1958 D-18 FLAT TOP

[aceshadowwolf]

I HAVE A 1958 MARTIN D-18 FLAT TOP GUITAR THAT MY MOTHER PURCHASE BRAND NEW. WAS TOLD IT WAS WORTH 4000 TO 5000 A HAVE A GUY DRIVING DOWN FROM NY,WHICH IS ABOUT 300 MILES FROM MY HOUSE TO LOOK AT IT THE FIRST OF THE YEAR.THIS GUITAR IS IN EXCELLENT CONDITION .ORIGINAL BUT A COUPLE BELT BUCKLE MARKS ON BACK FROM ME.I KNOW TO THIS DAY I DONT WEAR A BELT WHEN I PLAY.I HAVE NEVER SEEN A GUITAR OTHER THAN NEWER IN THIS CONDITION. IS THIS GUY TRYING TO TAKE ME FOR A RIDE. ALSO MOM BEING THE ORIGINAL OWNER MARTIN WILL REFURBISH FOR FREE.WILL THIS UP OR LOWER THE VALUE OF THE GUITAR. THANKS FOR ANY FEED BACK.

[VintAxe]

According to the 11th Edition of the Blue Book of Acoustic Guitars the $4,000 to $5,000 range is a bit low for a 1958 D-18 in Excellent condition. They suggest $6,000-$7,000 for Excellent and $4,000-$5,000 for Average.

I don't think your potential buyer is trying to take you for a ride; it just makes sense for him to make a conservative offer given he hasn't actually inspected the guitar. The final price will likely be determined by the extent he agrees with your condition assessment, how it sounds and feels to him as a player and how badly you want to sell the guitar.

Keep in mind that just because the BB suggests a value range for an instrument, it doesn't mean there is a line of people with cash in their pocket to give you that price. It also might be that your guitar is worth more than what the BB suggests. Given the value of your instrument, it might be worth sending $50 and some pictures to Gruhn's Guitars for an assessment of current value.



I checked Gruhn's current inventory to see if they were selling any instruments similar to yours.

1943 D-18 (refinished and repaired cracks) $10,000
1956 D-18 (refinished and reset neck by Martin) $5,000
1961 D-18 (repaired cracks) $2,500
1965 D-18 (Excellent) $4,200

What all of this says to me is a 1958 D-18 in the condition you describe is not common. In a collectible guitar like this condition is everything so I think you should expect to get a premium price for your instrument. However, if you are selling to a dealer, you can't expect him to pay a premium retail price since he's got to make money on resale. I think a good rule of thumb is the dealer should be expected to pay about 65% of retail. This is where how badly you want to sell the guitar comes into play.

I wouldn't send the guitar to Martin, especially if the biggest issue is a scratch on the back.

Let us know how the deal turns out.

[Spud1950]

Good advice and pricing from VintAxe. Here's a '57 for sale at Elderly Instruments. As you can see from the description, it is not in anywhere near the great condition you say yours is in. Crack repairs and replaced parts,along with a lot of pretty obvious finish flaws. Based on that, I would agree that yours is probably worth quite a bit more then you 've been thinking it was.




The only reason to go through the trouble of sending a guitar to Martin to be refurbished would be if it was in really poor condition. A few minor scratches on a guitar in otherwise excellent original condition is really not going to hurt the value much. Any sort of refinishing will actually hurt it a lot more. Getting an appraisal from Gruhn's for $50 is really the best thing you can do. He is the most respected authority on vintage guitars and having a documented appraisal from him will give you a lot of leverage when it comes to selling the guitar.

[aceshadowwolf]

THANKS FOR THE FEED BACK.I HAVE DONE ALOT OF REACH ON THE GUITAR ITSELF. 976 WERE MADE,COULD VERY WELL BE THE ENGELMANN SPRUCE,KLUSON RIDGEBACK DELUXE TUNERS ,TORTOISE GRAIN PICK GUARD AND BINDING,MAPLE BRIDGE,LONG DROP-IN SADDLE.NO ROSEWOOD WHICH CHANGED THE SOUND DRASTICLY TILL 1988 WHEN THEY WENT BACK TO THE MAPLE BELLY BRIDGE. HOT HIDE GLUE, ALSO HAS ORIGINAL GIBSON FAULTLESS;CALIFORNIA GIRL CASE WITH PLUSH PINK LINER THAT MARTIN USED UNTIL 1960.I CANT FIND ANYTHING CLOSE TO THE CONDITION THAT THIS IS IN THAT HASNT BEEN REPAIRED FOR CRACKS OR BRACING OR LOOKS LIKE IT WAS JUST BEAT TO DEATH. HONESTY IM NOT SURE IF I WANT TO SELL UNLESS ITS VALUE SEEMS LIKE ITS GO TO FALL LIKE SOME OF THE OTHER OLDER GUITARS .I WILL HAVE GRUHN DO AN APPRASIAL TO GET A BALL PARK.I GUESS I JUST DONT WANT TO SEE IT ON E-BAY FOR SOLD FOR 8000. I JUST WOULD LIKE AN HONEST APPRAISEL. THANKS AGAIN SIGN JUST SCARED