Tuners on 12 fret C. F. Martin Guitars
Martin guitars produced from 1833 to 1929, with necks built with 12 frets clear of the body, generally have one of three styles of tuners: enclosed tuners on a Stauffer style headstock, ebony or ivory pegs on a solid headstock, or geared machines designed to fit a slotted style headstock.
Stauffer Style Gears
The earliest guitars built by C. F. Martin had a headstock in the style of the guitars built by his mentor, Johann Stauffer, which utilised gears enclosed by a metal plate, with six tuning pegs in a row on one side of the headstock, a feature which was later borrowed by the Fender Company.
c. 1820's Guitar attributed to Johann Stauffer
Martin & Coupa Koa
Martin & Coupa Spanish
1840's Ivory Fingerboard Spanish Martin
Martin soon developed a flat headstock which is similar in shape to the headstock seen on Martins to this day. These early headstocks sported ebony or ivory pegs. The ivory pegs would remain an option into the early 20th century.
Ebony and Ivory Pegs
1840's Martin "Spanish Style" Guitar
1894 Martin 0-42
1870's Martin 2 1/2 - 26
Martin 0-34, date unknown
1896 Martin 2 1/2 - 42
12 Fret Gears
By the 1850's, most Martins used geared tuning machines, the first of which bore the name "Jerome".
Martin 1860 2-24 with Jerome tuners
While Jerome tuners with bone buttons appear on the earliest Martins, these rare large bone rollers appear on only the earliest Jerome tuners.
1840's Spanish Style Alternate X Brace Martin Guitar
The 19th Century Tuners, also with thick, heavy gears, made after the Jeromes are said to have been made by Seidel
Martin 1870's 1-26
Martin 1870's 1-28
Martin 1870's 2-27
I can't say who made these unusual tuners that appear on some of the Style 2-27. These are reminsiscent of the shape of a beautiful silver tuner that appeared on the early Style 40.
This is another uncommon tuner style that shows ups here on an unusual 1874 Martin with pearl buttons.
1874 Martin 1-28
These three on a plate 12 fret tuners show that Martin used the Seidel style tuners with concentric circles on the corners at least through 1897.
Martin 1897 1-21
This 1902 Style 00-42 prototype for the Style 45, with pearl buttons, shows that the Seidel Style tuners with imprinted corners and those with concentric circles were used contemporaneously through the years.
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