Year: 2009
Builder: Martin
Model: OM-1
Serial Number: 1403494
Top: Spruce
Body: Sapele
Body Finish: Satin
Body Size/Shape: 000-14 Fret
Body Width at Upper Bout: 11.25"
Body Width at Waist: 9.45"
Body Width at Lower Bout: 15"
Body Depth at Neck Joint: 3.35"
Body Depth at Tail Block: 4.125"
Body Binding: Black Boltaron
Body Purfling: None
Cutaway: None
Rosette: Style 28 Multi-Stripe
Pickguard: Black OM
Bridge: East Indian Rosewood 1-Style Belly
Bridge Pins: White w/ Black Dots
Saddle: Compensated Tusq
String Spacing at Saddle: 2.15625" (?)
Neck: Stratabond
Neck Finish: Satin
Neck Profile: Modified Low Oval
Neck Joint: Mortise and Tenon
Heelcap: Black
Scale Length: 25.4"
Fretboard: East Indian Rosewood
Fretboard Binding: None
Fretboard Inlay: Style 28 Dots
Frets: 20
Frets to Body: 14
Fretboard Radius: 16"
Nut: White Corian
Nut Width: 1.75"
Headstock: Solid w/ Standard Taper
Headplate: East Indian Rosewood HPL
Headplate Logo: Script Old Style Overlay
Tuners: Chrome Enclosed
Tuner Buttons: Small Chrome
Tuner Ratio: 18:1
Case: Martin TKL Hardshell Case
Pickup: None
Strings: D'Addario XS Phosphor Bronze (.012-.053)
I've always enjoyed having a guitar in my collection that I could use in situations where I might not want to take my more expensive guitars—one that I could also leave out on a guitar stand all the time to pick up whenever inspiration strikes without worrying as much about what might happen to it.
Some players refer to these types of guitars as "beaters" or "couch guitars," but I like to think of them as "songwriting guitars" since I tend to play them more often and take them with me when traveling and/or visiting unusual (and therefore inspiring) locations. I can remember the specific guitars and the specific places where I wrote most of the songs that ended up on my recordings—and more often than not, I was using one of these songwriting guitars.
After acquiring a pair of Martin OM-28s, I was on the lookout for a new songwriting guitar that shared similar specifications (body dimensions, nut width, scale length, etc.)... and as luck would have it, I found this Martin OM-1 for sale locally at a great price and snatched it up. I couldn't have asked for a better fit, since it's nearly identical to the OM-28s except for having a satin finish and using sapele instead of rosewood for the back and sides.
The OM-1 is an American-made Martin guitar with an all solid-wood body—and it even came with a nice hardshell case. But since it's a discontinued (and relatively obscure) model and was 17 years old with some minor cosmetic flaws, I was able to acquire it at a very reasonable cost which allows it to perfectly fill the "songwriting guitar" role I was looking for.
