4003 inlay material?

[Colonel Sanders]

Can anyone point me to a resource outlining the source of the mother of pearl-ish inlay material on an early 80s 4003?
Customs wants to know and won't let it in the country until I can show them.

Did you manage to clear your bass from customs?

[FabGearHead]

Hi Jeff, actually, we make replicas of Pre-War Martin guitars and some Gibsons as well. I am just an old-school bass player who loves what is called "classic rock" these days. I started doing repair/restoration/refinishing as a profession in 1980. The guitar I mentioned was a replica OM-18 guitar. Yes, I managed to get it through Customs, but not without my own Govt. trying to extort money from me. Seriously...

Jim

[jps]

Jim, have you seen photos of the Martin I have?

[FabGearHead]

Wow! Jeffrey, you have a very unique guitar! It looks like a double cutaway OM-18 with a special bridge. What model is it?

Jim

[jps]

I found this used at my local GC last Summer. It was custom made for someone in 2009, going by the S/N and talking with someone at Martin. Here is a basic description:

Double Venetian cutaway OM body
Old Style 18 appointments
Grade 8 wood - Adirondack spruce top with 1/4" scalloped Adi braces, Mahogany B & S
Stauffer Pyramid bridge
Three dots only on ebony fingerboard
No pickguard
Low profile neck
Long diamond volute
Old style headstock and logo
Brazilian rosewood headplate
Waverly tuners with oval buttons
25 1/2" scale length, 1 11/16" bone nut, 2 1/8" string spacing at bridge
Gelb style case
Amazing tonality!

I am a bit of a sucker for "different" looking instruments and when I first saw this in a display case at the store I just had to try it even though I had never fallen for any Martins previously. The obvious things that told me there was something special were the bridge and waverly tuners, the double cutaways, notwithstanding. I was in the market for a smaller body guitar, and after the sales guy at GC put fresh strings on the guitar so I can more accurately judge it, I had no choice but to bring it home with me. I usually keep this guitar in some altered tuning, usually DADGAD, but for a while now I have it tuned CGDGAD; the bottom end of it is amazingly deep and open sounding with no bloat or congestion and the mids and high end sing and sparkle with the JP PB lights that are on it.

The guitar came with a Fishman Ellipse Matrix Blend pickup/preamp system (with the later version of the condenser microphone) installed from the factory but I don't really use it so I have been considering having it removed and a new saddle made.

Here are some more photos.

A lucky find at just the right time, really.

[devnulljp]

Can anyone point me to a resource outlining the source of the mother of pearl-ish inlay material on an early 80s 4003?
Customs wants to know and won't let it in the country until I can show them.

Did you manage to clear your bass from customs?

Yes! Jumped through all the hoops and they finally let it out. Sometimes you just run into a bit of a jobsworth and they make your life difficult just because they can

But, man it feels great. A bit of a setup and some fresh strings, and it just kills. Still might try a push/pull tone pot on the bridge pickup to bypass the cap, but other than that I love it.

[Colonel Sanders]

Good!

Happy for you!

Enjoy it.

And yes a push-pull pot can be useful.

[johnallg]

Can anyone point me to a resource outlining the source of the mother of pearl-ish inlay material on an early 80s 4003?
Customs wants to know and won't let it in the country until I can show them.

Did you manage to clear your bass from customs?

Yes! Jumped through all the hoops and they finally let it out. Sometimes you just run into a bit of a jobsworth and they make your life difficult just because they can

But, man it feels great. A bit of a setup and some fresh strings, and it just kills. Still might try a push/pull tone pot on the bridge pickup to bypass the cap, but other than that I love it.

Congrats on getting it through customs. Did you consider maybe he had a gig he wanted to play it at?

[henry5]

So the Ablam is real shell? I kinda thought it would be synthetic....doh!

[devnulljp]

Congrats on getting it through customs. Did you consider maybe he had a gig he wanted to play it at?

Could be -- they're now quibbling over the "tortoiseshell" pickguard on this telecaster bass



Clearly, somewhere in the world there are white/black/white 3-ply vinyl tortoises ...

[jps]

Congrats on getting it through customs. Did you consider maybe he had a gig he wanted to play it at?

Could be -- they're now quibbling over the "tortoiseshell" pickguard on this telecaster bass



Clearly, somewhere in the world there are white/black/white 3-ply vinyl tortoises ...

Oy!

[Colonel Sanders]

Congrats on getting it through customs. Did you consider maybe he had a gig he wanted to play it at?

Could be -- they're now quibbling over the "tortoiseshell" pickguard on this telecaster bass



Clearly, somewhere in the world there are white/black/white 3-ply vinyl tortoises ...

Good lord...

Awesome bass though!