro strap for securing around the neck. A very soft foam pad in the upper part of the case (to the right) seems to end up just to the back of the tailblock. so i don't see the need add any additional padding to make up some of the empty space to the tailblock in the lower part of the case.

The case is heavily built of multi-ply wood with a zippered canvas cover, as well as a single metal latch covered by a separate metal snap catch covering the latch. No accidental opening here! There are double elastic straps in the lid, for
strings and things, as well as a covered compartment area above the headstock. A separate zippered area on the ouside might hold some music or other thin items.

Point is keep an eye out for a similiar violin or viola case at a yard sale, or your local Goodwill or Salvation Army Store. They usually go cheap, and an older one like this is well make. Probably a soprano is as big as it will fit, however, because the depth is limited. (on this one anyway).

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...more to follow, with the old Martin getting a facelift:
 
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As you can see in the link to the listing of this Martin over at Elderly, this Style 2 was refinished long ago in a very dark mahogany stain. The rosette was hidden beneath a refinish that has probably darkened over the years, virtually making it invisable unless a strong light was directed there, or in a flash photo.

Click on the Elderly link to see the dark covering on the rosette: http://elderly.com/vintage/items/180U-1524.htm

I decided that i would work on removing the obstruction over the rosette, and made a simple wooden sanding guide that followed the soundhole to remove the finish from just that area. The thin strip of sandpaper clogged regularly, but is was slow going anyway so i could control the guide. 2 hours later i was down to the bare mahogany and rosette.

I thought of adding a little darkening stain to the area, but decided against that as i knew i'd be adding many thin coats of Tru-oil to build up the rosette area to the surrounding level.

That worked well, as the Tru-oil is light brown and 5 or 6 light coats got me there over a week or so. After it has hardened for a few months i'll go back and blend it all a little better, but it looks pretty good as it is now. The rosette is
fully level to the surrounding top finish, and even a finger gone over the entire rosette feels perfectly smooth.

The rosette is now fully visable, yet has a light amber covering that makes it all look much better. The rosette "uncovering" does not appear to be a recent job,.....so it worked out very well.

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This Martin arrived with a slightly high action,...even for me. Still playable,....but better with about 1/2 mm lower at the 12th fret so 1 mm off the saddle.

However, when i started to clear the finish off the top of the saddle, i exposed a surprising very light wood that for sure is not ebony,.....mahogany perhaps?

In fact, i tried really hard to see if this early 1920's Martin soprano has a one piece saddle/bridge. Because of the old refinish that might have covered over and sealed a separate saddle,.....i can't be sure. I some light i "think" i can see a faint outline of a squared off saddle slot base,.....but can't be sure. The pic below shows most of what i see, but even a magnifier doesn't make it clear either way.

If anybody knows for sure if early Martin soprano ukuleles had a 1 piece bridge/saddle,....let me know and i'll just leave it. But if Martin "never" made a one piece unit, then i will assume someone replaced the original saddle (ebony?) with a mahogany or maple saddle and refinished over the entire bridge.

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with so much extra room in the case, does the ukulele swing around and hit the sides, or is the attachment at the neck enough to keep it still?
 
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with so much extra room in the case, does the ukulele swing around and hit the sides, or is the attachment at the neck enough to keep it still?

The velco holding the neck is the 1st point of securing the uke in the case. The lower bout has about 1/2 inch of space on either side that at some point i may build in some padding. The very soft foam section at the far right of the case top rests nicely against the tailblock area of the uke when closed, so it can't slide down.

For now a small cloth on either side of the lower bout keeps it from moving at all, as shown by a light shaking and no movement heard inside. I do have an extra foam insert from a Zero Haliberton aluminum case i might dig out and custom fit to this Martin. Can probably get the outer foam edge outline to fit right in this case, and of course the inner shape to closely match the Martin.

BTW,....i've had a few emails with a rep at Karura. They make fine carbon fiber guitar, banjo, and violin flight cases,....super light, strong,....and expensive! The three seem to go together! Anyway, in July he informed me they had just converted one of their violin cases to fit a customers ukulele,.....and was going to send me pictures. I just sent him off a reminder email,......

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I'm very interested in seeing how this restoration progresses. I recently bought a beat up old regal to mess around with. It seems to have been over-sprayed with something that has clouded. The obscured mahogany underneath looks to be attractive, a bit flamed, and I'd like to remove the finish and redo it. The problem is that the rosette is the multi-colored painted wood kind that will most likely not endure too much sanding beyond the finish. So, I've been considering sanding it very lightly then masking it off and tackling the rest of the body.

As for the Martin, I've seen some of these early ones that have these blocky bridges with what is described as "boxwood" saddles. They generally had the same type of nut, so it is likely that the nut was replaced on yours. I once played an old style 2 that had a replacement bridge with a bone saddle. The thing sounded amazing.
 
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