It's got that lovely original pickguard with the dark red celluloid pickguard which, I think, is unique to the sixties. That alone would make me decide to leave the top as it is. I've seen far worse-looking tops on Martins. I think that D18 has a lovely aged look with loads of mojo. If you re-top, it's present tone is gone and the breaking-in clock is reset to zero. Please don't do it! 🙂
That ended up being exactly what I did. I ended up just dealing with all the mechanical/structural issues of the guitar. It turned out just great. Thanks for sharing your good opinions!
If it plays right, if it sounds right.......and overall does this beatiful peace of wood makes happy........Leave it like it is and play it like it was your last day on earth ( btw 1963 is my year of birth....what should I say more as a guitarist
If that top is still structurally intact, LEAVE IT ALONE! Certainly do the other necessary work to get it playable; neck reset, frets, even do the truss rod! But without that '63 top, it's not a true vintage d-18 anymore in my opinion.
I’ve decided that I would leave the guitar exactly as it is structurally, (I am adding cleats on the back and side cracks) but I am in the process of resetting the neck, and the trussrod is actually already in! Once I have it back together, in the next few weeks, I will make sure to put a post up! Thanks for your thoughts!
I understand. I like a clean looking instrument too, which is why I’m curious about what people like. It’s a great sounding guitar, and also a good year for a Martin. I’m quite tempted to replace the top with something that looks original, but less abused. On an Instagram post, the response was overwhelmingly in favour of keeping it as it is! Quite interesting I think.
@@Hamm-toneGuitars I see guitars all the time that sell for thousands of dollars that look like they have been through a few wars....and, perhaps they have. Not for me, but I'm definitely odd-man-out on this issue....
If there's no cracks on the top especially under the bridge, then keep the top that's on it. There's A lot to be said for a nice aged top. And I get what your saying about a truss rod and if you do it though you loose the originality of how it was made. I've got three Martin's of my own, I'd ship off to Martin and let them reset the neck and a plek job wouldn't hurt either.
I do Trussrod conversions, and Neck sets on Martins on a pretty regular basis. I’ll post a video later on when this is finished to show the outcome. Thanks for your input!
Definitely step away from the top Jeremy. Step....away.....from........the..........top. Of course don't retop. 60 year old mojo in there. Hope this settles that. LOL
There's virtually nothing that can't be fixed on a guitar, but to replace a top with that awesome wear that shows no bellying or massive holes, that's downright illegal and bordering on treason. I assume this vid title is clickbait to create hubbub and argument, no?
This is been a curious one… A lot of the people that have seen the guitar in real life really like the mojo, but seem to feel that the damage to the grain, and the way it’s been touched up over the years to protect the wood, because of the players style of strumming, scares people away from it… I could retop it, and make it look vintage, correct, even relic’d to some extent, but I’ve really just hoped to get feedback so I can see what the majority of people think. The majority of people definitely think it should stay as it is. Structurally, there is no bellying, and it’s a really good sounding guitar. The top is just worn quite thin in some spots. Thank you for your input.
If the top's structurally sound and there's no excessive bellying above the normal slight bulge typically seen on a dreadnought, I think you should leave well alone. If you re-top it, you'll probably devalue it money-wise as well.
Are you planning on selling it or playing it? There's no way that putting a new top on it is going to be a wise financial decision, but if you're going to keep it and play it then do whatever inspires you to make music.
It's worth $10,000+ with the original top.... maybe $3,000-4,000 with a different top. If you want a cleaner guitar just have someone get it playable and original, sell it and buy a D-45 or whatever you want. 80% of the tone is in the old top. A new top makes it basically a modern instrument. Martin is literally making a "Street Legend" beat up looking guitar to copy old D-18's like this one and the one Kurt Cobain and Elliot Smith played.
In real life, it’s been surprising. How many people have asked me if I would replace the top… I thought if I would post this on the web, I would get a better idea of what the majority of people think. Thanks for your input!
