This guitar is a commission sale - if you have a high end guitar you are interested in selling, please contact us via our easy to find website - search: Sell Us Your Guitar. Here for sale we have an incredibly special Martin D-40DM Don McLean 'American Pie' Commemorative acoustic guitar in Gloss Natural finish. Part of an extremely limited run of just 71 instruments made between '98 and '00 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the release of McLean's chart topper, 'American Pie'. As a commemorative guitar, it features many beautiful visual refinements including hexagonal abalone inlays marked with characters and themes from the song; King, Queen, Jester, Father, Son, Holy Ghost, Jack Flash & American Pie, as well as McLean's signature at the 20th fret. The interior label is marked 'No. 50 of 71', features hand-colored 'thumbs up' logos and is personally signed by Don Mclean and C. F. Martin IV. Made in the USA in 2000, an all-solid dovetail construction is employed and comprises an Engelmann Spruce top, East Indian Rosewood back and sides, Select Hardwood neck and 20 fret Ebony fingerboard with matching bridge. The body is double bound, whilst the top is adorned with multi-stripe purfling, abalone and multi-stripe rosette and handsome tortoiseshell pickguard. The back features a hand-inlaid back strap, whilst the neck and headstock are also bound. The headplate is Ebony, and is inlaid with an Abalone 'Torch' and Mother of Pearl Martin Logo. A Bone saddle and Nut are fitted, as well as a set of Gold sealed Martin tuning machines with Pearloid buttons The Select Hardwood neck plays superbly well, with a profile which might be described as a very soft 'V' shape. This encourages ergonomic thumb positioning in all registers and provides easy reach as well as smooth and responsive playability in all fingerboard positions. Akin to Martin's pre-war designs, a volute is also featured behind the nut. This is pleasant under the thumb in the open position, and produces an authentic historical character. The Ebony of the fingerboard is supremely luxurious under the fingers, which along with the binding and exclusive Abalone inlays adds a real sense of opulence to the playing experience. Its 16" radius is of course traditional for Martin, and ensures practicality for both chordal and melodic playing styles. The acoustic voice of the Martin D-40DM is rich and warm, delivering all the power and wide frequency response that we expect from Martin's dreadnoughts. The large body size provides ample bass response, which whilst strong is not overpowering. East Indian Rosewood back and sides produce warmth, depth and character, as well as open and clear mids. The top end is chiming and bright thanks to the fabulous quality of the Engelmann Spruce top and the scalloped bracing, which on this model has been shifted forward to encourage more resonance from the top. Indeed, it's easy to see why Rosewood and Spruce are often viewed as the dream combination of tonewoods. An impeccably appointed instrument with plenty of visual enhancements that make it stand out from the crowd aesthetically, with the sonic character to match. Brand - Martin Model - D-40DM Don McLean 'American Pie' Commemorative Finish - Gloss Natural Year - 2000 Made In - USA Top - Engelmann Spruce Back​/​Sides - East Indian Rosewood Neck - Select Hardwood Fingerboard - Ebony Fingerboard Radius - 16" Frets - 14 Clear, 20 Total Scale Length- 25.4" Nut Width - 1.6875" This guitar is a commission sale - if you have a high end guitar you are interested in selling, please contact us via our easy to find website - search: Sell Us Your Guitar.

Verification report

Luthier Report Our ID: 107032584140 Weight: 4.6lbs Serial: 750132 Aesthetic Condition: Headstock: Overall excellent condition. Very light wear to the finish is present at either side of the nut where it would make contact with a hanger. It is difficult to discern any other markings to the headstock. Neck: Overall excellent condition. The red lettering of the fingerboard inlays shows some slight signs of wear or fading, most notably on ‘Father’ & ‘Son’ at frets 7 & 9. The treble side binding shows very light signs of separation beside frets 1-3, with a very slight edge felt under the fingers in the playing position. This would require re-gluing to fix down, but due to the value of the guitar we have opted to leave this work for the new owner to perform at their discretion. Body: Overall excellent condition. Some binding shrinkage has resulted in a small gap in the binding by the heel on the rear edge, as can be expected for an instrument of this age. There is a small amount of glue residue at the edge of the pickguard, more notably towards the fingerboard. This is likely due to either shrinkage or drifting of the pickguard; the curved edge of the pickguard doesn’t line up quite perfectly with the rosette. The rear edge binding shows light discoloration throughout, most notably at the waist. Condition of Frets: The frets demonstrate very light signs of use, not affecting playability. There is considerable material remaining for any future fret work the new owner may wish to perform. Current Set Up: Truss Rod: Fully functional. Truss rod tool (5mm hex) included. Hardware: Excellent condition. Structural: Slight separation of the treble side neck binding, as mentioned above. There are no other structural concerns to note. Height of the string from the 12th Fret-2mm - Bass 2.75mm Please be aware that the action on a guitar may move slightly in transit and this measurement is the current height. Strings on Guitar - 11-52 There is a small amount of material remaining in the saddle for future adjustments. Electrics: N​/​A Case & Accessories: Original Martin Tweed hard case The case demonstrates very light signs of use. Truss rod tool included.