The Story of C.F. Martin Vega Guitars built by Egmond in the Netherlands 

Thank you so much for this wonderful production. I have watched it before but could not understand a word ... Lol. I was gifted a VEGA. MARTIN V-845 a couple years ago , it was christmas time. At a church garage sale . a sight for sore eyes . if only she could talk. It has seen very heavy use . however it only took a couple of minutes once home and checking out my new treasure , that it was indeed . i was blessed with rare treasure . all solid tone woods , india Rosewood back and sides , German cedar top mohogany neck and german kolb tuners . it is 1 of 400. Netherlands built Martin U.S. Strike years model 845s. It is a true survivor , no resets to date or needed at this time.

Siert nice video i enjoyed it. I own a Rosewood model Vega i think av845/846? I'll have to look again, but it was nearly damaged from neglect neck separation at the body joint and some typical top separation probably from dryness. After a local lurhier repair shop in my central Tn area in Sparta, Tn(home if Lester Flatt and Jimmy Martin)did a neck reset and some going over body and a new pickguard it has a rich dreamy "Martin-ish" tone and I'm enjoying picking my gospel bluegrass music on it!! I'll try sending some pics here or maybe email? God bless

weer prachtig samengesteld Siert. Kan heel de wereld het Egmond verhaal zien.

Thank you for making this Video. I own a Vega Model 445 - Serial Number 100-264 that I purchased new in 1979 from a dealer in Detroit, MI for $250. with hard shell case. I still have the original hang-tags and receipt. I have never had any problems with the guitar, and in fact everyone loves the tone and sound. It cuts through all the guitars in our large group, and sounds better than most anything out there at any price. Can you tell me anything about serial number 100-264, and why some Vega's have held up so well for over 40 years, and others are described as junk... Thank you in advance for your response.

I have a V244 and V646. First I bought a V244 3 years ago and after a year or so I bought a V646 which was top of the line or at least higher price level. Haven't played a Martin yet, but they are just great guitars, especially if you consider the money I've paid (my guess: 10% of the money I would pay for a '70 Martin D28 or D18) . I took V244 to a local pro luthier and he haven't seen or heard of a Vega before. After he did some minor repairs, he also mentioned that it's a great sounding guitar.

Thank you for making this video. I've been looking for a history of the Martin made Vegas from the Netherlands for quite some time. I got my Vega in Milton, PA in December of 1980. While home from my first semester of college, I saw an ad in the local newspaper that someone was selling Martin guitars for $75. The sellers were two guitar makers that had placed the winning bid, sight unseen, on a trailer load of parts from the Martin Co. When they opened the trailer, they found a bunch of Vega and Sigma guitars, all factory seconds. They were selling the Sigmas for $40 and the Vegas for $75. I got the last Vega. Mine must have been produced on a good glue day, I've never had the neck problems described in the video. I have had some work done to it over the years, but I've owned it for 42 years and it has seen some heavy use. Nobody has ever mistaken it for a "real" Martin, but it is easy to play and sounds good. Quite a find for $75!

I might have one of those prototypes. Might. Trying to find info on it. It's a regular Egmond, looks like a Toledo S2, except for the headstock, which looks a bit more like that of a Martin. It's about from 75.

Dank Siert, voor de mooie documentaire. Je hebt er duidelijk veel energie in gestoken! Ik heb een Vega gitaar en ik ben altijd benieuwd geweest naar de geschiedenis. Leuk om er nu meer over te weten! Hoe is te achterhalen welke uit de serie het is? Zag in de video dat er 6 soorten zijn maar de beschrijving is niet goed te lezen. De gitaar klinkt fantastisch maar is helaas niet makkelijk te bespelen. De hals moet worden ‘goed gezet’. Misschien toch eens laten doen… Als u weet wie dat het beste kan… schijnt lastige klus te zijn dus wil het niet ‘zomaar iemand’ laten doen. Groet, Ronald

OK Kenneth. Good to hear that you are happy with your Martin Vega. I did not know that there were only 400 Vegas sent to the US. Is this the number of all the Vegas or just for the 846. And where did tou find this information?

I was playing a made in Japan v244 the other day and couldn't tell if the back and sides were laminate or solid wood. Would you happen to know?