Martin D12-20 And D12-35 History And Changes

Model Changes By Year

Before 1964: Special Twelve-String Orders

Martin built occasional twelve-string instruments long before the D12 models. A purpose-built 00-21 was shipped in 1921, and an unusual C-2 archtop order followed in 1932.

Those isolated projects did not establish an uninterrupted twelve-string catalog family. The late-1964 D12-20 marks the beginning of the regular dreadnought program covered here.

Late 1964 And 1965: The D12-20

The first D12-20s were completed late in 1964 and appeared in the 1965 catalog. The design used a spruce top, mahogany back and sides, rosewood fingerboard and bridge, and a slotted headstock with six tuners on each side.

The neck joined the body at the twelfth fret. A 24.9-inch scale and 1 7/8-inch nut separated it from the usual long-scale, 14-fret six-string dreadnought. The bridge and headstock were laid out for twelve strings from the start.

1965: The D12-35 Adds Rosewood And Style 35 Trim

The D12-35 joined the line in 1965. Its three-piece Brazilian rosewood back, bound ebony fingerboard and ebony bridge supplied a more elaborate alternative to the mahogany D12-20.

It retained the twelve-string family’s 12-fret neck joint, 24.9-inch scale and 1 7/8-inch nut. The three-piece back connected it visually to the six-string D-35, but the short scale and twelve-string layout made the D12-35 a separate design.

1967: The Pickguard Transition

Early D12-20 and D12-35 guitars used tortoise-pattern pickguards. Black material entered during the 1967 transition.

This was a running production change. Some documented 1967 instruments retain the earlier tortoise-pattern guard, so 1967 should not be treated as a calendar boundary that makes every guitar identical. The mahogany-versus-rosewood distinction between the two models remained.

1968 And 1969: Bridge Plates And Rosewood

Rosewood bridge plates began replacing the earlier maple plates in 1968. Martin’s broader factory change is dated April 9, 1968; a separate exact D12 serial cutoff is not established here. Plate material and plate dimensions are different specifications and need not have changed together.

The D12-35 reached the late-1969 shift toward East Indian rosewood for standard back-and-side production. The D12-20 remained the mahogany-bodied model. A 1969 serial does not, by itself, establish the species of a D12-35’s rosewood panels.

Did The D12-35 Have The Same Scale As The D-35?

The original D12-35 used a 24.9-inch scale. The six-string D-35 used the longer 25.4-inch scale. Their shared Style 35 designation does not mean their neck and string layouts were the same.

Was 1965 The First Year Of The D12-20?

It was the catalog introduction year. The first D12-20 instruments were completed in late 1964. The Martin serial-number chart dates production separately from the year a model appeared in a catalog.