Which Martin Do I have
 

I ordered what I thought was a used Martin OMC 16E Burst online. The guitar came yesterday and I'm not convinced that it is the guitar I ordered. The wooden plate on the neck stock where the model number would be says Special with a serial number 2517068 under it. I've tried to find out what guitar I have with no luck. I'm hoping that maybe someone on the forum can give me some insight on how to find out what it is. Thanks, Mike

Have you tried calling Martin? Give them the # and they can tell you the model and production date.

Thank you, I'll try that tomorrow when they're open.

+1 on calling Martin.

I have a D-16GT that was a limited run for Long & McQuade (Canada's Guitar Center) about 12 years ago. It has "Custom" stamped on the neck block rather than D-16 even though the only thing custom about it is the vintage toner. Perhaps yours is stamped with "Special" because it was a special run for the retailer?

Where did you buy the guitar? As far as I know, Martin doesn’t make an OMC-16. If that’s what you have, it would have to be a Special.

Did you get it from GC? Does it look a little bit bigger than an OM? If those are yes’es, it could be a 16 Special rosewood GPC. That’s a very nice guitar!

If you email Martin with the serial number they can give you the spec sheet on your guitar. I did that for a Martin VTS sitka topped D-18 I bought from Musicians Friend. They replied within a couple of days.

How about just posting a pic here?

I own a Martin that was built for Guitar Center. It is also called a "Special".
Mine is a GPC-16 Special Rosewood.

Your guitar will be something like it.
Martin will be able to let you know for sure. Email them with your info.

Thank you and I'll post a pic as soon as I can figure out how to do it. I don't see a way to upload from my phone or computer????

Thank you all I'm feeling better about my purchase and it did ship from GC.

It can get confusing. I have two Customs, a D 35 and an 00 15. The D 35 isn't really, but describing you guitar as a rosewood dread with a three piece back. koa back wedge, maple binding and rosewood fretboard and bridge is a bit cumbersome. If I were to sell it, the description would be D 35 Custom. Not true, but the best description I could put in a title.

My 00 is a 00 15 twelve fret slothead. The best description, to convey to people what it is, is 00 15sm. That does not exist. The only change is binding. To make matters more confusing, today it would be labeled a Special. Your guitar is likely pretty much what you think you bought, with a retailer adding something a little different when they ordered it. But while I'd list my 00 as a 00 15sm, I'd make very clear what the guitar actually is to avoid confusion. It does have a better case than comes with a 00 because Martin to my knowledge never made a "00 15sm," and used the 28 series case.

Likewise, My D 35 Custom would be listed that way with the same disclaimer in the heading. It makes practical sense.

Don't be surprised if they can't/won't give you a precise model name on a "special", BUT they should be able to give you the full detailed spec sheet. You can then compare to any production model. I have a "special/custom" 000-12 fretter for which they sent me a detailed spec sheet. It was just referred to as 000-12 at the top to define the basic configuration. It has the dovetail neck joint and numerous upgrades over std models...so "special" doesn't necessarily mean "less".:)