Japanese Martins
Martin?s first era of flirtation with electrics ended with its GTs, and, in terms of American production, wouldn?t resume until a decade later. However, in 1970 Martin joined the growing list of American manufacturers to begin importing guitars made in Japan, introducing its Sigma series. In around 1973, Martin, like competitors Guild and Gibson, began importing a line of Sigma solidbody electrics made in Japan by Tokai.
Like virtually all Japanese-made guitars from that era, Martin Sigma solidbodies were basically copies of other American models. Martin Sigmas employed slightly different headstock designs, unlike many copies carrying Japanese brand names, but essentially these are similar to most other of these early copies.
In 1974 Martin Sigma electrics included two SGs, a Tele and a Fender bass. The SBG2-6 was pretty much a straightforward SG copy with a bolt-on neck, center-peaked three-and-three head, block inlays, large pickguard, twin humbuckers, finetune bridge, and stop tailpiece, in cherry. The SBG2-9 was pretty cool, with a natural-finished plywood body, white pickguard, rosewood fingerboard with white block inlays, gold hardware and Bigsby. The SBF2-6 was a Tele with rosewood fingerboard, three-and-three head, block inlays, neck humbucker and bridge single-coil. The SBB2-8 was the bass, with natural finished body, three-and-three head, rosewood ?board, block inlays, white ?guard, and two humbucking pickups.
Martin?s Sigma electrics fared hardly better than its own electric guitar designs of the ?60s. After little more than a year, the electrics were dropped from the Sigma line. The Japanese companies? own replicas, of course, did swimmingly well.
