Martin Guitar Introduces the D-18 Del McCoury 50th Anniversary Custom Edition

January 13, 2010
It is hard to believe Del McCoury just celebrated 50 years of playing bluegrass. The legend of traditional bluegrass with his Del McCoury Band continues to record and tour almost nonstop, and remains both one of its most popular artists and one whose music transcends the genre.
McCoury was already bluegrass royalty in 2002 when C.F. Martin created the D-28 Del McCoury Limited Edition guitar of which a respectable 115 instruments were sold in his honor, achieving a new level of success with music both timeless and groundbreaking.
True to its inspiration, the Martin D-18 Del McCoury 50th Anniversary Custom Edition features exceptional premium tonewoods. The Adirondack spruce top and scalloped braces are crafted with early '40s-era placement, to produce a powerful, balanced tone. Back and sides are genuine mahogany, which imparts midrange "punch" and clarity. The genuine mahogany neck features a rounded, full thickness "V" profile and 1930's style heel.
The body appointments are pure, traditional Style 18: classic Old Style 18 rosette, Style 18 five-element black/white fine line top purfling, Delmar tortoise-brown top, side and back binding, Delmar tortoise-brown end piece, Style 18 back strip, and classic beveled and polished Delmar tortoise color pickguard. Only time can produce the rich patina of the top on Del's '47, but aging toner gives the D-18 Del McCoury 50th Anniversary Custom Edition a good start in that direction. The neck's polished headplate is Madagascar rosewood and the Golden Era® C.F. Martin decal and nickel Waverly™ tuners with oval buttons closely replicate the vintage original. The unbound black ebony fingerboard features Old Style 18 abalone pearl position markers and is matched by the black ebony heelcap. The belly bridge likewise is black ebony. Both the vintage-style angled nut and compensated saddle are crafted from genuine bone. Ebony bridge pins and end pin are topped with abalone pearl dot inlays.
To approximate the color of the classic 1940s D-18, the mahogany on the D-18 Del McCoury Custom Edition is stained dark prior to finishing. Martin's flawless polished gloss lacquer finish completes this instrument's classic look. Delivered in a Geib style hardshell case, each Martin D-18 Del McCoury 50th Anniversary Custom Edition guitar features two interior labels; a Del McCoury 50th Anniversary label and a Custom Edition label personally signed by Del McCoury and numbered in sequence with the edition total. In honor of his 50 years in music, only 50 of the D-18 Del McCoury 50th Anniversary Custom Edition will be produced. Authorized C.F. Martin dealers will take orders (including orders for left-handed instruments at no additional charge) for the D-18 Del McCoury 50th Anniversary Custom Edition until the edition is fully subscribed. The names of participating Martin dealers then will be posted on the Martin website: http://www.martinguitar.com/ .