Martin Tenor Uke Dates??

spruce

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Hi all...
Long time no post...

I recently found this Martin Tenor, and am having problems figuring out when it was made...
No number stamps like on their guitars... :(

Here's a few pics...

P1130664.jpg


P1130686.jpg


P1130697.jpg


Any help dating this thing would be greatly appreciated!
Bruce
 
Hi Bruce, I'm going with early thirties or newer. For help from folks that actually know what they're talking about I look to the Unofficial Martin Guitar Forum. The Four string Farmhouse or Vintage Corner have some dating tips and members well versed in vintage Martins.

Steve
 
BTW, didn't mean to sound like I think that folks here don't know what they're talking about, just wanted to pass along a great resource that some might not have seen before. I found this post there, should help narrow it down.



Approximate dates:
1927: change from wooden pegs to patent tuners
1932: script logo added to the front
1932-34: silkscreen script logo
1934: end of bar frets (on guitars, anyway)
1935: end of back stamp (on guitars)
1962: "Made in U.S.A." stamped inside the instrument

Something else could help you: I found a Martin ukulele chart on the web site of Ukulele Club of Santa Cruz. It is a handy document (except for the outdated "Value today").

They present it as four pdf pages that you can download separately.

I put the four pages together for a single download if you prefer it that way. Note that the combined pdf is 2MB.


Click here to download the document.

You could also have a look at this: The History of Martin Ukuleles...Part II

or this: IDENTIFYING MARTIN GUITARS, MANDOLINS, AND UKULELES
Richard


Martin: 1937 0-17T*|1924 2-17*| 1935 C-1*| 1941 0-15*| 1957 00-18*| 2003 5-15 Terz*| 1-T*tenor*uke*| 1950's*Style*2*uke*| 1932-34*Style*1*uke*| 1927-31*Style*0*uke*| 1950's*Style*0*uke*| 2005*SO*uke*| 2006 Backpacker
Other
 
dates

I have one just like this.
The best I can determine is late '30's to mid '40's
This is because of the trim, logo/no stamp and neck to body at the 12th fret.
Late '30's changed to this plastic tortoise trim and stopped stamping the back.
Sometime in the 40's they switched from 12th fret (like yours) to the 14th and remained there until discontinued.
 
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