1932 Martin R-18 and a 1954 Gibson Les Paul Black Beauty

by Dr. Hudson
(Kentucky)

1932 R-18 f-holes

Hi,

Thank you in advance for your time. I can supply pictures if that would help place a value on these.

The 1932 Martin (serial #51725) has been in my family since 1945. It is in very good condition and hasn't been played but 5 or 6 times since my uncle died during the occupation of France in 1947. The pick guard is missing. Other than that it is in very good condition. The case is very old, but I have no idea if it is original.

The 1954 Gibson Les Paul Black Beauty, I bought from a friend of mine in 1977. I played it in a band for a couple of years and then put it up. It hasn't been player since 1981. It has some wear on it, but everything is original.

No restoration has been done on either one, to my knowledge they are completely original.

Thanks again

Dr. Hudson

ANSWER

Hi, Dr. Hudson--

Here is the Blue Book general info for the Martin:

R-18
- Grand Concert-style body, arched (1933-37) or carved (1937-1942) spruce top, arched mahogany back, mahogany sides, round soundhole (1933 only) or two three-piece (1933-37) or one-piece (1937-1942) f-holes, four-ply body binding with outer black layer, 14/20-fret rosewood fingerboard with white dot inlays, unbound headstock with decal logo, three-per-side nickel single unit tuners, rosewood bridge, nickel-plated trapeze tailpiece, raised black pickguard, available in dark back and sides with a Golden Brown Sunburst top finish, total production of 1,927 instruments (approx. 400 produced with round soundhole), mfg. 1932-1942.

The pricing info:

F-Holes
Excellent $2,000 - 2,500
Average $1,350 - 1,650

----
The General info for the Les Paul:

LES PAUL CUSTOM (1954-57 MFG.)
- single sharp cutaway multi-bound mahogany body with carved top, 13 in. wide, 17.25 in. long and 2 in. deep, 24.75 in. scale, raised bound black pickguard, mahogany neck, 22-fret bound ebony fingerboard with pearl block inlay, "Les Paul Custom" engraved on truss rod cover, tune-o-matic bridge/stop tailpiece, multi-bound peghead with pearl split diamond/logo inlay, 3-per-side Deluxe Kluson tuners with plastic single ring buttons, gold hardware, 2 single coil pickups with plastic covers (neck pickup has oblong polepieces, bridge pickup has round polepieces, 2 volume/2 tone controls, with or w/o Bigsby vibrato, 3-position switch, available in Black finish, mfg. 1954-57.

The pricing info:

Mint $50,000
Exc.+ $42,500
Exc. $35,000
Avg.+ $27,500
Avg. $20,000
General $16,500

Lynne

Give us five minutes of your time and we'll have you playing killer guitar! Guitar Superstars