1963 Martin D-18 Vintage Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar Collector-Grade w/ Case

Up for sale, a 1963 Martin D-18 dreadnought acoustic guitar in collector-grade condition, complete with a vintage hardshell case. An exceedingly well-kept vintage example, 100% original save for a fresh neck reset and carved bone saddle and nut, this D-18 boasts a solid Sitka spruce top and solid mahogany back and sides, yielding a tone that is rich and balanced with excellent projection. The guitar offers generous crisp trebles, and the plain strings are lively and sparkling in their response, with an overarching clarity to the sound that makes this dreadnought an ideal choice for fingerpicking. The guitar has a nice punchy midrange character and a bass register that's smooth and defined without excess woof. This Martin weighs 3lbs 14oz, professionally setup here at Mike & Mike's Guitar Bar and dialed in with 12-54 strings, low action, and optimal intonation. The mahogany neck has an inviting, slender soft V profile carve, measuring .815" deep at the 1st fret and .980" at the 9th. The original gloss nitro lacquer on the profile is extremely smooth and free of palm wear with just a couple tiny nicks on the treble side of the carve behind frets 8-9. The Brazilian rosewood fretboard is an extremely dark cut of this particular tonewood, retaining the original slender frets which have been leveled and crowned in the guitar’s lifetime, currently showing just a hint of wear on the crowns of frets 1-3 beneath the plain strings. The guitar plays cleanly in all registers and notes ring out and sustain beautifully. The guitar features Martin's standard 25.4" dreadnought scale length, with an upgraded 1 11/16" wide hand-carved bone nut. The headstock features a Brazilian rosewood veneer on the face, with an immaculate Martin logo and positively gleaming original Kluson Deluxe single line tuning machines that turn smoothly and hold pitch well. The Brazilian rosewood bridge sits flush with the top on all edges, retaining its original small maple bridge plate and fitted with a compensated and carved saddle for optimal intonation. The saddle has good height given a recent neck reset, ensuring optimal playability for decades to come. The guitar is crack-free save for one very slight repaired split on the treble side lower bout edge on top adjacent to the binding (so faint it was not possible to photograph). The nitro lacquer gloss finish is stunningly clean and 100% original, framed by tortoise top and back binding and accented by the original tortoise pickguard. The pickguard is a particularly dark piece of tortoise material, sitting perfectly flat with no lifting or curling edges. A strap button was added to the neck heel, and it's a vintage Gibson-style button likely installed soon after purchase. Cosmetic wear is extremely restrained, limited to just a few minor scattered marks on top. There is virtually no lacquer checking and just a few minor finish scratches and tiny nicks on the back and sides. A vintage black tolex hardshell case is included. The case has a small pebble textured exterior, heavy duty latches, and the original handle.