Martin Custom Shop Expert Series | Custom HD-28 Style Dreadnought | Premium Hand-Selected Ziricote & Certified European High Altitude Swiss Spruce

Martin Custom HD-28 Style Dreadnought | Premium Ziricote & Swiss Spruce

Hand-Selected Premium Tonewoods. Timeless Martin Power. Built Without Compromise.

Some guitars are built to impress. Others are built to inspire.

This extraordinary Martin Custom Shop Expert Series Dreadnought was conceived by the experienced team at Tobias Music and crafted by Martin’s legendary Custom Shop using one of the most visually stunning tonewood combinations we’ve ever selected.

Built on the legendary HD-28 platform, this instrument features an absolutely breathtaking Premium Hand-Selected Ziricote back and sides (Set #10) paired with a Certified European High Altitude Swiss Spruce top. Every component was carefully chosen to create a guitar that delivers exceptional projection, remarkable clarity, and the rich complexity that discerning players seek.

As one of only a select number of Martin Custom Shop Expert Dealers, Tobias Music has access to Martin’s exclusive tonewood vault, allowing our team to personally hand-select exceptional wood sets for instruments like this one.

The result is a one-of-a-kind dreadnought that is equally stunning on stage, in the studio, or proudly displayed in any serious collection.

✅ 🎸 Easy Financing Available

Bring home the guitar you’ve always wanted with 0% financing available for qualified buyers on most new guitars. We offer convenient financing options designed to make purchasing your next instrument simple and affordable—without compromising on the guitar you’ve been dreaming about.

When you purchase from Tobias Music, you’ll also enjoy:

• 0% Financing Available for qualified buyers on most new guitars
• Every guitar is professionally inspected and expertly set up before it ships
• Secure, fully insured nationwide shipping
• Family-owned and trusted by musicians for nearly 50 years
• Friendly, knowledgeable service before and after the sale

✅ Why We Chose This Guitar

Our Custom Shop Expert team selected this particular Ziricote set because it represents everything we look for in a premium custom Martin.

The dramatic figuring is among the finest we’ve encountered, featuring bold landscape-like grain patterns, exceptional contrast, and incredible depth that simply cannot be duplicated.

To complement this spectacular back and side set, we chose Certified European High Altitude Swiss Spruce, a top prized for its remarkable stiffness-to-weight ratio, fast response, rich overtone content, and wide dynamic range.

Combined with Martin’s legendary HD-28 architecture—including Forward Shifted X Bracing, a dovetail neck joint, and Golden Era appointments—this guitar delivers breathtaking tone while remaining unmistakably Martin.

✅ Our Expert Opinion

This is one of those guitars that immediately commands attention.

Visually, the Premium Ziricote is mesmerizing. Every angle reveals new layers of figure and color, while the European Flamed Maple binding frames the body beautifully and adds elegant contrast.

Tonally, this guitar is equally impressive.

The Swiss Spruce produces exceptional headroom, clarity, and articulation while the Ziricote contributes deep piano-like bass, rich overtones, focused mids, and brilliant yet controlled highs.

It has the power expected from an HD-28-style dreadnought, but with an added level of refinement and harmonic complexity that makes it feel truly special.

Whether flatpicked aggressively or fingerpicked delicately, this guitar responds with effortless balance and remarkable musicality.

Simply put, this is one of those rare guitars that makes you want to keep playing long after you intended to stop.

✅ Tone Profile

Bass: Deep, powerful, and piano-like

Midrange: Rich, articulate, and highly expressive

Treble: Brilliant, clear, and exceptionally detailed

Projection: Outstanding with tremendous headroom

Sustain: Long, blooming sustain with complex harmonic overtones

Overall Character:
Powerful like a traditional HD-28, yet noticeably more refined and harmonically rich thanks to the exceptional Swiss Spruce and Premium Ziricote pairing.

✅ Construction & Premium Features

Martin Custom Shop Expert Series

• Hand-selected Premium Ziricote Back & Sides (Set #10)
• Certified European High Altitude Swiss Spruce Top
• Classic HD-28 Style Dreadnought Body
• 14-Fret Construction
• Genuine Mahogany Neck
• Golden Era Modified Low Oval Neck Profile
• Traditional Dovetail Neck Joint
• Forward Shifted X Bracing
• Golden Era Style Ebony Bridge
• Black Ebony Fingerboard
• Bone Nut & Bone Saddle
• Liquid Metal Bridge Pins
• Premium Ziricote Headstock Overlay
• European Flamed Maple Binding
• Classic Herringbone Top Trim
• HD Zig-Zag Back Strip
• Vintage Foden Style Fingerboard Inlays
• Long Vintage Style Volute
• Gold Grover Tuners with Vintage Butterbean Buttons
• 25.4” Scale Length
• 1-3/4” Nut Width
• Martin Lifespan Medium Strings
• Upgraded 5-Ply Cabernet Martin Hardshell Case Included

✅ Who This Guitar Is Perfect For

This custom Martin is ideal for players who appreciate traditional Martin dreadnought power but desire something significantly more exclusive than a standard production instrument.

Its exceptional dynamic range makes it equally comfortable in bluegrass, country, singer-songwriter, worship, Americana, recording sessions, and solo acoustic performance.

Collectors will appreciate the extraordinary hand-selected Ziricote and premium Custom Shop craftsmanship, while performing musicians will fall in love with its responsiveness, projection, and unmistakable Martin voice.

✅ Specifications

• Model: Martin Custom HD-28 Style Dreadnought
• Body Size: Dreadnought 14-Fret
• Top Wood: Certified European High Altitude Swiss Spruce
• Back & Sides: Premium Hand-Selected Ziricote Set #10
• Neck: Genuine Mahogany
• Neck Profile: Golden Era Modified Low Oval
• Fingerboard: Black Ebony
• Bridge: Golden Era Style Ebony
• Scale Length: 25.4”
• Nut Width: 1-3/4”
• Nut: Bone
• Saddle: Bone
• Neck Joint: Traditional Dovetail
• Bracing: Forward Shifted X Bracing
• Binding: European Flamed Maple
• Top Trim: Herringbone
• Back Strip: HD Zig-Zag
• Headstock Overlay: Premium Ziricote
• Inlays: Vintage Foden Style
• Tuners: Gold Grover with Vintage Buttons
• Bridge Pins: Liquid Metal
• Strings: Martin Lifespan Medium
• Case: Upgraded Martin 5-Ply Cabernet Hardshell

✅ Why Buy From Tobias Music?

For nearly five decades, Tobias Music has been one of America’s trusted Martin dealers and one of the select Martin Custom Shop Expert Dealers with direct access to Martin’s exclusive tonewood vault.

Every Custom Shop Expert Series guitar represents decades of experience selecting exceptional woods, designing custom specifications, and delivering instruments that stand apart from standard production models.

Each guitar receives a meticulous inspection and professional setup by our experienced technicians before it ever reaches your hands.

We don’t simply sell guitars.

We help musicians find extraordinary instruments they’ll enjoy for a lifetime.

✅ Tobias Music Insight

There are custom Martins—and then there are guitars like this.

The combination of heavily figured Premium Ziricote and Certified High Altitude Swiss Spruce creates a voice that is simultaneously bold, refined, and incredibly musical. It has the familiar authority of an HD-28, yet possesses a level of complexity and visual artistry that elevates it into a completely different category.

If you’re searching for a Martin that few others will ever own, this Custom Shop Expert Series instrument represents everything we strive to create when selecting wood directly from Martin’s Custom Shop vault.